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Judge Alice Batchelder to receive St. Thomas More Award
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: April 27, 2018
Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Alice M. Batchelder has spent the bulk of her career in public service, presiding over several courts and volunteering in the community whenever possible, as long as the projects did not conflict with her ethical constraints as a judge.
As she prepares to take senior status on the 6th Circuit, she is being honored as this year’s recipient of the prestigious St. Thomas More award.
Presented by the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland during Red Mass as part of the Akron Bar Association’s celebration of Law Week, the award pays tribute to St. Thomas More, the patron saint of lawyers. It is given to a legal professional, who has demonstrated outstanding personal integrity, professional excellence and community service.
Judge Batchelder, 73, said she was “taken aback” when she received the news that she had been selected.
“This was certainly not something that I ever would have expected and I am extremely honored,” Judge Batchelder said.
Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Deborah Cook is among those who nominated Judge Batchelder for the award.
“I’ve known Judge Batchelder for probably 40 years,” said Judge Cook. “She was a role model for me when I was a younger lawyer and there were few women on the bench.
“She and I have been colleagues on the 6th Circuit for many years now and I view her as a judge of the highest integrity, who is completely devoted to the law.
“She is nearing the end of her active tenure and it is an appropriate time to recognize her service,” Judge Cook said.
Elisabeth Akers, Judge Batchelder’s daughter, said she is very proud of her mother.
“My mother is a very competent judge, incredibly meticulous and very unassuming,” said Akers, who received her juris doctor from The University of Akron School of Law in 2006.
“She has never sought out any awards or recognition for her efforts, but I am very pleased it was brought to her because she is most deserving. I have always been proud of the fact that she applies the law impartially with respect to both parties and outcome.”
Born in Wilmington, Delaware, Judge Batchelder was one of three children born to Jim K. Moore and Elisabeth Richards Moore.
She moved to Delaware, Ohio with her mother and siblings (Judith, deceased and Thomas) at a young age after her father passed away.
Judge Batchelder received her bachelor’s degree in history and English from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1964.
It was in college that she met her husband, William G. Batchelder III, who served as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives for 38 years and as Speaker from 2011 through 2014.
They were married in 1966 and moved to Medina in 1967. They have two children, William George Batchelder IV, who is married and has four children and works as a history professor at Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania and Elisabeth, who lives in Doylestown with her husband and is raising four children.
“I did not set out to go to law school, but I found myself toying with the idea in college so I took the LSAT,” said Judge Batchelder.
When she graduated, she taught English and other subjects to high school and junior high students for three years.
While teaching she also spent a summer at her husband’s law firm, Williams and Batchelder, assisting with research and brief writing.
“I really enjoyed what I was doing and that’s when I knew I wanted to go to law school.”
When she received her juris doctor from The University of Akron School of Law in 1971, she returned to Williams and Batchelder, where she primarily handled personal injury defense, probate, small business and real estate matters.
“She did a fantastic job,” said her husband William. “She was detail-oriented and thorough.
“I knew how bright she was and I thought she would make an excellent judge.”
“Growing up my mom was so very attentive to my brother and me,” said Akers. “She and I are very close today. She just adores her grandkids.”
In 1983 Judge Batchelder was appointed to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio. Two years later, President Ronald Reagan appointed her to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
When she stepped down as a U.S. bankruptcy court judge, retired Judge Randolph Baxter took over her docket.
“The judge and I had a class together at The University of Akron,” said Judge Baxter, who was chief judge of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Ohio at the time of his retirement in 2011. “As a judge she enjoyed a stellar reputation so I am not surprised that she has been chosen to receive the St. Thomas More award.”
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Arthur Harris, who serves in the Northern District of Ohio, said he tried one of his first cases in front of Judge Batchelder in 1986.
“The case had been pending for many years before it was reassigned to her as a new U.S. district court judge,” said Judge Harris. “She is a no-nonsense judge and her decisions are thoughtful and well reasoned.
“I also argued a case in front of her after she was elevated to the appeals court,” he said. “It was always a privilege to appear in front of her.”
In 1988, the judge obtained a Master of Laws degree in Judicial Process from the University of Virginia School of Law.
President George H.W. Bush appointed Judge Batchelder to the 6th Circuit in 1991, where she served as chief judge from August 2009 to August 2014.
Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Jeffrey Sutton has served on the bench with Judge Batchelder for about 15 years.
“Judge Batchelder works with care and unbending rigor on all of our work,” said Judge Sutton. “I have lost count of the number of times her steadfast efforts have prompted me to look anew at a case for the good of the court and for the good of the law.
“She is a substantial judge and a substantial person, who is an ideal choice for the St. Thomas More award.”
While Judge Batchelder admits she could not have imagined being a judge back in law school, she said she has enjoyed her time in all three courts.
“Serving as judge provides great intellectual challenges,” said Judge Batchelder. “Serving on the 6th Circuit allows one a bit more time to contemplate and explore the issues before writing about them.
“Every case we hear is vitally important to the litigants and I try to keep that in the forefront as I consider each case.”
During her long career, she has presided over many important cases.
She said the one that brings a smile to her face involved “Timmy” the gorilla (The Animal Protective League, et al. v. Steven Taylor, Director of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo), who after an intense battle, was sent to the Bronx Zoo in 1991 as part of the Lowland Gorilla Breeding Project.
“It was a neat case,” said Judge Batchelder. “A group of animal rights advocates, as well as people who just liked visiting Timmy at the zoo, opposed his being sent to the Bronx Zoo, complaining in part that he should not be separated from his ‘wife’ Kate, and maintaining that it would be futile to send him anywhere as part of a breeding program because he had a low sperm count.
“But both the law and the facts were on the side of the Cleveland Zoo, which owned Timmy, and he eventually had some 20 offspring as a result of his being shipped to the Bronx Zoo.”
Judge Batchelder has received numerous awards over the years, including the Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from The University of Akron, the Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Grove City College and the Outstanding Alumni Award from The University of Akron School of Law.
In 1993, she was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Lake Erie College and in 2011 she received the Defender of the Constitution award from The Heritage Foundation. Most recently she was given the Claremont Institute’s Ronald Reagan Jurisprudence Award in 2016.
Judge Batchelder served for five years as a member of the Ohio Board of Bar Examiners and for 32 years as a member of the Constitutional Law Drafting Committee for the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
She has mentored over 80 law clerks, participated as a judge for various law school moot court competitions around the U.S. and since 2007 has been an annual guest speaker for the Blackstone Legal Fellowship.
She currently sits on the Akron Law Intellectual Property Advisory Council as well as on the board of trustees of Grove City College and is a volunteer for the Salvation Army Red Kettle Campaign.
Prior to becoming a judge, she served on the Medina County Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Board, the board of Birthcare of Medina County and the board of the Medina County District Library.
In her spare time, she enjoys attending performances at the Cleveland Orchestra, gardening, traveling and photography.
“I plan to remain on the bench as long as I am properly equipped to do so,” said Judge Batchelder. “I would like to spend more time with my eight wonderful grandchildren once I take senior status.”
“My wife has had a wonderful experience as a judge over the years,” said her husband William. “She has made me very proud. She is very low-key, but very dedicated.”
Judge Batchelder will receive the St. Thomas More award on Friday, May 4 at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Akron.