February 2026
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The following are remarks from the investiture ceremony for Travis County’s new magistrate judges: Adam Alvarez, Naomi Howard, and Jesse Taylor. The ceremony was held Nov. 19 at the Thurman-Blackwell Criminal Justice Center.
Thank you all for coming out today as we honor the three new magistrates who will be sworn into the Travis County Criminal District Courts.
Judge Adam Alvarez is a graduate of the Texas Tech University School of Law. After graduating law school, Judge Alvarez entered private practice, founding his own law firm, the Law Office of Adam Alvarez, in 2013. As a solo attorney, he represented injured Central Texans in court, as well as others accused of misdemeanor and felony crimes. He has also practiced family law, focusing on divorce and custody, as well as wills-and-estate planning. He is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District, or the Bankruptcy Court, as well as the Western District of Texas. Judge Alvarez speaks Spanish fluently and is sure to be a wonderful addition to the court.
Judge Naomi Howard comes to the court after practicing as a constitutional-defense attorney at Naomi Howard, P.C. Judge Howard brings a wealth of experience to the court: She practiced for six years for a Houston law firm. Judge Howard is also a former briefing attorney for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. In undergrad, Judge Howard served as a legal assistant in Waco and clerked for Scott, Douglass & McConnico. While pursuing her J.D. at St. Mary’s School of Law, she clerked for a San Antonio firm and interned at the U.S. Federal Public Defender’s Office. Two interesting details about Judge Howard are that she spent time in Japan teaching English, and she is one of the very few women who has trained as a sushi chef.
Judge Jesse Taylor comes to the criminal courts from the Travis County Public Defender’s Office. Before that, he was an assistant attorney for the county. Prior to entering government work, Judge Taylor was in private practice, practicing criminal law at the Vazquez Law Firm. He also went solo for several years at the Law Office of Jesse Taylor, then practiced at Smith & Vinson. While pursuing his J.D. at the University of Texas School of Law, Judge Taylor clerked in the Law Office of Charlie Roadman, where his responsibilities evolved as he progressed in his legal education. Judge Taylor was also a summer intern for UT’s Capital Punishment Clinic, where he conducted research for a petition for federal habeas corpus in a capital case in Texas.
I speak for everyone here today when I say congratulations to all three of you. We know you will be valuable additions to the court and will fight for equal access to justice for everyone in Central Texas.