Law school alumnus Judge Thomas Teodosio to receive Sir Thomas More Award

Thomas A. Teodosio

The Hon. Thomas A. Teodosio is the 2021 recipient of the Sir Thomas More Award, which is given in honor of the patron saint of lawyers. The award is presented annually by the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland in recognition of a member of the legal community who demonstrates outstanding personal integrity, professional excellence, and community service.

The distinguished award will be presented by Bishop Edward Malesic in conjunction with the annual Red Mass at St. Bernard Catholic Church, 44 University Avenue in Akron at noon on Friday, May 7, 2021.

The judge is a life-long Summit County resident, born to Anna Marie and Alexander Teodosio, and a long-practicing attorney in Akron. He received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Akron School of Law and was admitted to practice law in 1982. While in law school, he met his future wife, Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio, who is the Summit County Juvenile Court judge and previously received this award in 2014. Their son, Christopher Teodosio, is a partner with the law firm of Brouse McDowell and a 2012 graduate of Akron Law. He and his wife Katherine are the proud parents of two children: Charlotte and Ava. The Teodosios remember their late daughter Andrea through the Andrea Rose Teodosio Foundation.

Prior to beginning his judicial career, Judge Teodosio was in the private practice of law for 25 years. He was a partner in the law firm of Teodosio, Manos and Ward. His law practice was general in nature, but focused heavily on trial work, both civil and criminal. While in private practice, he served on the Summit County Trial Lawyers Association Board of Trustees and was a member of the Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers. As an attorney, Judge Teodosio provided pro bono legal services at the Hospice Care Center and through the Wester n Reserve Volunteer Legal Services.

In November 2000, Judge Teodosio was elected to serve on Summit County Council. He was reelected to Council in 2004. In addition to serving as president of Council, he chaired the Summit County Predatory Lending Task Force and numerous committees. He sponsored legislation creating the Summit County Office of Consumer Affairs to protect Summit County residents from unfair, deceptive, or unconscionable consumer sales practices.

In November 2006, Judge Teodosio was elected to the Summit County Common Pleas Court as judge, where he served as the court’s Presiding Judge for a number of years as well as the Administrative Judge and Chair of the Judicial Advisory Board. In addition to his regular general division docket, Judge Teodosio presided over the Summit County Felony Drug Court, a specialized docket in which drug-dependent offenders suffering from the illness of addiction are provided intense court-supervised substance abuse and mental health treatment and programming. Recognizing the stigma attached to the term “drug court,” Judge Teodosio changed the name of the program to the “Turning Point” program. Judge Teodosio made many enhancements to the program and its success was recognized by the ADM Board’s Dr. Robert Smith Innovation Award.

Judge Teodosio served on the Summit County Common Pleas Court until February 2017 when he began his term as judge on the Ohio Court of Appeals, Ninth Appellate District. The Ninth District Court of Appeals serves Summit, Lorain, Medina and Wayne counties. Judge Teodosio has served as the Ninth District’s Administrative and Presiding Judge. In 2019 Judge Teodosio was honored to have been selected by Chief Justice O’Conner to serve as a visiting judge on the Ohio Supreme Court. Judge Teodosio has traveled with the court to high schools throughout the district to hear oral arguments and educate students on the rule of law as part of the court’s “Courtroom in the Classroom” educational outreach program. Judge Teodosio has been a presenter of numerous Bar Association CLE seminars in the district as well as Community Legal Aid Services CLE. He speaks regularly to classes at the University of Akron School of Law and was honored to be a presenter at the College of Wooster’s “Great Decisions” series.

Judge Teodosio is a member of the Akron, Lorain County, Medina County, Wayne County and Ohio State Bar Associations, the Ohio Courts of Appeals Judges Association, and the American Judges Association. Judge Teodosio serves as chairman of the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Capital Case Attorney Fee Council and also serves on the Advisory Committee on Case Management. For a number of years, he served on the Supreme Court’s Advisory Committee on Interpreter Services. He serves on the Ohio Judicial Conferences Judicial Ethics, Professionalism and Diversity Committee, the Criminal Law and Procedure Committee and the Appellate Law & Procedure Committee. Judge Teodosio serves on the Akron Bar Association’s Access to Justice Committee and the Common Pleas, Municipal and Appellate Court Committee. Judge Teodosio has also served as a faculty member for the Supreme Court of Ohio Judicial College on the seminar topic Ethics and Professionalism and Access to Justice and Fairness in the Courts.

Judge Teodosio’s faith has been an important part of his life. He is a member of Holy Family Parish where he has served as an usher and volunteered many hours to support church activities and programs. He also regularly attended the daily noon mass at St. Bernard’s Church, prior to Covid, which allowed him to reflect on his many responsibilities in life and in the community. Judge Teodosio serves as an Advisory Board member of Catholic Charities Community Services of Summit County and is a past recipient of the Bishop Cosgrove Justice Award from the Catholic Commission. He and his family continue to rely on their strong faith in living with the tragic loss of his daughter Andrea.

Judge Teodosio is deeply involved in our community. He has served on more than a dozen boards over the years, including the Akron Zoo Board of Trustees; the Akron Civic Theatre Board of Directors; the Rebuilding Together Advisory Board; the Board of Directors at Community Support Services; the Walsh Jesuit High School Board of Trustees; and the Summit County Consumer Affairs Board. He serves as an Advisory Board Member of the Andrea Rose Teodosio Foundation, which carries on his late daughter’s legacy by supporting local causes that Andrea was passionate about during her lifetime, including initiatives that support education and the needs of seniors and the less fortunate. The Foundation has supported The Special Olympics, The Akron Children’s Museum, The Battered Women’s Shelter, and Stewart’s Caring Place, to name a few.

Judge Teodosio has received countless awards for his service to the community, some of which include the Liberty Bell Award from the Akron Bar Association; the University of Akron School of Law Alumni Association Outstanding Alumni Award; the Veteran Appreciation Award from the Veterans Service Commission; the Herald K. Stubbs Humanity Award for Distinguished Service in the Field of Government; the Urban Light Award from the University of Akron Department of Public Administration and Urban Studies for service to the Akron community; and the Achievement Award from the Council of Italian American Society of Summit County.

This article originally appeared here on the Akron Bar Association website.