New chief judge in Midland County, Michigan

December 8, 2011

Michigan: Judge Jonathan Lauderbach has been appointed chief judge of the Midland County Trial Courts (42nd Circuit Court). Lauderbach has served in the 42nd Circuit Court since 2006. He was appointed chief judge of that circuit court in 2008, but will now head all of the trial courts in Midland County.

Amidst state budget problems, the courts are attempting to streamline their services. One method is to reduce the number of chief judges, who are the administrative heads of courts. Instead of one chief judge per court, the Supreme Court has decided that it makes more sense to appoint some of them over entire circuits. This has resulted in 181 appointments such as Judge Lauderbach's, which start in 2012, rather than the previously-planned 246. Marcia McBrien, a public information officer for the Michigan Supreme Court, explained, "What it reflects is the supreme court's focus on the question of how do we get our court system as a whole to be more efficient." Chief judges serve two-year terms and receive no extra pay.