Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

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Districts of the Ohio District Courts of Appeals

The Twelfth District Court of Appeals is one of 12 appellate districts in the state of Ohio. It presides over Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Fayette, Madison, Preble and Warren counties.

Published opinions of the Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals can be found here.

 

Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals
Court information
Judges:	5
Salary:	Associates: $178,108
Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	6 years

Judges

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Robert Hendrickson	February 9, 2009 - Present	Elected
Michael E. Powell	October 4, 2012 - Present	John Kasich
Robin N. Piper	2010 - Present	Elected
Matthew Byrne	January 1, 2021 - Present	Elected
Melena Siebert	February 9, 2025 - Present

Salary

See also: Ohio court salaries and budgets

In 2025, the associate judges of the court received a salary of $178,108, according to the National Center for State Courts.

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in Ohio

The judges of the Ohio District Courts of Appeal are selected through partisan primaries and partisan general elections. Previously, these judges were selected through partisan primaries and nonpartisan general elections, known as the Michigan method. The number of judges on the court of appeals varies by district over time, based on district size and caseload. Each district has between four and 12 judges.

All judges serve six-year terms, after which they are required to run for re-election if they wish to remain on the court. District courts of appeal candidates are chosen in their respective appellate districts.

Qualifications

To serve on the Ohio District Courts of Appeals, a judge must:

• have at least six years in the practice of law;
• be licensed to practice law in the state for at least one year preceding appointment or commencement of the judge's term;
• a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the U.S.; and
• be under the age of 70.

Presiding judge

The manner in which the presiding judge is chosen for each appellate district varies among the districts.

Vacancies

In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. The appointee serves until the next general election taking place 40 or more days after the vacancy occurred. If re-elected, the judge serves the remainder of his or her predecessor's unexpired term.

Elections

• 2030
• 2028
• 2026
• 2024
• 2022
• 2020
• 2018

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2030

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2028

Term starts 02/10/2029

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

Term starts 02/09/2029

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2026

Term starts 02/09/2027

General election

The primary will occur on May 5, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Robert Hendrickson (R) is running in the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on May 5, 2026.

		Candidate
		Robert Hendrickson

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Term starts 01/01/2027

General election

The primary will occur on May 5, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Matthew Byrne (R) is running in the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on May 5, 2026.

		Candidate
		Matthew Byrne

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2024

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Melena Siebert (R) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Melena Siebert (R)	100.0	389,980

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 389,980
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 19, 2024, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Melena Siebert (R) defeated Barbara Schneider Carter (R) in the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on March 19, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Melena Siebert	50.4	53,082
		Barbara Schneider Carter	49.6	52,198

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 105,280
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

Michael Powell's seat

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Michael E. Powell (R) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael E. Powell (R)	100.0	287,711

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 287,711
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for May 3, 2022, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Michael E. Powell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on May 3, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael E. Powell	100.0	81,996

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 81,996
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Robin Piper's seat

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Robin N. Piper (R) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Robin N. Piper (R)	100.0	288,164

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 288,164
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for May 3, 2022, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Robin N. Piper (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on May 3, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Robin N. Piper	100.0	81,252

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 81,252
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2020

Hendrickson's seat

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Robert Hendrickson (Nonpartisan) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Robert Hendrickson (Nonpartisan)	100.0	347,575

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 347,575
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for April 28, 2020, was canceled.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Robert Hendrickson (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Robert Hendrickson	100.0	74,887

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 74,887
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Ringland's seat

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Matthew Byrne (Nonpartisan) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Matthew Byrne (Nonpartisan)	100.0	350,206

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 350,206
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Matthew Byrne (R) defeated Mary Lynne Birck (R), Noah E. Powers II (R), and Bill Coley (R) in the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on April 28, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Matthew Byrne	32.4	27,153
	Submit photo	Mary Lynne Birck	29.2	24,503
	Submit photo	Noah E. Powers II	25.0	20,938
		Bill Coley	13.4	11,186

