The Honorable
Paul J. Gallagher

Judge Paul J. Gallagher graduated from The University of Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1966.  He received his Masters Degree from John Hopkins University in 1980.  Thereafter, he received a Juris Doctorate Degree from The University of Akron in 1986 and was admitted to the Ohio Bar the same year.

Judge Gallagher served as an Assistant to the County Executive of Anne Arundel County, Maryland, in 1974 and 1975 and as Chief Assistant to the County Manager of Baltimore County, Maryland, from 1976 to 1980.  He returned home to Summit County and served as Safety Service Director for the City of Tallmadge until he entered law school.  From 1991 through 2006, Judge Gallagher served as Assistant Prosecutor for the Portage County Prosecutor’s Office.  In 1985, he was elected to serve as an at-large member of Summit County Council where he served for 22 years before being elected to the bench.

In November 2006, Judge Gallagher was elected Summit County Common Pleas Judge with the term beginning January 1, 2007. 

Judge Gallagher was elected by the Summit County Common Pleas Judges to serve as Presiding Judge in 2008 and 2009.

In 2011, Judge Gallagher was appointed by the Judges of the General Division to preside over Summit County's new felony Domestic Violence Court.  As a result, all felony cases, except murder cases, involving crimes between intimate partners are now assigned to Judge Gallagher's Domestic Violence Court instead of being distributed among the ten General Division Judges.  Non-domestic violence cases, except murder cases, which were normally assigned to Judge Gallagher are now distributed to the other Judges.  Murder cases are assigned to the ten Judges on a rotating basis by the Administrative Judge.