Mary DeGenaro, appointed as the 159th justice of the Ohio Supreme Court by Gov. John R. Kasich, was sworn in today by Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor for a term beginning Sunday.

Justice-designate DeGenaro, who has served nearly 17 years as a judge on the Seventh District Court of Appeals in Youngstown, will begin serving on the Supreme Court on Jan. 28, filling the remainder of the term being vacated by the resignation, effective Friday, of Justice William M. O’Neill.

The appointed term ends Jan. 1, 2019. The seat is up for election this November for a full term beginning Jan. 2, 2019. Ohio Supreme Court justices serve six-year terms.

“I am mindful of, and humbled by, the responsibility you have given me on behalf of all the citizens of the state of Ohio,’’ Justice DeGenaro, 56, told a statehouse news conference today with the governor. “I will work diligently, fairly, and collegially with the other justices on the Court. And I will do my part to make sure the public continues to have confidence in their Supreme Court.” 

Chief Justice O’Connor administered the oath in the ornate Courtroom of the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center.

Justice-designate DeGenaro began serving as a judge on the Seventh District Court of Appeals on Feb. 9, 2001. During her tenure, she sat by assignment with the Ohio Supreme Court and other appellate districts.

Justice-designate DeGenaro has served in many roles outside the courtroom. She was an adjunct faculty member for the political science department at Youngstown State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree. She received her law degree from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, where she interned with U.S. District Judge George White.

She currently is vice president of the Ohio Women’s Bar Association.

She was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1986 and admitted to practice in the federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court and the Sixth Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals.

Prior to her judgeship, she served on the Poland Village Council.

She was appointed by the late Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer to serve during 2002 and 2003 as a member of the Voter Education & Public Funding Working Group to further Judicial Impartiality: The Next Step Forum. This court-policy initiative addressed issues involving judicial races and preserving the integrity of Ohio’s judiciary.

In 2005, she began serving as a founding member of the Ohio State Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Specialty Certification Board, which administers the specialty bar examination and certification.

Involved in a variety of community organizations, Justice-designate DeGenaro's current service includes the board of trustees of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County and the Mahoning Valley Historical Society. Past service includes the external advisory committees for the Ohio Center for the Advancement of Women in Public Service at Cleveland State University, and Youngstown State University’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences.