Richard Bennett

On August 18, 2026, President Trump nominated Richard Bennett to the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Biography 

Bennett attended Texas Christian University, where he received a B.A. in Latin American studies in 1997. He received his J.D. from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in 2000.

Legal Experience

After graduating from law school, Bennett served as an assistant district attorney in Galveston, Texas, from 2000 to 2003. He then clerked for Judge Marcia Crone on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. After his clerkship, Bennett worked as an assistant U.S. attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas. In 2010, Bennett joined ICE as an assistant chief counsel, a role in which he served from 2010 to 2016. After his stint with ICE, Bennett again served as an assistant U.S. attorney, this time with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. In April 2024, he was appointed to his current role as a magistrate judge for the Southern District of Texas.