In January, Gov. John Kasich selected Amy Corrigall Jones to fill the vacancy on the Summit County Common Pleas Court created by the retirement of Patricia Cosgrove. Jones has performed well on the bench. Yet, in this race, she faces a challenger with greater experience, beyond his longer legal career, and a record of demonstrating the temperament expected in a judge.
We recommend the election of John Fickes on Nov. 6.
An attorney with the Akron firm of Brouse McDowell for the past 25 years, Fickes mostly has represented businesses, larger and smaller, in civil litigation. What is distinctive about his candidacy is his substantial involvement in the community. He has been an effective president of the board of trustees of the Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority, one of the most important public institutions in the community. He has been curious, diligent and a steady hand. As a board member at the Humane Society of Greater Akron, he helped to guide the organization through a difficult period.
All of this isn’t the same as serving as a county judge. These experiences have featured his good judgment and skills at resolving hard questions.
Jones has made a good impression the past nine months, reflected in the Akron Bar Association rating her “highly recommended.” That’s a notch above the “recommended” she received just a year ago in running unsuccessfully for the Akron Municipal Court. Fickes is rated “recommended.” Jones is smart and hard-working. What her opponent brings is long preparation, through his law practice and leadership in the community.
