Disciplinary counsel recommends suspension for Cuyahoga County Judge Leslie Ann Celebrezze for repeated misconduct in divorce cases; cozy, undisclosed relationship with her hand-picked receiver

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Monday, May 5, 2025

Celebrezze “tarnished the reputation of the judiciary and undermined the public's confidence in this institution."

Leslie Ann Celebrezze gently cupping her favored receiver Mark Dottore's face and kissing him on the lips

Columbus, OH – On May 2, 2025, the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel filed a memorandum with the Supreme Court of Ohio Board of Professional Conduct, recommending a one-year suspension for Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Judge Leslie Ann Celebrezze—with six months stayed—based on serious and repeated violations of judicial ethics.

The recommendation follows a formal complaint charging Judge Celebrezze with persistent misconduct in multiple cases where she hand-picked controversial receiver Mark Dottore—with whom she told fellow judges she was in love and—often at the expense of litigants’ rights and transparency.

The disciplinary counsel's 29-page memorandum is blunt: Judge Celebrezze “tarnished the reputation of the judiciary and undermined the public's confidence in this institution,” and abused her authority by repeatedly appointing Dottore while failing to disclose an extraordinary extrajudicial relationship with him.

Highlights of the Disciplinary Counsel’s findings:

Frequent, secretive communications with receiver Mark Dottore:

Celebrezze and Dottore exchanged over 3,000 phone calls over a 12-month span—a rate of more than eight calls a day, including weekends and holidays.
These calls were often the first and last Celebrezze or Dottore would make every day.
This pattern continued even while Dottore was acting as a court-appointed receiver in cases before her and parties to the cases were questioning their relationship.
Celebrezze misrepresented to Disciplinary Counsel as a “single chaste momentary” kiss the smootching captured by a private investigator in the still image from video above. "As the video and screenshot make clear," wrote Disciplinary Counsel, Celebrezze "intimately extended her hand to Dottore’s chin, gently pulled him toward her, and kissed him on the lips.
Judge Celebrezze failed to disclose her intimacy with Dottore to litigants, including opposing parties affected by Dottore’s conduct as a receiver.

Improper favoritism and lack of candor:

Celebrezze responded falsely or misleadingly to Disciplinary Counsel when asked about the nature and frequency of her communications with Dottore.
Celebrezze persistently made false statements to her fellow judges.
In one case, she repeatedly reappointed Dottore despite ongoing objections from harmed parties.
Instead of using the proper random-assignment system, Celebrezze coerced other judges to get them to assign their cases to her, including cases in which Dottore or Celebrezze’s and Dottore’s lawyer Robert Glickman had an interest.
Celebrezze sought to persuade fellow Judge Colleen Reali to reassign a case to her by falsely claiming that Dottore had an especially close relationship with Ohio Chief Justice Sharon Kennedy and that a Glickman legal action against Judge Reali in a case would disappear if Reali reassigned the case to Celebrezze.
Celebrezze falsely claimed to her fellow judges that the domestic-relations court had an “administrative docket” on which only she could see a motion to continue the case in which Glickman had an interest.
Glickman sent research to Celebrezze about whether conversations between a judge and a receiver qualify as ex parte communications. Celebrezze, in response to Disciplinary Counsel’s notice of intent to file disciplinary charges, sent Disciplinary Counsel the research that Glickman had sent her.

Improper ex parte communications:

Celebrezze was caught socializing with an attorney on a case she was overseeing, Richard Rabb, and Dottore at the Capital Grill, for which, Disciplinary Counsel raises the concern, Dottore may have billed the opposing party.
This outside communication “creat[ed]—at the very least—an appearance of impropriety,” Disciplinary Counsel wrote.
(It’s unclear why Disciplinary Counsel did not also bring charges against Rabb for this alleged ex parte communication.)

Admission of tampering with public records:
- Celebrezze admitted signing a false entry in a case, claiming that it was randomly reassigned to her when she actually steered the case to her docket.
- Ohio Revised Code § 2913.42 (tampering with records) makes it a third-degree felony to tamper with a public record. Section 2921.12 (tampering with evidence) makes it a third-degree felony to falsify a record to mislead a public official engaged in an investigation with purpose to corrupt the outcome of any such proceeding or investigation.
Ethical violations cited:

The disciplinary counsel found that Judge Celebrezze violated multiple provisions of the Ohio Code of Judicial Conduct, including:

Rule 1.2 (promoting confidence in the judiciary)
Rule 2.5 (ensuring a judge acts competently and diligently)
Rule 2.9 (prohibition on ex parte communications)
Rule 2.11 (ensuring judicial impartiality)

Disciplinary Counsel wrote, “Inherent in the rules comprising the Code of Judicial Conduct ‘are the precepts that judges, individually and collectively, must respect and honor the judicial office as a public trust and strive to maintain and enhance confidence in the legal system.’ … In this regard, respondent failed miserably.”

Subodh Chandra, Semary’s lead counsel said:

The disciplinary counsel’s own findings confirm what our client and others have been saying for years: Judge Celebrezze’s conduct was not a matter of poor judgment—it was a sustained abuse of judicial power for the benefit of her alleged close companion Mark Dottore. Over 3,000 secret communications with a court-appointed receiver, over a year, is not just unethical—it’s staggering.”

To our client, Georgeanna Semary, a mere six-month active suspension for Celebrezze is nowhere near sufficient. She should not be permitted to return to the bench at all. The public deserves judges who follow the law, not who weaponize their robes to enrich cronies and punish whistleblowers.

Semary’s federal civil-rights lawsuit against Celebrezze proceeds in parallel

These findings further validate the federal civil-rights lawsuit pending against Judge Celebrezze, filed by our client Georgeanna Semary, a former judicial assistant who Celebrezze fired after she turned over to a Marshall Project reporter public court records that contained information about Dottore’s appointment.

Semary alleges that Judge Celebrezze retaliated against her to intimidate her into silence. The Ohio Eighth District Court of Appeals has already reinstated Semary’s lawsuit after a trial court wrongly dismissed it. That ruling allows Semary’s claims of retaliation and intimidation under Ohio’s civil action for criminal acts statute (R.C. 2307.60) to proceed.

To learn more about the lawsuit:

Chandra added:

The disciplinary case, serious as it is, still doesn’t capture the full scope of what Ms. Semary exposed. Her amended civil complaint alleges that Judge Celebrezze not only retaliated against her for objecting to Mr. Dottore’s conduct, but also threatened and intimidated her after she filed suit—acts that, if true, show an ongoing pattern of lawlessness and abuse of office.

Disciplinary counsel and the Board of Professional Conduct have yet to address these retaliatory acts, which strike at the heart of judicial integrity and the safety of those who speak up about misconduct. Nor has disciplinary counsel directed the Board's attention to the numerous statements by Celebrezze in the litigation that contradict what she's admitting to now—including her previous denials of her intimate relationship with Dottore.

Chandra Law is experienced obtaining justice for victims of employment retaliation. We also secure constitutional rights and civil rights.

And the firm helped pioneer work in holding individuals and companies accountable for civil liability for criminal acts, securing the two leading Supreme Court of Ohio decisions favorable to crime victims on the topic.

If you think that your rights have been violated, you may contact us to discuss your options.

At Chandra Law, your case is our cause.®

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Employment Retaliation First Amendment Government Ethics, Misconduct, Fraud, & Abuse Legal Ethics & Professional Responsibility Crime Victims: Civil Action for Damages for Criminal Acts Under Ohio Revised Code § 2307.60

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