By Judy Clabes
NKyTribune editor
Susanne Mowery Cetrulo of Edgewood has been named by Gov. Andy Beshear to the Kentucky Court of Appeals vacancy left by the resignation of Judge Joy Kramer.
Susanne Cetrulo
The appointment is in the 6th Appellate District, Division 2, which is composed of the Commonwealth’s 21 northernmost counties.
Cetrulo was one of three lawyers, including Kate Molloy of Crescent Springs and Virginia Snell of LaGrange, who were recommended by the Judicial Nominating Commission to fill the vacancy.
Cetrulo is a founding partner of the law firm of Cetrulo, Mowery & Hicks. She has been in private practice for 30 years. She received her juris doctor from Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law.
She was admitted to the Kentucky bar in 1984 and served as a staff attorney for the Kentucky Court of Appeals from 1984-1991 under Chief Judge Charles Lester and Judge Judy West. She was in private practice in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky from 1991 to 2001, when she and her husband Robert formed the firm of Cetrulo and Mowery, now Cetrulo Mowery & Hicks.
She has litigated civil cases and handled adoptions, including private, international, interstate and special needs adoptions as well as other domestic relations matters. Adoption assistance is her passion.
Cetrulo and her husband are the parents of three children, Nicole, Rob and JP.
Cetrulo, the happy grandmother, with her granddaughter.
Cetrulo is following in the steps of her mentor, Judge Judy West who held the seat for the first time in the 1980s. She was a staff attorney in West’s office.
“It is such an honor to be appointed to this important Court to fill the seat that was once held by my mentor, Judge Judy West.
“I will certainly miss my clients but I am looking forward to serving in this role.”
She must disengage from her law practice and expects to be sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Michelle Keller of Fort Mitchell early in October.
The Kentucky Court of Appeals, along with the Supreme Court of Kentucky, was formed after the 1975 enactment of the Judicial Article that created Kentucky’s unified court system. Fourteen judges, two elected from each of the seven appellate districts, serve on the Court of Appeals for terms of eight years.
