Login | February 27, 2026
9th District Court of Appeals presiding and admin. judges discuss their goals
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: February 27, 2026
Promising to continue the court’s positive course, Ohio 9th District Court of Appeals judges Donna Carr and Jill Flagg Lanzinger recently took on key leadership roles as this year’s presiding and administrative judge respectively, after being unanimously chosen by their peers on the bench.
“I am honored that my colleagues would select me to serve in a leadership role for a second time,” said Judge Lanzinger, who was the presiding judge in 2025. “The court is running like a well-oiled machine, and my plan is to ensure we keep moving forward in the same efficient manner.”
“It’s always a privilege to serve in a role that will allow me to be more involved in the court,” said Judge Carr, who was also presiding judge in 2004, 2008 and 2016, as well as being the administrative judge in 2011, 2015 and 2020.
“I am very happy with the direction that the court has taken and I’m especially proud of our mediation program, which began in 2008. I encourage mediation because the parties have a say in their result, which is not the case if the court makes the decision.
“My fellow judges and I get along really well, and we have an amazing staff,” said Judge Carr. “I feel blessed to work with such wonderful people.
“I look forward to a great term working with my colleagues as presiding judge for the benefit of the court,” said Judge Carr.
Born in Elkins, West Virginia, Judge Carr majored in political science and psychology at Kent State University, earning her juris doctor from The University of Akron School of Law.
“I knew I wanted to be a lawyer from the time I was a little girl,” said Judge Carr. “Even then I had a keen sense of justice, and it would drive me crazy when I felt people weren’t treated fairly.”
While at Akron Law, she was a law clerk in the appellate division of the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office.
“I was a certified legal intern, so I was allowed to argue appeals before the 9th District, which is how I first developed a passion for appellate work,” said Judge Carr. “I continue to love the work. I enjoy the research aspect and the time I can devote to the issues. I feel honored to interpret the laws that impact residents in our four-county jurisdiction.”
After graduating from law school, she was hired as an assistant Summit County prosecutor in the civil division.
She started in 1984 and became chief counsel of the division in 1993, serving in the role until she was appointed interim Summit County prosecutor in January 1995.
Later that year, she was appointed and then elected as an Akron Municipal Court judge.
Judge Carr remained on the municipal court bench for about three years, before being appointed as a 9th District Court of Appeals judge in 1998. She was subsequently elected that same year and has been re-elected three times since then. Her current term ends in February 2028.
As presiding judge, she is the court’s representative on the executive committee of the Ohio Courts of Appeals Judges Association, where she previously served as chief judge along with holding other executive positions.
The presiding judge also fills in for the administrative judge if the person is unavailable or unable to participate in a case because of a conflict.
Judge Carr has also presided over cases as a visiting judge for the Ohio Supreme Court.
“I sat on the Supreme Court ten times on more than a dozen cases,” she said.
She is a member of the Ohio Judicial Conference Education Committee and is a former member of the Ohio Supreme Court Commission for the Rules of Superintendence.
She has also mentored many newly elected appellate court judges.
Judge Carr played a pivotal role in starting the 9th District’s Courtroom in the Classroom Program, arranging the first school visit in the early 2000s.
The program allows students to see court proceedings and to interact personally with the judges.
Since it started, the judges have made about 60 school visits.
“Any positive interactions with the court system are beneficial to everybody,” said Judge Carr. “This is especially so when schools are able to offer this experience to a large number of students without the cost and disruption of an off-site field trip.”
A member of the Akron, Ohio State, Medina County, Lorain County and Wayne County bar associations, Judge Carr continues to be active in the faith community and has been a member of Montrose Zion United Methodist Church for over 30 years.
She is also a longtime volunteer with Love Akron, where she was presented with the Judge Brenda Burnham Unruh Servant Leader Award in 2021.
“I really enjoy doing volunteer work that helps make sure people’s needs are being met,” said Judge Carr.
Judge Lanzinger grew up in Fostoria, Ohio and graduated from Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio, where she majored in political science and psychology.
As an undergraduate she was an intern at the Seneca County Public Defender office.
While attending The University of Akron School of Law she served as a law clerk to then Akron Municipal Court Judge Alison McCarty (now a common pleas court judge) and was a legal intern at the Stark County Prosecutor’s Office.
After earning her juris doctor in 2004, she started her own practice and served as a part-time magistrate at the Akron Municipal Court.
Judge Lanzinger has served as a judge for over a decade.
She began her tenure on the bench in February 2015 after being appointed as a Barberton Municipal Court judge. Shortly afterward, she started the Drug Court program, which was certified as a specialized docket in 2016.
“The drug court program pairs compassion with accountability,” said Judge Lanzinger.
About two years later, she was appointed to the Summit County Common Pleas Court bench.
She returned to Barberton Municipal Court in 2020, where she presided over the Barberton Municipal Mental Health Court.
She was elected to the 9th District Court of Appeals in 2023 to fill retiring Judge Lynne Callahan’s seat, taking the bench on Feb. 11, 2023.
As administrative judge, she oversees the administration, docket and calendar of the court.
A member of the Ohio State, Akron, Lorain County, Medina County and Wayne County bar associations and an Akron Bar Foundation fellow, Judge Lanzinger said it’s important to her to give back to her community.
She previously sat on the board of the Portage Lakes Polar Bear Club and is member of Magic City Kiwanis and Portage Lakes Kiwanis.
She also served on the Portage Lakes Advisory Council for nine years, resigning from her position at the end of 2022.
Judge Lanzinger, a Republican, is running for the Ohio Supreme Court in the May 5 primary.
She is currently working with her fellow judges to hire the first deputy court administrator.
“We recently had one of our administrative staff members retire and we are not going to fill that position,” said Judge Lanzinger. “Instead, we are using our budget to hire a deputy court administrator.
“I’m happy to work with a collegial group of judges, who always have the best interests of the court and community in mind,” said Judge Lanzinger.