The election of Justices for the Courts of Appeals are part of the general election, which was held on November 6, 2012.
The 5th District Court of Appeals covers the following Texas counties:
- Collin,
- Dallas,
- Grayson,
- Hunt,
- Kaufman
- Rockwall
Over a million people voted in this race. The final vote tally was 570,419 (52.6%) for the incumbent and 513,362 (47.4%) for Penny Robe Phillips. Penny won Dallas County with 57% of the vote in that county.
Why run for judge? In her own words:
Election day 2012 was Penny’s 20th anniversary of being licensed as a Texas lawyer. She spent many years as a government lawyer. In law school, she worked as a law clerk for the City of Lubbock for a while. Her first job after getting her law license was as a prosecutor in West Texas. Penny was an Assistant District Attorney in Hale and Swisher Counties.
Penny joined the U.S. Air Force in 1995 where she served as a JAG officer – that’s a lawyer who is also a commissioned officer on active duty in the military. While it was not quite as exciting as the TV show (JAG) or the movie (A Few Good Men), it was a great gig.
Penny left the Air Force and took a civilian job in the world of business. Penny spent the next nine years as a lawyer working for different companies in their legal department.
At the end of 2009, Penny opened Phillips Law Firm where she has been helping people make good strategic legal decisions.