Home/Our Judges/Veronica Rivas-Molloy
Veronica Rivas-Molloy
1st Court of Appeals, Place 3
Incumbent justice elected to the First Court of Appeals in 2020; the first immigrant and third Hispanic woman to serve on the court. UT-El Paso and University of Houston Law Center (magna cum laude), with a prior 20-year litigation and appellate career.
The court, in plain English
The First and Fourteenth Courts of Appeals sit in Houston and review appeals from trial courts across a ten-county district that includes Fort Bend, Harris, Brazoria, Galveston, Waller, Austin, Chambers, Colorado, Grimes, and Washington counties.
Why this seat matters
When a trial court gets it wrong, these justices are the correction. Their published opinions bind every trial court in the district — including every court in Fort Bend County.
On the Nov 3, 2026 ballot for 1st Court of Appeals, Place 3, Veronica Rivas-Molloy faces Todd Frankfort (Republican).
More about Veronica
Honors & recognition
- State Bar of Texas Judicial Poll winner, 2026 — the preferred choice among all candidates in her race
- Judicial Leadership Award, 2025, National Hispanic Bar Foundation
- Judge of the Year, 2024, Hispanic Bar Association of Houston
- Rated "Excellent" in the Houston Bar Association Judicial Evaluation Questionnaire in 2021, 2023 and 2025
On the bench
- The First Court of Appeals serves ten counties: Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Grimes, Harris, Waller and Washington
Gathered from Veronica Rivas-Molloy’s campaign website, checked 30 August 2026.
Endorsements
Endorsements are reported by the campaign or the endorsing organization. Nothing here is an endorsement by any other judge or candidate on this site.
Where this seat sits on your ballot
1st Court of Appeals, Place 3 appears in the Multi-County Courts of Appeals section of your ballot. Shared with nine neighboring counties. Their rulings bind every trial court in Fort Bend.