---
title: "J.J. Costello | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/j-j-costello"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-07-27"
---

# J.J. Costello

Cleveland Heights Municipal Court · Municipal Court Judge

## Profile

- Court: Cleveland Heights Municipal Court
- State: Ohio
- Role: Municipal Court Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-27

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### remote hearing exhibits

Scope: statewide

Ohio's statewide virtual-court guidance tells courts to include instructions for submitting exhibits or notifying the court of witnesses when remote-hearing information is sent to participants.

Evidence excerpt: Instructions for submitting exhibits or notifying the court of witnesses.

[Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings](https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/courts/virtual-court/)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### remote hearing ground rules

Scope: statewide

Ohio's statewide virtual-court guidance recommends advance ground rules for documents, exhibits, screen sharing, and pre-marking exhibits for remote hearings.

Evidence excerpt: Documents: Share any documents/exhibits that will be reviewed in advance. Use the share screen function while documents are being discussed during the hearing. Request that the documents are pre-marked for exhibit purposes.

[Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings](https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/courts/virtual-court/)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### remote recording

Scope: statewide

Ohio's statewide virtual-court guidance states that litigants, attorneys, and the public should be instructed not to record the hearing.

Evidence excerpt: The court should instruct the litigants, attorneys, and the public to not record the hearing.

[Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings](https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/courts/virtual-court/)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.ohiojudges.org/directory/ojc-directory/)
- [Official roster](https://www.ohiojudges.org/directory/ojc-directory/)
- [Ohio Judicial Conference Directory official judicial roster](https://www.ohiojudges.org/directory/ojc-directory/)
- [Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings](https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/courts/virtual-court/)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge J.J. Costello is the elected municipal court judge for Cleveland Heights, Ohio, serving since January 2018 and re‐elected in 2023 for a second six‐year term

### Education

- A lifelong Cleveland Heights resident, Costello obtained a B.S. from Miami University of Ohio and a J.D. from Case Western Reserve University School of Law.

### Additional information

- In 2025, he was elected Secretary of the Association of Municipal/County Judges of Ohio
- First appointed Acting Judge by Retired Judge A. Deane Buchanan
- The only municipal court judge in Cleveland Heights and has jurisdiction over preliminary felony hearings, traffic and criminal misdemeanors, civil cases under $15,000, and small claims under $6,000.
- He also has the authority to perform marriages
- Before joining the bench, he practiced law in Cleveland Heights, later working in a boutique firm handling landlord‐tenant matters, real estate management, and housing/building code enforcement defense.
- Judge Costello is known for combining judicial leadership with community‐focused reforms, aiming to improve efficiency, transparency, and access to justice in the municipal court system
- He serves on the Ohio Supreme Court’s Commission on Technology and the Courts, the Ohio Judicial Conference’s Civil Law and Procedure Committee, and the Legislative Committee.