Robert Manley Parker (October 19, 1937 – August 27, 2020) was a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is one of the 13 United States courts of appeals. It has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: ...

Early life and education

Born in Longview,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, Parker grew up in Hallsville, Texas and was named class president of his class at Hallsville High School. After high school, Parker entered

Kilgore College Kilgore College (KC) is a public community college in Kilgore, Texas. It has an annual enrollment in excess of 5,000 students and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate ...

before entering the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

. He returned to Texas in 1958, got married and began taking classes part-time at

East Texas Baptist University East Texas Baptist University (ETBU) is a private Baptist university in Marshall, Texas, United States. It is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas. History ETBU is located on the site of the former Van Zandt Farm at the highes ...

and

Abilene Christian University Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a Private university, private Christian research university in Abilene, Texas, United States. It is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as an R2 (High Research Spending and Doctorate Production) institutio ...

. Parker earned a

Bachelor of Business Administration A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of busine ...

degree in 1961 from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...

and a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Texas at Austin, a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas. According to Texas Law’s American Bar ...

in 1964.

Professional career

Parker worked in private legal practice in Gilmer, Texas from 1964 until 1965, and then in his native Longview in 1965. From 1965 until 1966, he worked as an administrative assistant to United States Representative

Ray Roberts Ray Roberts may refer to: *Ray Roberts (politician) Herbert Ray Roberts (March 28, 1913 – April 13, 1992) was an American Democratic politician who represented Texas's 4th congressional district from 1962 to 1981. Early life and education Rob ...

. He then worked in private law practice in Longview from 1966 until 1971, in private legal practice in

Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

from 1971 until 1972, and back in Longview as a partner in the firm Nichols & Parker from 1972 until joining the federal bench in 1979.

Federal judicial service

Parker was nominated by President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

on February 6, 1979, to the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (in case citations, E.D. Tex.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Fifth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. ...

, to a new seat authorized by 92 Stat. 1629. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on April 24, 1979, and received commission on April 26, 1979. He served as Chief Judge, from 1990 to 1994. His service terminated on June 17, 1994, due to elevation to the Fifth Circuit. Parker was nominated by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

on January 27, 1994, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Samuel D. Johnson, Jr. He was confirmed by the Senate on June 15, 1994, and received commission on June 16, 1994. His service terminated on November 1, 2002, due to retirement.

Return to private practice

After his retirement from the federal bench, Parker returned to private practice. In 2002 he formed the law firm of Parker, Bunt & Ainsworth in Tyler, Texas, specializing in patent litigation, business litigation and arbitration. He also served as a Trustee for the Haliburton Asbestos Trust.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Robert Manley 1937 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American lawyers Abilene Christian University alumni East Texas Baptist University alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas People from Hallsville, Texas People from Longview, Texas United States court of appeals judges appointed by Bill Clinton United States district court judges appointed by Jimmy Carter University of Texas School of Law alumni 21st-century American judges