Cleveland Law Library Weblog

Local Municipal Judgeships Up for Election

Next week on November 3rd, several area municipal court judgeships will be up for election at the polls. Three candidates are running for 1 judicial seat in Bedford, but there is only 1 contested race of the 5 races in which incumbants are seeking re-election in Cleveland Municipal Court. Judge Patrick Carroll is running unopposed in Lakewood, but Parma's Judge Gilligan is being challenged by Edmund Tallos. County-wide voting information can be found on the website for the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections.

Ohio Civil Rights Commission Creates Hall of Fame

The Ohio Civil Rights Commission has created a brand new Hall of Fame and inducted 10 citizens who the OCRC recognizes as having "made significant contributions to the progress of the civil rights and equal justice in the State of Ohio." Two former Ohio Judges made the list: former Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Robert M. Duncan and former Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Carl B. Stokes. Justice Duncan was the first African-American on the Supreme Court.

New Local DR Judge Must Disqualify Herself in Case Her Judge-Father Started

In a ruling issued today in the Strauss divorce, the Ohio Supreme Court held that new local Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Domestic Relations Judge Leslie Ann Celebrezze must disqualify herself from a case she inherited from her father, who recently retired from the same DR court. The decision is based on Canon 3(E)(1) of the Code of Judicial Conduct, which prohibits judges from adjudicating matters in which a close relative also acted as judge. Cleveland.com reports that local DR Administrative Judge Timothy Flanagan and others are concerned about the impact on hundreds of other cases involving divorces, child custody and domestic violence that Judge Celebrezze took over from her father's docket. Other online articles about the Court's decision have been posted by newsnet5.com and the Dayton Daily News.Click here to read an article about the Affidavit of prejudice Marc Strauss filed with the Ohio Supreme Court earlier this year to get the Judge removed.

Fairfield County Muni Court Judge Disbarred

If you have not already heard the news, the Ohio Supreme Court just permanently disbarred a former Fairfield County Municipal Court Judge named Don S. McAuliffe for multiple violations of both the Ohio Code of Professional Responsibility and the Code of Judicial Conduct. (McAuliffe's misconduct occurred before the effective date of the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct) The Supreme Court's decision was based on the fact that McAuliffe was convicted of burning down a house he owned for the insurance money. This conduct caused the Court to conclude that McAuliffe violated rules prohibiting moral turpitude, dishonesty, fraud, deceit, misrepresentation. The Court also held that his actions were prejudicial to the administration of justice and contrary to the standards to which attorneys and judges are held. Click here to read the Court's opinion.

Ohio Supreme Court Changes Rule Again on Judicial Disclosure of Party Affiliation

On December 30, 2008, the Ohio Supreme Court issued more changes to the Ohio Rules of Judicial Conduct that would have allowed judicial candidates to disclosure their party affiliation during primary and general elections. See our prior blog post for more details. However, on January 13, 2009, the Court changed its mind and revised that Rule to only allow disclosure in primary, but not general, elections. The Court's Press Release announcing the reconsideration indicated that the Justices wanted to emphasize the "non-partisan nature of judicial elections in Ohio, which is set in law by the General Assembly." The Press Release also indicates that Justices Pfeifer and Lanzinger voted against revising the Rule on the basis of Minnesota Republican Party  v. White (535 U.S. 765 (2002). Former Appeals Court Judge William O'Neill of Geauga, Ohio, who unsuccessfully sought a seat on the Ohio Supreme Court, filed a lawsuit over the state of the law before the Ohio Supreme Court passed the December Rule. As a Cleveland Plain Dealer article points out, that December changes could have made Judge O'Neill's suit moot, but the Court's January changes in part revive his standing.

2009 Judicial Candidates Can Receive 15% More in Contributions

Beginning with new campaigns that can start on Monday, January 5th, supporters can now contribute 15% more than last year to their favorite judicial candidates. According to changes adopted by the Ohio Supreme Court last month, increases in the CPI over the last 4 years warranted raising the limits. However, candicates who are still collecting money for 2008 campaigns will have to live with the old caps. The Ohio Supreme Court's Press Release contains a handy table of the new limits, which start at $575.00 by an individual for a juidicial candidate in a small Common Pleas, Muni or County court, and max out at $316,250 by a political party for a Supreme Court justice in a general election.

New Rules Coming in March for Ohio's Judiciary

On March 1, 2009, Ohio's Judges will be subject to some new Rules of Judicial Conduct. Patterned after 2007 changes in the ABA's Model Code of Judicial Conduct, the Ohio Supreme Court's new changes will, among other provisions: a) allow judges to identify themselves as Democrats or Republicans on their campaign ads; b) allow judges to provide some help to self-represented litigants; c) encourage judges to encourage attorneys to provide pro bono legal service; d) provider greater guidance for judges who need to report disabilities, impairment or misconduct by colleagues; and e) provide additional standards for extrajudicial activities. The  January 1st edition of the local Daily Legal News ran a very good summary of the upcoming changes. See our prior post on the Ohio Supreme Court Task Force that recommended the changes. Click here to read the Ohio State Bar Association's May 2008 comments on the proposed new changes.

Judge4yourself.com Rates 2008 Judicial Candidates

If you have not already voted and need help deciding which judges to vote for locally and on the Ohio Supreme Court, check out judge4yourself.com. This website provides biographical information on each of the candidates running for office in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, Domestic Relations Court, Probate Court, the 8th District Court of Appeals, and the Ohio Supreme Court. The site also provides ratings for each judge by the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association, the Cuyahoga Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, the Norman S. Minor Bar Association, the Ohio Women's Bar Association, the Call & Post, and The Plain Dealer. The four (4) associations listed are members of the Judicial Candidates Rating Coalition.

Highland County Judge Disbarred

The new ethics rules governing Ohio lawyers prohibit us from disparaging the name and reputation of sitting judges. However, former Highland County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey Hoskins has earned this type of censure, having been permanently disbarred from practicing law in Ohio.  The Ohio Supreme Court's July 3rd press release indicates that  Hoskins committed ethical violations with estate funds and assets while in private practice and engaged in other acts of malfeasance while sitting on the bench, all over the course of about 10 years. An article from law.com indicates that only 2 other Ohio judges have been disbarred recently (for distributing cocaine and extortion), and the process of disbarring judges is a national anomaly. The Ohio Supreme Court has posted its opinion in Hoskins' case. For a picture of the former Judge and an article out of Columbus, turn to the Columbus Dispatch commentary.

Ohio Supreme Court Candidates Sign "Clean Campaign Agreement"

All of the candidates running for positions on the Ohio Supreme Court have signed a "Clean Campaign Agreement." The Ohio State Bar Association's Judicial Election Campaign Advertising Monitoring Committee recently announced that Justice Maureen O'Connor, Judge Joseph D. Russo, Judge Peter M. Sikora, and Justice Evelyn L. Stratton have all signed the agreement to take personal responsibility for the contents of their election advertisements and statements. In also requiring these candidates to steer clear of negative campaigning that impunes the judicial system or fellow candidates, the OSBA and its President, Robert Ware, are hoping to instead focus the election on "credentials, judicial temperament and experience...that demonstrate the dignity and respect the office deserves."