Hon. Thomas R. Phillips

Thomas R. Phillips is a partner in the Austin office of Baker Botts L.L.P.,
concentrating in general litigation, including appellate, trial strategy, and alternate
dispute resolution. He was appointed and then elected Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of Texas in 1988, being one of the first four Republicans (along with Kent Hance,
Eugene Cook, and Bathan Hecht) to win a down-ballot statewide race since
Reconstruction.  He was re-elected in 1990, 1996, and 2002 before leaving the Court in
2004.

While in office, Phillips served as president of the Conference of Chief Justices in
1997-98 and as a member of the Federal-State Relations Committee of the
Administrative Conference of the United States and the Institutions of Democracy
Judicial Branch Commission of the Annenberg Public Policy Center.  After returning to
private life, he served on the Carter-Baker Commission on Federal Election Reform, the
Texas Historical Commission, the Texas State Historical Society, and the Judicial
Districts Board.

A native of Dallas, Phillips earned a B.A. from Baylor University in 1971 and a
J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1974. He has been awarded honorary doctoral
degrees from St. Edward’s University and Texas Tech University.  Prior to becoming
Chief Justice, he practiced law in Houston and served as judge of the 280th District
Court in Harris County. Texas.

He resides with his wife, Dr. Lyn B. Phillips, in a historic home in Bastrop.