MORE ABOUT JUDGE EMILY TOBOLOWSKY

Experience and Community Service:

- Elected Judge of the 298th Civil District Court in 2006 and sworn in on January 1, 2007.

- Re-elected by Dallas County voters in 2010, 2014 and 2018.

- American Board of Trial Advocates, Dallas Chapter, Trial Judge of the Year, 2016.

- Presiding Judge for all Dallas County Civil District Courts, 2016.

- Presiding Judge of the Jury Room, George Allen Courthouse, 2011.

- Has been appointed twice as the Pretrial Judge in multidistrict cases by the Multidistrict Litigation Panel of the Texas Supreme Court.

- Prior to becoming a Judge, owned and operated a law firm with practice areas in commercial litigation, including real estate litigation and employment law and litigation. 1999 to 2006.

- Previously practiced with two additional Dallas-based firms, with practice areas ranging from family law to commercial litigation. 1980 to 1998.

- As an attorney, in a nationally-recognized, objective survey of her peers she received the highest rating for legal ability and for professional ethics.

- Former lecturer on real estate & employment law and litigation.

- Life Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation.

- Member, Dallas Bar Association.

- Member of The William "Mac" Taylor American Inn of Court.

- Past Member,  Patrick E. Higginbotham Inn of Court.

- Past winner, Private Bar Involvement Award, from Legal Services of North Texas.

- J.D., Southern Methodist UniversitySchool of Law, 1980.

- B.A., University of Texas at Austin with High Honors, 1976.

- Past Vice President and Member, Board of Trustees, Temple Emanu-El, Dallas, Texas.

- Past President, Teatro Dallas.

- Past President, Dallas Chapter, American Jewish Committee.

- Past Member, Board of Directors, Greater Dallas Community Relations Commission.

- Past Member, Board of Trustees, The Mexico Institute.

- Past Board Member, Dallas Jewish Historical Society.

- Served as a Democratic Precinct Chair.

Additional Background:

Judge Tobolowsky was born into a family with a long history of community service and achievement. Her father, Edwin Tobolowsky, an anti-trust lawyer in the motion picture industry, also applied his energies to service as a founder and president of Golden Acres, a home for the aged, Jewish Family Service and the Variety Foundation of North Texas. Her mother, Shirley Tobolowsky, served with innumerable organizations including the Women's Council of Dallas County, The Volunteer Center, The Senior Source and the Visiting Nurses Association.

Like her brother, Mark, Judge Tobolowsky followed in her father's professional footsteps, becoming a lawyer after graduating from the SMU School of Law in 1980. She also took her parents' example of community service to heart at a young age. Judge Tobolowsky still fondly remembers organizing a neighborhood carnival as a child to raise money for the Kennedy Library after John F. Kennedy's death. That was just the beginning, as she has gone on to serve and support dozens of charities and community organizations.

"Growing up, I scarcely remember a time when my parents weren't stressing the importance of education and the responsibility to perform public service," Judge Tobolowsky recounts. "My mother was always on the phone organizing for non-profits. My father was always encouraging me to excel. One of the greatest lessons they taught me is that your family doesn't begin and end at home...because all of us are members of the community. It is our duty to give back."