How to Become a Common Pleas Court Judge in Ohio

While you are in law school studying to be an attorney you will want to learn additional information on the Ohio court laws and court procedures. Attorneys that want to become judges later on in their careers need to make sure that they are taking part in moot court and additional Ohio law courses for the extra education. You will want to also make sure that you are getting high enough grades in law school so that you are able to pass the Ohio State Bar Exam. This must be passed in order to practice as an attorney in the state of Ohio.

You will also want to make sure that you are getting a few years of experience as an attorney before running for judge. Attorneys with little experience in the court room and in dealing with clients will often find that they do not make for good judges in court. Once you feel as though you have gained enough experience as an attorney you can then set your sights on becoming a judge for Ohio.

One main thing that you need to know is that in order to run for a position in the Common Pleas Court you will have to not only have bar membership but also have county residency. You will want to register with the board of elections of your county. This will show that you have an expressed interest in running for the court position.

Because the Ohio state law prohibits attorneys running for judge positions to be in a leadership position of a local, state, or county political party during the campaign, you will need to resign if you are not a resident. Your campaign time is very important and you need to make sure that it is your top priority at all times.

This can be hard for some people, as they also have to keep up with the obligations of their career as an attorney. Since you will probably have clients at the time you start to run for judge you will have to balance both interests. It will be like working two jobs. Attorneys cannot simply stop working just because they are running for a court position though. In case it does not work out there still needs to be a source of income.

Work with a designer that can put together your campaign website and make sure that you are having all of your previous accomplishments highlighted. The outstanding work you have done as an attorney and as a citizen of the county should be on the top of your list. You are going to also need to put together a committee that will solicit funds for the running of your campaign to win a court position. Even though attorneys make a lot of money, this is something that you are going to need outside help with.

You will also want to make sure that you are working hard the last 120 days before election day so that you are the attorney that is fresh in the minds of everyone that you made contact with. Join in on as many debates and forums as possible. These events will help to show that you are someone that knows what is going on and that you are someone that can be trusted for the court position within the Common Pleas.

Even though the steps to go from being an attorney to being a judge in the court of law may be long, they are important. Do your best and make sure that you are allowing all of the voters to see just how much of a difference you can make for the community and you will be all set.