Maureen O'Connor

Maureen O'Connor (born August 7, 1951) is an American lawyer and judge who served as the chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court from 2011 to 2022. She was elected to the court in 2002, becoming chief justice in 2010. She was the first woman to lead the Ohio Supreme Court and the longest serving woman elected statewide in Ohio's History.

Prior to this, O'Connor served as an associate justice of the Ohio Supreme Court and as the 61st lieutenant governor of Ohio, serving under Governor Bob Taft. She is a Republican.

Education and experience O'Connor earned a bachelor's degree at Seton Hill University, Greensburg, Pennsylvania in 1973 and a Juris Doctor degree at the Cleveland State University College of Law in 1980. In 1981, O'Connor began practicing law in Summit County, Ohio. The ticket was victorious and O'Connor was elected Ohio's 61st lieutenant governor serving in that office from 1999 until she resigned at the end of 2002.

Ohio Supreme Court tenure In 2002, O'Connor ran for and was elected to the Ohio Supreme Court, defeating Democrat Timothy Black.

She was described as an "independent voice" on the Ohio Supreme Court.

She is a senior fellow at the Kettering Foundation, an American non-partisan research foundation.