Jorge Solis was a tough prosecutor, a fair and learned judge, a mentor for dozens of lawyers and once considered a candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court.
A former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Solis died Friday of an apparent heart attack while attending Mass. He was 70.
“We judges were very sad when he retired from the bench after serving almost 25 years, but we were all so very glad to see him when our paths crossed as he practiced law and mediated cases,” NDTX Chief Judge Barbara Lynn told The Texas Lawbook. “He left very big shoes to fill when I followed him as the Chief Judge of our court.”
“We all mourn the loss of a great public servant who led our court with a steady hand and administered justice with fairness and compassion,” Chief Judge Lynn said.
Born in San Ygnacio, Texas, Solis received his bachelor’s degree from McMurray College and his law degree from the University of Texas in 1976. He spent several years as a federal prosecutor handling narcotics and violent crimes cases.
In 1991, President George H.W. Bush appointed Solis to the federal bench in Dallas. During his 25 years on the federal bench, he presided over several high-profile cases, including deciding that the city of Irving’s at-large election system illegally diminished the voting power of Hispanic residents.
Solis sentenced former NFL wide receiver Sam Hurd to prison for his role in a cocaine and marijuana distribution conspiracy and sentenced five leaders of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development to prison after they were convicted on charges of providing financial support to Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization.
A national organization of Hispanic lawyers put Solis’ name at the top of a list the group submitted to two presidents for possible U.S. Supreme Court nominees.
Citing health-related issues, Solis retired as a federal judge in 2016. Judge Lynn replaced him as chief judge of the Northern District. In 2018, U.S. District Judge Karen Gren Scholer was nominated by President Donald Trump to fill Solis’ slot.
“The legal community is deeply saddened by the death of Judge Solis,” Judge Scholer told The Lawbook. “He was a trailblazer and a highly respected and beloved jurist. His devotion to public service and achieving justice inspired and won the admiration of so many people, including me.”
In 2018, Solis came out of semi-retirement to join the Dallas office of Katten Muchin.
“Judge Solis’ death is really surprising because, just a week ago, we were in court before Chief Judge Lynn on a case and he was fine,” said Katten litigation partner Brandon McCarthy, who recruited Solis to the law firm. “He was passionate about the law and justice. He worked on a lot of asylum cases.
“Judge Solis was a great lawyer and a great mentor,” McCarthy said.
Mark Solomon, managing partner of Katten’s Dallas office, said he worked on a matter this past Thursday with Solis.
“Judge Solis was a leading light for justice in our community and having someone of his stature join our firm was significantly important,” Solomon said. “Judge Solis was respected by all and he will be greatly missed.”