Ohio Seventh District Court of Appeals
Encyclopedia
Appellate court
An appellate court, commonly called an appeals court or court of appeals or appeal court , is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal...
s of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. It has jurisdiction
Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body or to a political leader to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility...
over eight counties: Belmont
Belmont County, Ohio
Belmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...
, Carroll
Carroll County, Ohio
Carroll County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 28,836, no change from 2000. Its county seat is Carrollton. It is named for Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence....
, Columbiana
Columbiana County, Ohio
Columbiana County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 107,841. It is named for Christopher Columbus and the county seat is Lisbon....
, Harrison, Jefferson
Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 69,709. Its county seat is Steubenville and is named for Thomas Jefferson, who was at the time Vice President....
, Mahoning, Monroe
Monroe County, Ohio
Monroe County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,642. Its county seat is Woodsfield and is named for James Monroe, Secretary of State when the county was formed and later President of the United States....
, and Noble
Noble County, Ohio
Noble County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,645. Its county seat is Caldwell. Noble County is named for Rep. Warren P. Noble of the Ohio House of Representatives, who was an early settler there.-History:...
.
When a lower court in one of those eight counties has issued a final appealable order, the parties generally have the right to one appeal to the court of appeals. A further appeal may be attempted to the Ohio Supreme Court (which has discretionary jurisdiction
Discretionary jurisdiction
Discretionary jurisdiction is a legal term used to describe a circumstance where a court has the power to decide whether to hear a particular case brought before it...
and elects to hear a comparably small number of cases).
The Seventh District Court of Appeals is composed of four judges, each elected to six-year terms by the citizens of the eight counties in the district. An appellate judge in Ohio must be a licensed attorney within Ohio, and have six or more years of Ohio legal practice or have served as a judge in any jurisdiction for at least six years. The current judges of the court (as of March 2011) are: Gene Donofrio, Joseph J. Vukovich, Cheryl L. Waite
Cheryl L. Waite
Judge Cheryl L. Waite is one of four judges elected to the Ohio Seventh District Court of Appeals. She was first elected to the court in 1996, and re-elected to that bench in 2002. She served as presiding judge of this court starting in February 2003. She was the first woman elected to serve on...
, and Mary DeGenaro.
Each case on appeal is decided by a panel of three judges. Cases are decided through a review of the record of the inferior court or tribunal, as informed by the briefs submitted by the parties and by oral argument (if requested by either party). New evidence is not permitted to be introduced on appeal.
In June 2006, the Seventh District Court of Appeals unveiled a new courthouse in downtown Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
. From 1912 until 2006 the court had been located nearby on the fourth floor of the Mahoning County Courthouse. The Court address is 131 West Federal Street, Youngstown, Ohio 44503.