Jefferson also served as a captain in the United States Army Reserve - Judge Advocate General's Corps and was honorably discharged.
Judge Jefferson was known in the Houston community as a leader, pioneer and coalition builder who helped bridge the gap between young and old and those of different cultural backgrounds.
Jefferson also served as chairman of the board of the Dallas Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank and of the Texas Southern University Foundation.
[2] On October 11, 1979, President Jimmy Carter nominated Jefferson to a new seat as a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
In 2006, The Andrew L. Jefferson Endowment for Trial Advocacy at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law was established at Texas Southern University.