Judges have a lot of different responsibilities that require them to remain fair and impartial. This is one reason why elected judges and magistrates must disclose — or share — their financial ties outside of the courtroom.

Judges can receive gifts, serve on boards and buy stocks in companies. Some judges are even landlords. Judges cannot, however, mix their professional and financial commitments. That would be a conflict of interest.

To prevent these conflicts, the law requires elected judges and candidates for a seat on the bench to detail certain financial information. Each year, they must submit this information to the Ohio Board of Professional Standards. These documents can be requested by the public.

What financial information are judges and candidates required to share?

  • Ways they earn money 
  • Investments over $1,000
  • Service on a nonprofit board or as a company trustee
  • Businesses they own or have a stake in
  • Gifts or multiple gifts from the same source over $75
  • Debts they owe, or that people owe them, over $1,000
  • Property they own other than homes where they live or vacation
  • Travel and meal expenses paid or reimbursed over $100

Here is a copy of the form that must be submitted each year.

As long as the judge reports their financial ties, there typically aren’t any problems. Things get sticky when the judge fails to report the information.

For example, a Lorain County judge was convicted in 2015 for crimes related to his failure to disclose the ownership of a building in downtown Lorain on his annual disclosure statements. In a 2019 opinion suspending his law license for one year, the Ohio Supreme Court noted that his failure to disclose the building was one thing, but he also rented space and assigned cases to lawyers who appeared in his courtroom. 

These are the types of situations that financial disclosures are designed to prevent. People who fail to submit financial disclosures risk criminal charges and further discipline from the Ohio Supreme Court. 

Judges and magistrates must submit their financial disclosures each year. Judicial candidates typically must submit their financial disclosures within 30 days before a primary election.

Anyone can request a copy of financial disclosure forms by contacting the Board of Professional Standards at bocfilings@bpc.ohio.gov or 614.387.9370.

Service Journalism Reporter (she/her)
I am dedicated to untangling bureaucracy so Clevelanders can have the information (and the power) they want. I spent 10 years on the frontlines of direct service working with youth and system-impacted communities before receiving my degree in media advocacy at Northeastern University.

The Marshall Project is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that seeks to create and sustain a sense of national urgency about the U.S. criminal justice system. Through a partnership with Signal Cleveland, The Marshall Project is weaving more resident voices into its reporting and building an understanding about how the justice system works — and doesn’t work — in Cleveland.