Kani H. Hightower at a glance
- Current role
- Judge
- Jurisdiction
- Ohio · State
- Judicial service
- Active
Kani H. Hightower
Biography
Professional career
- Judge Kani Hightower was elected to the Summit County Domestic Relations Court on November 8, 2022, and currently serves as the Presiding Judge of the Summit County Common Pleas Court
- Before her election, Judge Hightower held the role of an Akron Municipal Court magistrate from January 2020 through December 2022, presiding over thousands of cases including evictions, traffic, criminal arraignments, and small claims.
- Raised in Stow, Ohio, Judge Hightower is a lifelong Summit County resident and a graduate of Stow-Munroe Falls High School
Education
- Kent State University — B.A.
Additional information
- Private trial attorney for over fourteen years
- handling complex family, juvenile, criminal, civil, and probate cases, and also practiced appellate law before the Ohio Supreme Court.
- overseeing administrative matters, jury and grand jury proceedings, and initiatives across all divisions of the court.
- Her legal work focused on representing indigent and underrepresented clients, emphasizing fair and competent representation.
- As presiding judge, Hightower has launched the Justice Initiatives Collaborative, a program designed to increase access to justice, reduce trauma in court proceedings, and improve accessibility for the public, including ADA compliance, parking, and signage improvements.
- She is also an adjunct professor of law at the University of Akron, teaching Family Law Practice and Procedure
- She was unanimously elected by her peers to this leadership role and is the first African American to serve as presiding judge in at least 20 years
Applicable Court Rules & Procedures
Remote appearances
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.
Instructions for submitting exhibits or notifying the court of witnesses.Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings ↗
Statewide
Ohio's statewide virtual-court guidance recommends advance ground rules for documents, exhibits, screen sharing, and pre-marking exhibits for remote hearings.
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 ↗
Statewide
Ohio's statewide virtual-court guidance states that litigants, attorneys, and the public should be instructed not to record the hearing.
The court should instruct the litigants, attorneys, and the public to not record the hearing.Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings ↗
Sources
Identity source checked July 27, 2026.
Biography sources checked July 27, 2026.
Ohio Judicial Conference Directory official judicial roster
Identity source · HTML · Source checked July 27, 2026
View Ohio Judicial Conference Directory official judicial roster ↗Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings
Statewide source · HTML · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Virtual Public Access to Ohio Court Proceedings ↗