A map of the federal courts in Texas divides the state’s 254 counties into four districts — Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western — and each district is split into divisions that determine the specific courthouse city where your case is heard.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 124 – Texas Your county’s assignment is set by federal statute, so finding the right courthouse is a lookup, not a judgment call. The four districts together have 52 authorized judgeships and operate independently, each with its own clerk’s office, chief judge, and local rules.
The Northern District
The Northern District covers 100 counties across the Panhandle, much of West Texas, and the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. At roughly 96,000 square miles, it is the largest federal district by land area in the country outside of single-state districts. It holds 12 authorized district judgeships.2United States District Court Northern District of Texas. Court Information – Northern District of Texas
Court is held in seven cities: Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, San Angelo, Amarillo, Lubbock, and Wichita Falls. The Dallas and Fort Worth courthouses handle the bulk of the filings because the metroplex generates most of the district’s civil and criminal caseload. Amarillo and Lubbock serve the Panhandle and South Plains. Abilene and San Angelo cover the rural western counties assigned to this district, and Wichita Falls sits along the Red River in the north.
The Southern District
The Southern District runs from the Houston metropolitan area down the Gulf Coast and deep South Texas to the Mexican border. It carries the heaviest caseload of the four Texas districts and has 19 authorized judgeships.
Its seven divisions sit in Houston, Galveston, Victoria, Corpus Christi, Brownsville, Laredo, and McAllen. Houston is the district’s busiest courthouse by a wide margin. The three border divisions — Brownsville, Laredo, and McAllen — handle a heavy volume of immigration and drug-trafficking cases. Galveston, Victoria, and Corpus Christi cover the coastal counties in between.
The Eastern District
The Eastern District runs along the state’s eastern border with Louisiana and Arkansas, covering the Piney Woods region and communities stretching north toward the Red River. It has 8 authorized judgeships.
Court is held in Tyler, Beaumont, Sherman, Plano, Lufkin, Texarkana, Marshall, and Paris. Tyler serves as the divisional headquarters for many purposes. The Sherman Division holds proceedings in both Sherman and Plano. The Marshall Division has drawn national attention for its patent litigation docket.
The Western District
The Western District stretches from Central Texas through the Hill Country and far west to El Paso, including Austin, San Antonio, and the Big Bend region. It has 13 authorized judgeships.
Court is held in San Antonio, Austin, Waco, El Paso, Del Rio, Pecos, and Midland. San Antonio and Austin generate the largest share of civil filings. Waco has seen a significant increase in patent cases in recent years. El Paso and Del Rio handle substantial border-related criminal caseloads, and Pecos and Midland cover the far-west oil-country counties.
Finding Your County’s Division
Every Texas county is assigned by name to a specific district and division in 28 U.S.C. § 124.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 124 – Texas Travis County, for instance, belongs to the Western District’s Austin Division. Jefferson County falls in the Eastern District’s Beaumont Division. The statute lists every county under the division that hears its cases, so a quick read of the section tied to your district settles the question.
Each district court also publishes a map on its official website showing the divisional boundaries at a glance. If the statutory county list ever leaves you unsure — for example, when a county is on the edge of two divisions or shares a name with somewhere else — the district’s own map and clerk’s office are the authoritative check.
Why the Right Division Matters
Federal venue rules generally allow a civil lawsuit to be filed in the district where any defendant lives (if all defendants are Texas residents) or where a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claim took place.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1391 – Venue Generally Once you have the right district, the division follows from which division’s county list includes the relevant location.
The division controls where you physically show up. Two courthouses in the same district can be hundreds of miles apart, and each has its own assigned judges, clerk’s counter, and often its own scheduling practices. Local rules and judge-specific procedures — sometimes called standing orders or practice standards — vary by division and by individual judge, so the courthouse you file in shapes the day-to-day handling of your case.
If You File in the Wrong District
Filing in the wrong district or division does not automatically kill a case. The court can either dismiss it or, if justice requires, transfer it to the correct district.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1406 – Cure or Waiver of Defects Transfer is the more common outcome because dismissal would force the plaintiff to refile and possibly lose time on a statute of limitations. The transfer itself, though, eats weeks or months, so identifying the right courthouse before you file is worth the effort.
Confirming the Courthouse Before You Go
After identifying the correct district and division, confirm the practical details on the district court’s official website. The physical address for in-person appearances sometimes differs from the mailing address used for paper filings. Each district website lists operating hours for the clerk’s office, division-specific contact numbers, and the assigned judges for that location. Court websites also publish local rules, judge-specific procedures, and electronic filing instructions.
A five-minute check before your first appearance can prevent a wasted trip to the wrong building or a rejected filing over a formatting requirement you did not know about. If any detail on the site conflicts with what you find elsewhere, call the clerk’s office for that specific division. The clerk’s staff will not give legal advice, but they can confirm where to appear, what the current filing procedures are, and which judge sits at that courthouse.