Michael L. Buenger

Michael L. Buenger

Michael L. Buenger, the administrative director and top non-elected officer of the Supreme Court of Ohio, is leaving in September to become Executive Vice President of Operations with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC).

The NCSC is an independent, nonprofit court improvement organization founded at the urging of the late U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren E. Burger to improve judicial administration in state courts, where 100 million cases are heard each year, and in courts globally.

“In this new role, Mike will take his talents to a national stage,” said Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor of the Ohio Supreme Court.

“Our court and the Ohio judiciary have greatly benefited from Mike’s leadership these past four years,” Chief Justice O’Connor said. “The list of his accomplishments is long. He led the charge to develop a multi-state, cross-discipline initiative to address the region’s opioid crisis. Through Mike’s guidance, the Court leveraged technology in a number of ways, including implementation of e-filing and e-stats,” she added. “Our internal processes have been streamlined while our external services increased. I will be forever grateful for Mike’s sound counsel and steadfast vision.”

Buenger will continue in his current role through mid-September. Following his departure, Stephanie Hess will serve as the Interim Administrative Director while the Court conducts a national search for Buenger’s permanent replacement.

A native of Cincinnati, Buenger holds a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Dayton, a law degree from the St. Louis University School of Law and an LLM in Public International Law from the University of Kent, Canterbury, Brussels School of International Studies.

Before becoming administrative director for Ohio in 2015, Buenger was the state court administrator for South Dakota, from 1995 to 2000, and Missouri, from 2000 to 2007. In between, Buenger worked overseas, notably as a senior rule of law adviser in Kosovo for several years. In 2005, he was inducted into the Warren E. Burger Society of the NCSC in recognition of his contributions to state courts. Buenger has published many books and articles related to courts, interstate cooperation, legislative relations, and human rights.