Page 14 - MayJune25 Report

Explore a regular feature that
highlights our experienced
attorneys and the unique
paths that lead them
to this chapter of their
legal career.
A Look Back
With Ann Marie Tracey
Looking back at our professional life can be cringeworthy.
(What else would you call starting opening statement in the
middle of jury selection?) But it certainly highlights lessons
learned and illuminates better ways to move forward. Perhaps a
few of my “lessons” will do this for you.
Don’t let the turkeys get you down.
This saying was on a tee shirt gift. We all have these turkeys
in our life. Here are a few of mine. The law professor who told me
I was taking the place of a man in my class. The female juror who
blocked a guilty verdict because, “Women shouldn’t be lawyers.” The
attorney on the panel interviewing me for a federal district court
judgeship vacancy who said, “Well, we already have two,” meaning
excellent jurists Hon. Sandra S. Beckwith and Hon. Susan J. Dlott.
Don’t be the turkey.
Be well-read, be informed. Seek diverse viewpoints. Not all
thoughts need to come out of your mouth.
Figure out how it really works.
Newly appointed and the first and only woman in the
Common Pleas General Division, it wasn’t going so well. It was
lonely. One judge twice referred to me as a “nice little girl.” My
initial venture in our judicial joint session, suggesting we start
using a trial scheduling order, failed miserably. Trying again,
and wanting court rules to be gender-neutral, I approached the
presiding judge, who said he would take care of it. At our next
joint session, without comment, he circulated an entry for this
around the table. My colleagues all signed it, and he quickly
slipped it on the bottom of a documents folder and gave me a
wink. So that’s how it was done!
Make it look easy but underneath paddle like hell!
Yes, another tee shirt gift, this one showing a cartoon of a
mama and baby ducks paddling furiously. I took that dictum to
heart. Our small circle of women lawyers in the area knew we
had to be better prepared and perform better than our colleagues.
Ann Marie Tracey, UC Law, ’75, has served as an assistant city solicitor and
prosecutor, an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of Ohio, a Hamilton
County Court of Common Pleas Judge, and retired from Xavier University as a full
professor. She is married to Daniel J. Buckley, UC Law, ’74. Between them they have
five daughters and 14 grandchildren.
14 THE REPORT | May/June 2025 | CincyBar.org
Don’t let perfection get in the way.
When first on the bench I was caught off guard with the inher-
ited and growing civil case backlog piled on my desk. Knowing I
could make or break the future of a case, I just couldn’t make the
call. After sharing my dilemma with my professor and mentor
John Murphy, he barked, “Tracey, just decide! That’s what they
pay you for! If they don’t like it, they can appeal.” Best judicial
advice ever.
Gather and nurture a support system.
Besides giving you motivating tee shirts, your mentors and
cheerleaders provide hugs, shoulders to cry on, and great guid-
ance. My lawyer friends became a “rapid response team” to
counter negative attacks on me when, as a judge, I could not. In
academia, wonderful colleagues taught me the ropes and urged
me to go for a full professorship. The CBA is a great vehicle for
support, information and mentorship. CBA members saw some-
thing in me that was worth the trouble leading to some of my
most important opportunities and friendships. (My husband and
I first started dating after serving together on a CBA committee;
need I say more?)
Give back.
Be a mentor, volunteer, a cheerleader. Join non-profit boards,
offer to give talks on something you know nothing about and
learn it! This is especially helpful if you are facing a brick wall
where you work.
Enjoy the ride!
I did! Decades later I remain so very grateful to you all. Thank
you!