Thomas Joseph Moyer (April 18, 1939 – April 2, 2010) was an American jurist and the chief justice of the

Ohio Supreme Court The Ohio Supreme Court, Officially known as The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a ...

from 1987 to 2010. A member of the Republican Party, he died suddenly on April 2, 2010, at age 70. The Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center, headquarters of the Ohio Supreme Court, was named in his honor in 2004.

Pre-Supreme Court

Until his death, Moyer was the longest-serving state chief justice in the United States. Born in Sandusky, Ohio, he attended

Sandusky High School Sandusky High School (SHS) is a secondary school in Sandusky, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in the Sandusky City School District, and one of two high schools in the city of Sandusky; the other high school is St Mary Central Cat ...

and went on to receive both his undergraduate and law degree from

The Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publi ...

. He served as chairman of the board of directors of the O.S.U. Alumni Association, as well as the board of trustees of

Franklin University Franklin University is a private university with its main campus in Columbus, Ohio. It was founded in 1902 to serve the needs of adult students. On-site courses are offered at the university's campus in Columbus' Discovery District. However, mos ...

. From 1979 to 1987, Moyer served on the Tenth District Court of Appeals for Ohio, which covers Franklin County. Prior to his appointment, he served as the president of the

Columbus Board of Education Columbus City Schools, formerly known as Columbus Public Schools, is the official school district for the city of Columbus, Ohio, and serves most of the city (portions of the city are served by suburban school districts). The district has 46,6 ...

. During his tenure there, the board found itself in the middle of desegregation fights, chronicled in the book ''Getting Around Brown''. He also served for four years as an executive assistant to Governor James A. Rhodes (R-Ohio) and eight years in private practice in Sandusky. Moyer was married and lived in Columbus. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004.

As judge

Moyer presided over the '' DeRolph'' decision dealing with school funding, as well as the late 1990s' legal battle over

tort reform Tort reform refers to changes in the civil justice system in common law countries that aim to reduce the ability of plaintiffs to bring tort litigation (particularly actions for negligence) or to reduce damages they can receive. Such changes a ...

. Although a Republican, Moyer had a strong belief in the principles of '' stare decisis''. In 2001, he created a task force on guardians ad litem in Ohio. In 2004, when the court moved into new quarters, some controversy ensued over the cost involved. On May 15, 2004, the building was dedicated by U.S. Chief Justice

William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...

. Under Moyer's leadership, the court: * Started the Off-Site Court program after taking office in 1987. The Court visits two local counties per year, and educates high school students about the judiciary. The Court has visited 50 counties, offering a chance to view proceedings to 28,000 Ohioans – 22,000 of whom are high school students. * Revamped, in 1989, the statistical case reporting system for judges in the Rules of Superintendence (Sup.R. 37 Appendix A) to increase the accuracy and efficiency of reporting. Created a separate statistical case reporting section at the Court. * Amended, in 1996, the Rules for the Government of the Bar to create a process requiring lawyer referral services to register with the Court so the Court can facilitate public access to lawyers by placing this information on its Web site (se

. * Revamped, in 2002, the rules governing th
Rules for the Reporting of Opinions in Ohio
to standardize the publication of opinions from the Supreme Court and the courts of appeals to increase public access and availability written opinions. * Began, in March 2004, broadcasting live al
Supreme Court Oral Arguments
on cable TV and on the Internet. The cable signal reaches more than 5 million homes across Ohio. Ohio's courts are among only a small number of courts in the United States that broadcast all arguments live. All cases are also archived on the Internet. * Pu
the Attorney Registration Database
online in 2004 so citizens can access information about any Ohio attorney, including business address and phone number, date of birth, date of admission to practice, disciplinary history and CLE status. * Put th
entire docket online
in 2005, allowing anyone at any time to check the status of a case, learn about new filings, and locate counsel information. * Began, in 2006, the closed-captioning of all oral arguments to facilitate access by deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens and to enable public access to unofficial transcripts of all proceedings in a searchable database. Ohio is one of only two state courts in the country with this service.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moyer, Thomas J. 1939 births 2010 deaths Judges of the Ohio District Courts of Appeals Justices of the Ohio Supreme Court Ohio State University alumni Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni Politicians from Sandusky, Ohio Lawyers from Columbus, Ohio Chief Justices of the Ohio Supreme Court Ohio Republicans Burials at Green Lawn Cemetery (Columbus, Ohio) School board members in Ohio 20th-century American judges 20th-century American lawyers