Page 7 - May June 2023 CBA Report

Bratton. “She used to say it all the time. She would introduce me to people and say, ‘Hi, this is my daughter Janaya; she’s going to be a judge.’ She was so proud of it because she didn’t have the same oppor- tunities she afforded me. For her to have a daughter who was an attorney just made her day! I think that was part of what fueled me during the most difficult time of my life, with the timing of running — I was like, ‘I’m just doing it, I’m going to be a judge.’ And here we are. I just wish that she was here to see it.”
Trotter Bratton’s seat on the municipal court was vacated by Retired Judge Fanon Rucker, who announced he was retiring at the end of August, the same month her mother passed away. But an open munic- ipal court seat was an extreme rarity. Becoming a judge was a long-term goal at that point in her career, but timing was of the essence.
“The likelihood was that if I didn’t go for it, it would be a while before I had another chance,” said Trotter Bratton.
The support of her husband, William, her family, many friends, and her two dogs, helped ease her path, and she took office in November 2019. Her network
of friends and colleagues has remained strong, and she has continued to build relationships along her path to becoming the CBA’s first Black woman president.
When she first joined the CBA in 2010, she wasn’t sure she belonged. She felt at the time that the CBA was for not neces- sarily geared towards attorneys of color, and was more specifically geared towards those who worked at large firms. To that end, she also joined the Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati (BLAC), where she saw reflections of herself in the orga- nization. After an invitation from a friend to participate in a CBA Young Lawyers Section activity, Trotter Bratton took her involvement even further, joining the YLS and the BLAC -CBA Round Table. Eventually, she joined the CBA’s presti- gious leadership program, the Cincinnati Academy of Leadership for Lawyers (CALL). She credits former BLAC Presi- dent Donyetta Bailey for recruiting her to join the board, and former CBA presidents Doug Dennis and John J. Williams with being very deliberate about diversifying bar leadership.
“Wanting me there and being able to appeal to what I need to feel like I belong
there are two completely different things,” said Trotter Bratton. “That’s what hooked me about the CBA and kept me in — the commitment of the CBA Board of Trustees and staff to make our bar more inclusive. It’s a great group of people.”
Ultimately, Trotter Bratton sees her tenure as CBA president as an oppor- tunity to reinforce connections in the community, expand bar membership in the region, and help members build relationships.
“If people really got to know one another and their bar association, it would break down a lot of preconceived notions and ultimately help practitioners grow personally and professionally,” said Trotter Bratton. “Connections matter. I love being a connector, I love getting to know people, and that is what I want to do is connect people who would typi- cally not be connected to the bar. I like the space the bar affords that it doesn’t matter who, what, or where you are. We just come together and do the work and we have a common goal.”
Shokoohe is the director of communications for the CBA.
THE REPORT | May/June 2023 | CincyBar.org
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