Directory

Hon. Mary Kate Huffman

Adjunct Professor of Law

Adjunct

School of Law

Profile

Judge Huffman has been a General Division Judge since 2002 and served as the elected Administrative Judge of the General Division from January, 2016 through December, 2018. She currently serves as the judge presiding over the Women’s Therapeutic Court. Judge Huffman received her B.A. in political science from Wright State University and her J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law, graduating summa cum laude from each institution. In 2015 she earned an M.A. in Judicial Studies from the University of Nevada and received a Certificate in Judicial Development General Jurisdiction Trial Skills and a Certificate in Dispute Resolution Skills from the National Judicial College. In 2007, Judge Huffman was honored with the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Dayton School of Law. Prior to judicial service, Judge Huffman was a partner in the law firm of Huffman, Landis & Weaks.

Judge Huffman is a member of the American, Ohio and Dayton Bar Associations, the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association, and is a Master at the Carl Kessler Inn of Court, working as that organization's President from 2011-2013. She currently serves on the Education Planning Committee as well as the Specialized Courts Committee and the Criminal Law and Procedure Committee of the Ohio Judicial Conference. Judge Huffman serves as the Vice-Chair of the Commission for the Rules of Practice and Procedure of the Ohio Supreme Court and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Ohio Judicial College. In 2019 she was appointed by Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor as the Chair of the Ohio Supreme Court Task Force to Examine the Ohio Bail System. 

Judge Huffman has taught continuing legal education seminars for numerous organizations, including the National Judicial College, the Ohio Supreme Court, the Ohio Common Pleas Judges Association, the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association, the Ohio State Bar Association, the Dayton Bar Association, the Family Law Forum, the University of Dayton School of Law Alumni Association, and the Inn of Court. She frequently provides training for youth sports organizations related to risk management, the Safe Sport Act, and board structure and management concerns.

Judge Huffman previously served on the National Review Board of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. She is a past president of the Board of Trustees of the Greater Dayton Volunteer Lawyers Project, the Board of Trustees of the Dayton Bar Association and the Board of Trustees of the Dayton Bar Foundation. Judge Huffman currently volunteers on the National Board of CISV-USA, on the Review Board of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, and on the Board of Trustees of the Dayton Bar Foundation.