Judge Schneider is known for his aggressive defense of the most consequential criminal and CPS investigations and in the courtroom at every stage—with clients across the United States. Mike has protected mothers, fathers, foster and adoptive parents, grandparents, siblings and anyone accused in countless high-profile cases featured in national media and across the globe. He has created and taught CLE programs that have trained thousands of lawyers on topics including CPS and child abuse, complex custody litigation, ethics, expert witnesses, human trafficking, record sealing, and many more.

Mike has successfully tried hundreds of trials as a lawyer and state district judge, ranging from thorny child custody battles to felony criminal investigations and capital murder. Early in his judicial tenure, the Houston Chronicle praised his “demonstrated competency” in handling high-profile cases and consistently endorsed him his entire judicial career, noting, “Schneider has devoted his career to protecting children‚ both as an assistant Harris County attorney and as general counsel of Houston’s renowned Children’s Assessment Center.”

Mike joined the Harris County Attorney’s Office in 1999,  serving as Chief of the 313th District Court and managed and tried thousands of child custody cases involving the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (CPS). In 2001, he became Deputy Division Chief of the office’s Children’s Protective Division, and from 2004 until he took the bench in 2006, served as General Counsel to the world-renowned Children’s Assessment Center in Houston’s Rice Village. In 2017, Mike was appointed Adjunct Research Scientist in the Psychology Department of Columbia University in the City of New York by Dr. Carl Hart and in 2022 to the Board of the Center for Science and the Law. He proudly served as Commissioner of the Supreme Court of Texas Children’s Commission and Chair of the State Bar of Texas Juvenile Law Section.

In 2019 Mike served the Texas Legislature as Policy Analyst on child welfare issues for State Representative Gene Wu, and became a partner that same year at Houston’s Berg Plummer Johnson & Raval LLP with a focus on child welfare law. In 2025 he proudly launched Mike Schneider Law PLLC to fight for clients across the country.