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 83,780
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

See also: Ohio intermediate appellate court elections, 2018

General election

General election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Stephen Powell (R) won election in the general election for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Stephen Powell (R)	100.0	260,804

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 260,804
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Incumbent Stephen Powell (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals on May 8, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Stephen Powell	100.0	63,250

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 63,250
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Previous election results

2016

See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2016

Candidates

Judge Piper's seat

■ Robin N. Piper (R) (Unopposed/Incumbent)

Judge Powell's seat

■ Michael E. Powell (R) (Unopposed/Incumbent)

Election results

November 8 general election

Incumbent Robin N. Piper ran unopposed in the general election for the Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals, Piper's seat.

Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals, Piper's Seat, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Robin N. Piper Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	300,680
Total Votes (100% reporting)				300,680
Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results

Incumbent Michael E. Powell (Ohio) ran unopposed in the general election fort the Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals, Powell's seat.

Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals, Powell's Seat, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Michael E. Powell (Ohio) Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	300,578
Total Votes (100% reporting)				300,578
Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results

March 15 primary election

Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals, Judge Piper's Seat Republican Primary, 2016
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Robin N. Piper Incumbent (unopposed)	100.00%	138,886
Total Votes				138,886
Source: Ohio Secretary of State Official Results

2014

See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2014

Unopposed	Judge Robert Ringland (Term commencing 1/1/2015)

Unopposed	Judge Robert Hendrickson (Term commencing 2/9/2015)

2012

See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2012

Candidate	Incumbency	Party	Term	Primary Vote	Election Vote
PowellMichael E. Powell (Ohio)   A	Yes	Republican	Powell's seat		78.64%   A
PowellStephen Powell   A	Yes	Republican			100%   A

2010

See also: Ohio judicial elections, 2010

Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals 2010 elections

Court	Candidates	Details	Results
Twelfth District, Term Commencing February 9	(R): Robin N. Piper		Robin N. Piper
Twelfth District, Term Commencing February 10	(R): Rachel Hutzel		Rachel Hutzel

Ethics

The Ohio Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Ohio. It consists of four overarching canons:

• Canon 1: "A judge shall uphold and promote the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary, and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety."
• Canon 2: "A judge shall perform the duties of judicial office impartially, competently, and diligently."
• Canon 3: "A judge shall conduct the judge’s personal and extrajudicial activities so as to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office."
• Canon 4: "A judge or judicial candidate shall not engage in political or campaign activity that is inconsistent with the independence, integrity, or impartiality of the judiciary."

The full text of the Ohio Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Judges in Ohio may be removed in one of three ways:

• Retirement, removal or suspension by a special Supreme Court commission.
• Removal by a concurrent resolution of two-thirds of the members of both houses of the Ohio General Assembly.
• Conviction by a two-thirds vote of the Ohio Senate, upon impeachment by a majority vote of the Ohio House of Representatives.

State profile

Demographic data for Ohio
	Ohio	U.S.
Total population:	11,605,090	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	40,861	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	82.4%	73.6%
Black/African American:	12.2%	12.6%
Asian:	1.9%	5.1%
Native American:	0.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.5%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	3.4%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	89.1%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	26.1%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$49,429	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	19.6%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Ohio. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Ohio

Ohio voted Republican in five out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, nine are located in Ohio, accounting for 4.37 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Ohio had eight Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 4.42 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Ohio coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Ohio
• United States congressional delegations from Ohio
• Public policy in Ohio
• Endorsers in Ohio
• Ohio fact checks
• More...

External links

• Ohio Twelfth District Court of Appeals

Footnotes

Ohio courts

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Federal courts:

Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Ohio, Southern District of Ohio

State courts:

Ohio Supreme Court • Ohio District Courts of Appeal • Ohio Courts of Common Pleas • Ohio County Courts • Ohio Municipal Courts • Ohio Court of Claims

State resources:

Courts in Ohio • Ohio judicial elections • Judicial selection in Ohio