Judge Edward C. Prado

CLEO 1969

“The CLEO program taught me the tools necessary for a successful law school career. It gave me the self-confidence to know I could compete and do well in a law school setting.”

Judge Edward C. Prado is a United States (U.S.) Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. He was previously a U.S. District Court Judge in the Western District of Texas for 19 years. Prior to becoming a Federal judge, he served as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas. He temporarily filled an unexpired term as State District Court Judge in the 187th District Court in Bexar County. He also served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender in the Western District of Texas and as an Assistant District Attorney in Bexar County, TX.

He has served on numerous ABA and Texas Bar committees and has also served on several Judicial Conference of the U.S. Committees. He is past president of the Fifth Circuit District Judges Association and a former member of the Executive Board of the Federal Judges Association. He has also served on the Board of the Federal Judicial Center. In 1992, he chaired a committee commissioned by the Chief Justice of the U.S. to assess legal representation for indigent criminal defendants.

In 2006, Judge Prado was recognized as the Outstanding Latino Judge by the Hispanic National Bar Association and was named one of 100 most influential Latinos in the U.S. by Hispanic Business Magazine. In 2007, he was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Houston Hispanic Bar Association, and received a Special Recognition Award from the U.S.- Mexico Bar Association.

Judge Prado graduated from the University of Texas with a B.A. in Government and received his J. D. from the University of Texas School of Law. He has been recognized as an outstanding alumnus by his high school, Junior College, his university, and his law school. Judge Prado is a frequent speaker at CLE programs. He has spoken throughout Latin America at international judicial conferences on numerous topics involving the U.S. judicial process.