Second Court of Appeals

Justice Place 4

J. Wade Birdwell (2017 to Present)

Wade Birdwell was born on July 8, 1959, in Fort Worth, Texas.  He attended The University of Texas at Austin, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering in 1983.  After graduating from college, he worked for Booz-Allen & Hamilton supervising a competitive bid test for the United States Postal Service at the Uniroyal facility outside of Laredo.

While working in Laredo, he decided to apply to law school.  He matriculated at The University of Houston Law Center, which had the benefit of being close to his home in Beaumont, and earned his J.D. in 1989.  While in law school, he served as a research editor on the Houston Law Review, participated in moot court and mock trial, and was inducted into the Order of Barristers.

Birdwell accepted an offer from Cantey & Hanger after law school and joined the firm’s medical malpractice section.  He later joined Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, where he focused on appellate law.  Birdwell then became of counsel to Wallach & Moore, handling the bulk of the firm’s appellate work.  In 1998, he became Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law.

In 2010, when the judge of the 342nd District Court in Tarrant County retired, Governor Rick Perry appointed Birdwell to fill the vacancy.  He took office on July 28, 2010, and was elected in 2010 and reelected in 2014.  In 2017, Governor Greg Abbott appointed Birdwell to the Second Court of Appeals.  He was sworn in on November 17, 2017.  He has since been elected to two full terms, the latter of which ends in 2030. 

Justice Birdwell is a member of the State Bar of Texas, Tarrant County Bar Association, Texas Bar Foundation, and the Tarrant County Bar Foundation. Additionally, he is a former member of the College of the State Bar of Texas and the Texas Association of Defense Counsel.