At the Democratic Meet and Greet on September 11, retired Justice Linda Yanez described her experience on the 13th Court of Appeals.
“In 1993 the dynamo with white hair, Gov. Ann Richards, appointed me to the 13th Court of Appeals,” she said. “I was the first woman on the 13th Court of Appeals and the first Latina in the state of Texas on an appellate court.”
Yanez recalled taking the bar in 1976 and being eight and a half months pregnant. She said the men objected to her being in the room because they thought she would give birth anytime and disrupt the test. So, she tested separately with some other women.
“That baby – she now sits on the First Court of Appeals in Houston,” she said.
Yanez said as a judge she’s not allowed to endorse anyone, which she said is hard because her daughter Regi Richardson is now running for the same court that she served.
“Who could believe that a parent wouldn’t support their child?” she said. “But I can state facts.”
“This is the most important court you’ve never heard of,” Yanez said. “They hear everything, whether it's a personal injury case or you go to jail the rest of your life or a contract dispute.”
She said the cases are not going to go up to the Texas Supreme Court, so it’s really the last word. She said the votes in the counties are critical.
