Angela Stokes

Cleveland Municipal Judge Angela Stokes is leaving the bench in a deal that ends a long legal battle and preserves her law license.

( Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer)

Columbus, Ohio - Angela Stokes' 20-year career as a Cleveland Municipal Court judge, which has been marked by controversy over her courtroom behavior, has come to end.

A special panel of the Ohio Supreme Court's Board of Professional Conduct approved a deal Wednesday morning that calls for her immediate retirement and promise to never seek election again. In exchange, the top court's Office of Disciplinary Counsel will drop its entire 2013 complaint against her and will not oppose Stokes' request to have her law license reinstated. The Ohio Supreme Court suspended her license in Dec. 2014 while she fought the charges against her.

Stokes and her attorneys proposed the deal December 21 but needed the approval of the special panel, which had been overseeing the case. The disciplinary counsel's complaint, which alleged that Stokes had abused court staff, lawyers and defendants, triggered a trial that began last year before the special panel. The trial, held periodically rather than continuously, lasted more than eight weeks and likely would have continued well into 2016. Attempts to reach a settlement earlier had failed twice, most recently in August.

The deal, as specified in an December affidavit signed by Stokes and filed with Board of Professional Conduct, says she must retire immediately and "never run for, seek, accept appointment to or hold any judicial position in any state court, excluding federal court positions."

Stokes, who also earned a reputation for working long hours, is expected to send on Wednesday a letter of resignation, via certified mail, to the governor and Ohio Supreme Court's chief justice notifying them of her retirement.

A city employee, Stokes was entitled to a taxpayer-funded defense, which has cost the city of Cleveland more than $1 million. Stokes has been free to hire, fire and rehire lawyers and law firms and has used six lawyers or firms, according to city records.

Stokes leaves with two years remaining in her six-year term. Gov. John Kasich has the responsibility to fill the vacancy, which is one of two in the Cleveland court.

Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Ed Wade created the other vacancy when he abandoned his seat after winning a new six-year term in November. He defeated Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Pauline Tarver, whose term was ending.