First District Court of Appeals Judge Ginger Bock.

First District Court of Appeals Judge Ginger Bock.

Judge Ginger Bock knew exactly what she wanted in eighth grade. In her career, she’d be a change agent. And at a Cincinnati Reds game that summer, she’d be a ball boy.

Her plans were interrupted after being told she didn’t fit the “boy” part of the description. Still chasing her dream, she wrote plenty of letters criticizing the gender requirement.

The next year, the team opened the role up to ball girls everywhere.

“I learned that advocating for change was important,” said Judge Bock, who has served on the First District Court of Appeals since 2021.

Advocate she did, putting herself on a path to public service, the bench, and now, sitting on the Supreme Court of Ohio.

Her experience includes working as a staff attorney at the First District Court of Appeals, a few years at private law firms, and a staff attorney at the Court of Common Pleas for two years before beginning her term.

Prior to seeking her law degree, Judge Bock spent 10 years working for non-profit organizations focused on supporting women and children, who had suffered abuse. She says it was essential to put empathy first.

“Regardless of what role I was in, seeing people who need help or services – I always saw the people, not just names on a page,” said Judge Bock.

This sentiment is reflected in Judge Bock’s work in the courtroom and the classroom at her alma mater, the University of Cincinnati College of Law.

“Whenever I teach a legal writing and research class, it makes me go back to the fundamentals, said Judge Bock. “I love having the opportunity to talk to students interested in the law and tell them their dreams are possible.”

Inspiration has been a theme throughout most of Judge Bock’s career. Her mother was a social worker, which led to working in the nonprofit sector. She found a mentor upon starting law school in Marianna Brown Bettman, the first woman elected to Judge Bock’s current seat.

Even in Judge Bock’s first time as a lawyer arguing in front of the Supreme Court, she did so in front of 100 high school students in Cleveland as part of the Off-Site Court Program, which educates students about the state’s judicial system by taking oral arguments into schools.

This week., Judge Bock sat for Justice Jennifer Brunner, who recused, in Mahoning County Bar Association v. Brian John Macala. The case involved disciplinary recommendations made by the Ohio Board of Professional Conduct for unethical conduct by the county’s law director. The Ohio Constitution gives the chief justice authority to select an appellate judge to sit for a case when there is a justice recusal.

Though Judge Bock was especially excited for the opportunity, she prepared for the case the same way she would in her own courtroom.

“I try to treat each case like it is the most important case in the world. For the people in the courtroom, it is the most important thing in the world,” Judge Bock said.

Residing in Cincinnati, Judge Bock is still a fan of the Reds. She enjoys watching the team and exploring new parts of the city with her husband and two kids.