Aug. 20, 2010
Judicial Panel Accepting Applications to Fill Van Wert Municipal Court Vacancy
The Ohio Judicial Appointments Recommendation Panel (OJARP) will accept applications to fill a vacant seat on the Van Wert Municipal Court until 5 p.m. Sept. 16. Candidates must be available to interview on Sept. 30 in Columbus.
The seat became vacant on July 15 after the resignation of Judge Phil W. Campbell.
Applicants for the position must be a resident and registered elector of Van Wert County and not yet 70 years old on the day they begin their duties, as dictated by Ohio law. In addition, they must be admitted to practice law in Ohio and have engaged in the practice of law for six years before assuming the judicial post or served as a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the United States.
To continue service in the position, any appointee must run in the November 2011 general election.
In the case of all judicial vacancies, applicants must follow the guidelines set forth by the OJARP to ensure their eligibility for appointment.
Applications must be submitted directly to the judicial panel and will then be distributed to the at-large and regional panel members. Additional details about OJARP and the application process can be found on the OJARP Web site at www.ojarp.org.
All materials submitted by applicants for a judicial vacancy will be considered public record under Ohio law. Applicant communication with panel members must be directed to the entire panel; all attempts to contact or influence a panel member are prohibited. Applicant questions and concerns should be addressed to Kent Markus or Jeff Ruppert in the Governor’s Office at 614.466.3555.
Individual candidate times and interview locations will be determined at a later date.
Gov. Strickland selected the following individuals to serve on the selection panels for the vacancy:
At-large Panel:
Janet E. Jackson (panel chair), president and CEO of United Way of Central Ohio
Meg Flack, chair of the Ohio League of Women Voters
Doloris Learmonth, managing partner, Peck Shaffer and Williams LLP
John Kulewicz, attorney, Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP
Gary Leppla, attorney, Leppla Associates and Counselors at Law; past president, Ohio State Bar Association
Van Wert Regional Panel:
Charles Koch, attorney, Koch Law Offices
Kurt Conn, Lieutenant, City of Van Wert Police Department
C. Allan Runser, attorney, Runser & Putman LLC
James Stripe, Director, Van Wert County Board of Developmental Disabilities / Thomas Edison Center
Allen Arnold, retired school administrator and teacher, Lincolview Local Schools and adjunct professor, Rhodes State Community College
Jeanne Zeigler, Deputy Director, Van Wert County Board of Elections