The Third Judicial Circuit of Michigan is the largest circuit court in the state, with 61 judges and three operating divisions as of 2023. The Third Circuit Court has jurisdiction over civil, criminal, and family matters arising in Wayne County. The National Center for State Courts has cited the Third Circuit Court as one of the model urban courts in the United States for case flow management and the timely disposition of the Court's docket.
Organization The Third Judicial Circuit of Michigan has 3 divisions, with the Family Division having three subsections.
Civil Division Criminal Division Family Division Domestic Section Friend of the Court Juvenile section
Civil Civil matters involve claims in excess of $25,000; the Civil Divison also handles civil matters appealed from Wayne County district courts and administrative agencies. +JudgeFirstterm startCurrentterm endMandatoryretirementDavid J. Allen20032026Annette J. Berry20182030Kevin J. Cox20132030Melissa A. Cox20172028Paul J. Cusick20162030Charlene M. Elder20062026Wanda A. Evans20172028Patricia P. Fresard19992028Sheila Ann Gibson19992028John H. Gillis, Jr.19972026Adel A. Harb20152030Dana M. Hathaway20132030Catherine L. Heise20142030Susan L. Hubbard20112028Muriel D. Hughes20062028Edward J. Joseph20142026Qiana Denise Lillard20132030Kathleen M. McCarthy20012030Martha M. Snow201520282032Brian R. Sullivan19992028
Criminal JudgeFirstterm startCurrentterm endMandatoryretirementCharise Anderson20232028Rula Aoun20262028Chandra W. Baker-Robinson20212026Christopher Blount20222026Nicole Castka20252026Bradley L. Cobb20222026Kiefer Cox20232028Prentis Edwards, Jr.20172030Robbie Gaines, Jr.20262030John C. Gillis20232028Tracy E. Green20192030Bridget Mary Hathaway20192030Nicholas J. Hathaway20232028Donald L. Knapp20182026Anne M. McCarthy20232028Cylenthia Latoye Miller20192026Kelly A. Ramsey20172028Mark T. Slavens20072028Regina D. Thomas20192030Margaret M. Van Houten20122016Shannon N. Walker20152026Darnella D. Williams-Claybourne20202028
Chief Judges Chief JudgesTermJoseph A. SullivanJanuary 1967 - January 1975James N. CanhamJanuary 1975 - December 1977Richard DunnJanuary 1978 - December 1985Joseph B. SullivanJanuary 1986 - March 1986W. Leo CahalanMarch 1986 - March 1986Richard KaufmanMarch 1986 - December 1993James RashidJanuary 1994 - September 1997Michael SapalaOctober 1997 - December 2001Timothy M. Kenny (Co-Chief Judge)January 2002 - December 2003Mary Beth KellyJanuary 2002 - December 2007William GiovanJanuary 2008 - December 2008Virgil C. SmithJanuary 2009 - December 2013Robert J. Colombo, Jr.January 2014 – December 2018Timothy M. KennyJanuary 2019 – December 2022Patricia Perez FresardJanuary 2023 – December 2025Edward Ewell, Jr.January 2026 – present
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