Miami Presents: Celebrating Women's History Month with Women on the Judicial Bench

In celebration of Women’s History Month, we invite you to a virtual discussion on Tuesday, March 23 at 6:00 p.m. ET with three of our Black alumnae regarding their experiences as judges. We will be joined by Judge Cassandra Collier-Williams '79, Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, Magistrate Judge Dana Douglas ‘97, United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, and Magistrate Judge Carmen Henderson ‘07, United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio. They will discuss their time at Miami and the journey to becoming a judge. We will also discuss their experiences as Black women on the judicial bench and their advice for students pursuing a career in law. The audience is encouraged to ask questions with registration or live to participate

Panelist Bios:

Judge Cassandra Collier-Williams was elected Judge of Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas in 2012. Judge Collier-Williams ’79 graduated with a Bachelors of Arts in political science and government from Miami University. During her time as an undergrad at Miami, she served as president of the Black Student Action Association where she helped bring in prominent black speakers to campus. Judge Collier-Williams received her juris doctorate from Cleveland State University’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1990. As an attorney, she worked as an Associate for Forbes and Associates. She later opened her own very successful law firm of Law Offices of Cassandra Collier-Williams, LLC. She practiced law in federal, state, and municipal courts. Judge Collier-Williams practiced criminal defense law and civil law. She was awarded the Champion of Justice Award by the Ohio Association of Criminal Defense and the Certificate of Recognition by the Ohio Supreme Court.  Judge Collier Williams is a member of the following associations: the Norman S. Minor Bar Association, the Ohio State Bar Association, the National Bar Association, and the National Council of Negro Women.

United States Magistrate Judge Dana Marie Douglas currently serves in the Eastern District of Louisiana.  Judge Douglas attended Loyola University College of Law where she received her Juris Doctor in New Orleans in 2000.  Upon graduation, she served as a law clerk in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana to the Honorable Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle.  Judge Douglas is also a former shareholder (partner) of the law firm of Liskow & Lewis where her practice focused in the areas of energy, products liability, and intellectual property litigation in the state and federal courts of Louisiana and across a wide variety of industry sectors. Judge Dana Marie Douglas assumed her role as a United States Magistrate Judge on January 7, 2019.

Magistrate Judge Carmen Henderson was sworn in on July 1, 2020 as United States Magistrate Judge for the United States District Court, Northern District of Ohio. Prior to her appointment, she was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Criminal Division of the United States Attorney's Office in Cleveland since 2014, where she was assigned to the White Collar Unit. She prosecuted various financial crimes, including wire fraud, tax fraud, securities fraud, bankruptcy fraud, and bank fraud. Prior to joining the United States Attorney's Office, Magistrate Judge Henderson served as a Law Clerk for the Honorable Solomon Oliver, Jr. She is also a former Associate of Vorys, Sater, Seymour, and Pease LLP, where she was assigned to the commercial litigation group. Prior to law school, Magistrate Judge Henderson earned her Certified Public Accountant License and worked as an Auditor at Deloitte and Touche, LLP. Magistrate Judge Henderson received her B.S. in Business with a major in Accountancy from Miami University in 2007, her CPA License in 2008, and her J.D. from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law in 2012.

The panel presentation is free but registration is required.  Please reach out to Seth Seward '11 at sewardsg@MiamiOH.edu, with questions.