Barbara M. Lynn

Barbara M. G. Lynn (born September 19, 1952) is a former United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, with chambers in Dallas, Texas from 1999 to 2025.

Early life and education

Born in Binghamton, New York, Lynn received a Bachelor of Arts degree from University of Virginia in 1973 where she was the first woman member of the Jefferson Literary and Debating Society. She received a Juris Doctor from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in 1976.

Federal judicial service On March 25, 1999, Lynn was nominated by President Bill Clinton to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas vacated by Barefoot Sanders. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on November 17, 1999, and received her commission on November 22, 1999. Her term as chief judge ended on September 6, 2022.

Lyrick Studios vs. Big Idea Productions In 2001, film studio Lyrick Studios filed a lawsuit against Big Idea Productions, creator of the Christian show VeggieTales, for "breach of contract." The judge assigned to the case was Lynn, who denied Big Idea's request for summary judgement, thereby allowing the case to go to trial in April 2003. Lyrick argued that they had a binding though unsigned agreement with Big Idea to distribute VeggieTales for the company, and that Big Idea had breached the deal by moving to Warner Music at the end of 2001.

A jury ruled against Big Idea Productions and Lynn awarded Lyrick $11M as well as legal fees, causing Big Idea to file for bankruptcy. Big Idea appealed Lynn's ruling and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overturned the judgement in August 2005, ruling that faxes and memos set out by Lyrick were not sufficient under the law; therefore, Lynn should have granted Big Idea's request for summary judgement.

Duncan v. Bonta Sitting with the Ninth Circuit, Lynn dissented when the 9th circuit blocked California's law limiting gun magazine capacity to 10 bullets. The ruling was made on August 14, 2020. On November 30, 2021, the 9th circuit in a 7-4 decision, sitting en banc, reversed the prior decision and upheld the law, thus affirming Lynn's dissent.