Contact:  Ed Ferenc, Public Information Officer                               
Cleveland Municipal Court
216 664 6787 / 216 789 2597
ference@cmcoh.org     www.cmcoh.org

(Cleveland, Ohio)—The Honorable Michelle D. Earley, Administrative and Presiding Judge on the Cleveland Municipal Court will begin serving a three-year term on the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Associations (CMBA) Board of Directors on July 1, 2024.

The role of the CMBA Board of Directors is to govern and oversee the operations of the CMBA.

“More specifically, the Board is responsible for establishing and promoting the CMBA’s vision, mission and values, as well as our strategy for how we achieve the vision and mission, in addition to ensuring the CMBA operates in compliance with legal and ethical standards.  Board members also serve as advocates both within the CMBA membership and throughout the broader community, championing the programs, services and events offered by the CMBA,” said Rebecca Rupert McMahon, CMBA Executive Director.

The CMBA recently announced the Cleveland Legal Collaborative, a new social justice program designed to help those who cannot afford a market rate attorney and are not getting the justice they deserve.  

Judge Earley is eagerly looking forward to the opportunity to serve on the board.  

“Having been a judge on the Cleveland Municipal Court for 15 years and over six years as Administrative and Presiding Judge, I am truly honored to be among the six new members of the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Associations Board of Directors.     Any judge that has served on the Cleveland Municipal Court knows how those living in poverty are often short-changed in the criminal justice system.   With the launch of the Legal Collaborative, there is no better time to be a member of the CMBA Board of Directors, where we can work together and find solutions to bridge the justice gap in our region,” said Judge Earley.

Other board members include: Lorraine Debose, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office; Kevin Donoughe, Regions Bank; Judge Francine Goldberg, Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court; Dana Paris, Nuremberg, Paris, Heller and McCarthy and Carolyn Soeder, McCarthy, Lebit, Crystal and Liffman Co. LPA.

They, along with CMBA President Matthew Besser and Vice President Anne Walton Keller who serves as Judge on the Shaker Heights Municipal Court, were sworn in on June 12, 2024 in a ceremony at the bar association.

The CMBA is a non-profit association operating as a center for legal professionalism in the region, promoting the highest ethical and professional standards.  The CMBA strives to be an indispensable resource for more than 4,000 members and the go-to organization on issues of law and justice in Northeast Ohio.