Oakland County Clerk/Regster of Deeds Bill Bullard Jr. (center) swore in Judges (left to right) Phyllis McMillen, Michael Warren, Denise Langford Morris, and Wendy Potts to office for their next terms as judges of the Oakland County Circuit Court on Thursday, Dec. 13, during the Oakland County Board of Commissioners’ meeting. Photo by John Meiu
On Thursday, Dec. 13, during the Oakland County Board of Commissioners’ meeting, Judge Denise Langford Morris, Judge Phyllis McMillen, Judge Wendy Potts, and Judge Michael Warren were sworn in to office for their next terms as judges of the Oakland County Circuit Court.
These four judges were re-elected in November to subsequent six-year terms beginning on Jan. 1, 2013. Between the four judges, they have more than 46 years of service as judges on the Oakland County bench.
Judge Denise Langford Morris was appointed to the Circuit Court in 1992. She won election to the Circuit Court in 1994 and was re-elected in 2000, 2006 and 2012. She is the first African American to serve on the Oakland County Circuit Court bench. She is a former assistant prosecuting attorney for Oakland County and a former assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. She currently serves as chair-elect of the National Bar Association Judicial Council.
Judge Phyllis McMillen was appointed to the Circuit Court in 2010. She previously served as a district court judge in Waterford for 15 years. She is a past president of the Oakland County District Judges Association and the Michigan District Judges Association. She initiated the Sobriety Court intensive treatment and supervision program in Waterford. McMillen currently serves as chair of the Michigan Association of Drug Court Professionals Training Conference.
In 1997 Judge Wendy Potts was appointed to the Probate Court in Oakland County. Later that year she was appointed to the Circuit Court and has since been elected four consecutive times. Potts served as chief judge of the Circuit Court from 2004 through 2009. She is a past president of the Oakland County Bar Association and a past secretary of the State Bar of Michigan. Potts currently serves as vice chair of the Michigan State Bar Foundation.
Judge Michael Warren was appointed to the Circuit Court in 2002 and was elected in 2004, 2006 and 2012. He is a former Board member and secretary of the State Board of Education. He is co-founder of Patriot Week and the first Oakland County judge to engage in eFiling. He is the author of “America’s Survival Guide: How to Stop America’s Impending Suicide by Reclaiming our First Principles and History.” Warren currently serves as the presiding judge of the Civil/Criminal division.
A reception honoring the re-elected judges was held immediately following the swearing-in ceremony.
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