SPARKS, SAM (1939 ~ 2025). The following is a family-written obituary for Sam Sparks, former United States Western District judge.
It is with deepest sadness that the family of U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks shares his passing on Sept. 17, 2025, at the age of 85.
Judge Sparks will be lovingly remembered by six children and stepchildren: Chris, David, Scott, Rick, Kelly, and Boo, along with their families, nine grandchildren, five great grandchildren; his sister Sandra Martin, her husband C.A. Martin; his sister-in-law Sadi Perron-Sparks and their families.
Judge Sparks was born in 1939 in Austin. He was named after both his great grandfather (a sheriff of Bell County, Texas) and his grandfather, who succeeded him in 1897 and went on to become the president of the Texas Sheriff's Association in 1903, and later Texas state treasurer in 1906.
Following in his family’s proud history of service to the great state of Texas, he earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Texas in 1961 then pursued a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. Upon graduation in 1963, he began his career as a clerk for Judge Homer Thornberry on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, then spent nearly three decades in private practice in El Paso.
Having devoted his life to becoming one of the nation’s fiercest trial attorneys from 1965 through 1991, he reached the pinnacle of his career when President George H.W. Bush nominated him as a federal judge in 1991, serving the Western District in Austin for 26 years until assuming senior status in 2017.
During his time on the bench, not only was he known for his quick wit and sense of humor, but for his love of poetry, sometimes including noteworthy rhymes in his orders; but in all seriousness, he presided over some of the most complicated, controversial and consequential federal cases in Central Texas. Although Sam had a reputation as a taskmaster in the courtroom, he always received high praise for integrity and the correctness of his decisions.
His fervent dedication to preserving integrity in landmark rulings that shaped state and national policy, led to him receiving the Trial Judge of the Year from the Texas Chapter of the Board of Trial Advocates in 2005. Furthermore, in 2010, he became the second honoree in the history of the American College of Trial Lawyers' Sandra Day O'Connor Award – an award given to a federal or state judge who has demonstrated exemplary judicial independence in the performance of his or her duties, sometimes in difficult or even dangerous circumstances. Moreover, to mark his 20 years of service on the federal bench, the federal bar presented him with a portrait painted by artist Michele Rushworth in 2012. In 2014, Judge Sparks was named “Outstanding 50-Year Lawyer” by the Texas Bar Foundation, and in 2019 was recognized by members of the Austin Bar as a “Distinguished Lawyer,” and for his long service as a district judge of the Austin Division of the Western District of Texas.
Having only scratched the surface regarding his contributions to society, beyond his professional legacy – he was a great man; a loving father and grandfather; dedicated husband; well-respected mentor; and devoted servant to the nation. Most importantly, he will be greatly missed by those who knew and loved him.
He is preceded in death by his beloved parents, U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jack Sparks and Beulah Campbell Sparks; his brother Joseph C. Sparks; his first wife, Arden Reed Sparks, who passed in 1990 from cancer, and second wife, Melinda Echols Sparks, who passed in 2021 following a long battle with cancer.
Judge Sparks was laid to rest on Sept. 26, 2025, during a small ceremony at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin.
