Michael P. Donnelly

Question 1

List your judicial experience (courts and years)

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge, 2005--2018

Associate Justice, Ohio Supreme Court, 2019 to present.

Former member and Chair of Ohio Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism

Former trustee, Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association

Former member/Vice President, Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association

Former member, Ohio Jury Instruction Committee

Former member, Ohio State Board of Bar Examiners

Former member, Ohio Supreme Court Death Penalty Task Force

2021—2022, served as Ohio Supreme Court liaison to the Court’s Task Force on Conviction Integrity and Post-Conviction Review

As a member of the Ohio Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism I helped establish the highly successful Lawyer to Lawyer Mentoring Program which has received national accolades.

In 2011, I was one of two Ohio judges invited to participate in a two-year program created by the National Judicial College as part of their “Innovative Leadership Skills for Leader- Manager Judges Project,” which is designed to empower future judicial leaders across the United States to improve the way in which the justice system functions.

I serve as a faculty member of the Ohio Judicial College, teaching both attorneys and judges at numerous continuing-legal-education seminars on professionalism and issues related to criminal and civil justice reform and procedural fairness.

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Question 2

What non-judicial legal experience qualifies you to be a judge?

As an assistant prosecutor and litigator who represented plaintiffs and defendants, I gained extensive real-world experience in the wide variety of cases that come before the Common Pleas Court. Trying serious felonies and negotiating plea agreements provided me with critical insight into what did and didn't work in the criminal justice system that proved invaluable when I was elected to the bench.

My work as a civil litigator taught me that “justice delayed is justice denied” is much more than a cliché, it is a painful truth that harms everyone involved in the civil and criminal judicial system.

People iwho have personal injury claims can find themselves on the brink of financial ruin as they wait years for their case to be tried or settled.

Defendants in criminal cases can spend years in jail awaiting trial while victims while victims and their families wait for justice to be done.

And the costs associated with complex business litigation mount exponentially as litigants endure inordinate delays.

With those factors in mind, I resolved to do everything in my power to expedite cases.  I assured litigants I would be available to quickly and efficiently resolve any impasse related to discovery. I provided parties with case management orders that included ruling dates set far enough in advance of the trial date so that neither party would incur potentially unnecessary trial expense while awaiting a ruling from me and I provided every litigant with the highest degree of trial date certainty.

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Question 3

Why are you running for this particular court seat?

I ran for the Ohio Supreme Court in 2018 because I wanted to utilize the inherent power and influence of the office to restore the public’s waning trust in the judicial system and to serve as an independent justice whose only allegiance would be to the U.S. and Ohio constitutions and the people who expect and deserve nothing less than equal treatment under the law.

I am running for reelection to build upon all the progress that has been made during the years I have been privileged to serve the people of Ohio, to ensure that my strong, independent voice continues to be heard on a Court that has become increasingly politicized, and to strengthen the Court's status as a independent, co-equal branch of state government empowered by the Constitution to serve as a check on the General Assembly and executive officers.

To combat the belief that the justice system is fundamentally unfair, I’ll continue collaborating with judges, prosecutors, attorneys, elected officials, and community leaders to support the widespread adoption of policies that will:

Promote the use of data to assure equity in sentencing 

Combat wrongful convictions

Close Ohio’s justice gap 

Eliminate backroom, false, and dark plea agreements

Make all Ohio courts more transparent, equitable, accountable, and efficient 

In addition to leading the reform movement during my first term, I profoundly influenced the most meaningful cases to come before the court in decades. My independent votes and opinions, including dissents that highlighted issues of law misconstrued or ignored by my colleagues, played a critical role in: 

Defending democracy

Preserving the right to vote on the Reproductive Freedom Amendment

Ending a multi-million-dollar First Energy surcharge

Strengthening labor rights

My allegiance to the Constitution and the people who expect and deserve nothing less than independence and equal justice under law rather than partisan politics or ideology will continue to guide my work. 

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