Jennifer Walker Elrod is the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She was nominated and confirmed to the Fifth Circuit in 2007. Prior to her tenure on the Fifth Circuit, Judge Elrod was appointed and then twice elected Judge of the 190th Civil District Court of Harris County, Texas, where she spent over five years presiding over more than 200 jury and non-jury trials.

Judge Elrod received her B.A. magna cum laude in Economics from Baylor University, where she was named the Outstanding Graduating Senior in the Honors Program and later an Outstanding Young Alumna. She then graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School, where she was an Ames Moot Court finalist and a Senior Editor of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. She clerked for the Honorable Sim Lake in the Southern District of Texas. Before serving as a judge, Judge Elrod worked in private practice, focusing on civil litigation, antitrust, and employment matters.

Judge Elrod has been recognized for her work as a jurist, as well as for her pro bono work and contributions to the community. She has previously been named the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists’ Appellate Judge of the Year and the Chief Justice Jack Pope Professionalism Award recipient. Judge Elrod currently serves on the Board of Directors and as the Jurist-in-Residence at South Texas College of Law, where she has taught civil procedure and First Amendment law and where she will teach Federal Courts in the Spring 2026 semester. She also serves as a member of the the American Law Institute, the Board of Directors for the South Texas College of Law, and the Executive Committee of Houston’s Garland R. Walker Inn of Court. Chief Justice Roberts recently appointed her to serve on the Executive Committee for the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Judge Elrod is actively engaged in the academic and legal communities, and has written articles on artificial intelligence, the importance of pro bono work and community service, juries, and state courts.