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Courts and law department present largely steady 2026 budgets; domestic relations cites access programs and Court of Appeals notes district costs
Summary
During the meeting’s budget hearings, the domestic relations court, Ninth District Court of Appeals and the county law department outlined largely steady 2026 budgets, continuing access-to-justice programs and staff investments; a youth nonprofit (Students With A Goal) asked for council engagement and support.
Council opened budget hearings after the regular agenda concluded. Court and law department leaders described expected 2026 operations and identified priorities.
Tom McLaughlin, representing the domestic relations court, said the court expects operations in 2026 to be similar to 2025: two judges, 12 full-time magistrates, visitation and custody evaluations for roughly 200 families and mediation attempts on roughly 250 cases. McLaughlin described access-to-justice programs such as the justice bus, legal-aid-for-custody pilots with Akron Public Schools and a planned settlement week where the court will provide mediation without additional public cost.
Judge Scott Stephenson, administrative judge for the Ninth District Court of Appeals, said the appeals court continues to be one of the busiest districts in Ohio and noted outreach efforts including school visits and a public YouTube archive of oral arguments. He said Summit County pays roughly 47% of the four-county district budget and asked for routine budget approval; most of the court’s personnel costs come from the state.
Representatives of the county law department (prosecutor's office) described staffing improvements and lower turnover following investments in prosecutor positions. The office reported collecting more than $67 million annually through child-support activity and said it plans internal reallocation to add investigators to assist post-indictment work; the presenter emphasized diversionary and treatment programs such as Valor Court, Turning Point and Hope Court as part of public-safety strategy.
Separately, Richard Gibson, executive director of Students With A Goal (a youth-serving nonprofit), described academic-mentorship programs, partnerships with Kent State and the University of Akron, student outcomes and a November 11 fundraising event and asked council to consider support and attend programming.
