Release Date: January 23,2024
Judge Annalisa S. Williams Named 2024 Administrative/Presiding Judge for the Akron Municipal Court
Akron, Ohio, January 23, 2024 – Akron Municipal Court Judge Annalisa S. Williams will serve the Akron Municipal Court as its Administrative/Presiding Judge for 2024.
In this role, Judge Williams will oversee the court’s administration, docket, and court calendar, as well as the observance of the rules of superintendence and the timely reporting and termination of all cases in the court.
Judge Annalisa S. Williams graduated with honors from Kent State University in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She received a master’s degree from The University of Akron in Urban Studies in 1980. In 1984, she earned her Juris Doctorate Degree from The University of Akron School of Law and was awarded her license to practice by the Supreme Court of Ohio that same year.
Judge Williams was first elected to the Akron Municipal Court on November 4, 2003 and was reelected in 2005, 2011, 2017 and 2023. She is the longest-serving female Judge in Akron Municipal Court’s history.
Judge Williams was previously selected by her colleagues to serve as the Administrative/Presiding Judge in 2008, 2012 and 2017.
Since 2005, Judge Williams has presided over the Mental Health Court specialized docket. Judge Williams has also developed many impactful programs within the Akron Municipal Court, such as the Peace of Mind Probation Program which earned the Ohio State Bar Association's 2018 Innovative Court Programs and Practices Award.
In 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio appointed Judge Williams as a member of the Commission on Specialized Dockets. In 2017, she was appointed by the Ohio Supreme Court to be a member of the Judicial College.
In 2020, Judge Williams was selected as the Kent State University Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award recipient for the year. The Distinguished Alumni Award honors exceptional alumni who have made outstanding contributions in their chosen profession and demonstrated extraordinary service to their community.
In 2022, Judge Williams received the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Change Maker Award, the Centennial 2022 Akron Law Outstanding Alumni Award, the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio Woman of Distinction Award and the Ohio State Bar Foundation's Ritter Award which is a lifetime achievement award.
She earned the Summit County Democratic Party's 2023 Jane Quine Democrat of the Year Award.
Her duties as Administrative/Presiding Judge began on January 1, 2024.
The six Akron Municipal Court Judges elect a new administrative/presiding judge each year. Judge David Hamilton served as Administrative/Presiding Judge of the Akron Municipal Court in 2023.
Judge Williams, an Akron resident, is married to Michael D. Williams and they have two adult children.