Gettingtoknow... The Honorable Judge Julie A. Bruns

By DBA Editorial Board Member, Sarita Simon Esq. | Montgomery Cty Juvenile Court | ssimon@mcjcohio.org

What court do you preside in?

Montgomery County Common Pleas Court

Juvenile Division

When were you sworn in as Judge?

January 2023

How has your previous job experience helped shape you as a Judge?

For two years (1994-1996) Judge Bruns served as the Judicial Clerk for the Honorable Barbara P. Gorman, Montgomery County Common Pleas Court Judge. Through this experience she was able to work directly under a judge. From 1996 to 2019 she served as an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Montgomery County where she was a criminal trial attorney assigned to the Juvenile Division, Adult Trial Division, and CARE House (Montgomery County’s Child Advocacy Center). While at the Prosecutors Office she served as the Juvenile Division Chief from 2005-2019. Her experience as a trial attorney exposed her to criminal and civil prosecutions as well as mentoring attorneys. For a time while also working at the Prosecutor’s Office, she taught paralegal courses at Rets Tech Center and Capitol University. Her experience as a teacher ultimately benefited her as a trial attorney because it solidified the importance of people being able to understand what your end goal is and what are the elements of your case. Additionally during her time as a prosecutor she was on a committee through the Ohio Supreme Court that ad- dressed Ohio’s Juvenile Competency statute. That experience reinforced the concept that good end products can come from collaboration as the committee participants included prosecutors, defense attorneys and child advocates. Furthermore, Judge Bruns was a magistrate in Juvenile Court from February of 2019 until she became a judge where she presided over private custody and juvenile traffic cases. Through this experience, she was exposed to the more civil docketed side of Juvenile Court thus rounding out her experience directly with the types of cases brought before the Court.

What is your ultimate goal as a judge?

When posed this question, Judge Bruns stated that her goal is to treat people with respect. She expressed that everyone deserves to be treated respectfully. She additionally stated that she wants to ensure that the court does what is in the best interest of the child(ren).

What advice do you have for attorneys that appear before you?

Judge Bruns said that it is important to be prepared for your hearing as preparation can either make or break your case. You should make sure that you have met with your client and your witnesses and follow up on the information that they provide to you. If you feel that you should have an outline for your case, prepare an outline so that you can ensure that you hit all of the elements. You also need to be open minded and understand that there are two sides to every story. Additionally, you should treat everyone with respect. Furthermore, remember that each time you appear before a judge that that experience is a learning experience.

Do you have any advice for lawyers who aspire to become a judge?

Judge Bruns impressed upon me that running for Judge is a very personal decision. She said that she always knew that she wanted to run for judge but she needed to make sure that the timing was right in both her personal and professional life. She stated that running a campaign is both a grueling and ultimately rewarding experience. At the time that she ran her campaign she was working full-time and attending 3-4 campaign events a week. She admitted that when she initially began her campaign that she had no idea what running a campaign ultimately entailed. Along her campaign, she said that she made new friends and met a ton of people that she would never have met otherwise. She advocated for putting as much of your personal time in your campaign as you can. She also recommends putting in the time to meet with people in the community such as personally canvassing neighborhoods.