John J. Specia

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Personal Information

Commissioner Specia will retire his position in May 2016.

Specia, senior district judge and founding member and jurist in residence for the Supreme Court Children's Commission was described as a "problem solver" by new Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Kyle Janek, M.D.

Specia's experience includes having established the Bexar County Children's Court with specialized services for children and the Family Drug Treatment Court. He was vice chair of the Supreme Court's Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families and chair of the Supreme Court Task Force on Foster Care. He was one of the state's earliest child welfare attorneys, serving as a regional attorney for the then-Texas Department of Human Services.

The longtime jurist served as judge of the 225th District Court in Bexar County for nearly 20 years, retiring in 2006. He currently serves as senior district judge subject to assignment. Before being appointed to the district court, he was master for the 289th Family and Juvenile District Court in Bexar County. Specia holds an undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin and his law degree from St. Mary's School of Law.