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

United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

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 a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * Eastern District of Louisiana * M ...

Early life and education

Born in Longview,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, 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 deg ...

before entering the

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

. 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. It is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas (Southern Baptist Convention). History ETBU is located on the site of the former Van Zandt Fa ...

and

Abilene Christian University Abilene Christian University (ACU) is a Private university, private Churches of Christ, Christian university in Abilene, Texas. It was founded in 1906 as ''Childers Classical Institute''. ACU is one of the largest private universities in the Sout ...

. Parker earned a

Bachelor of Business Administration Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a bachelor's degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business administration and usually including advanced ...

degree in 1961 from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

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 Herbert Ray Roberts (March 28, 1913 – April 13, 1992) represented Texas's 4th congressional district from 1962 to 1981. He was a Democrat. Early life and education Roberts was born in rural Collin County, Texas in 1913. He grew up in the ran ...

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

Fort Worth Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. According ...

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. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

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 the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

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 who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

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

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, 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 20th-century American judges University of Texas School of Law alumni 21st-century American judges