Judiciary

Julie Creal, Chief Judge

Julie Creal serves as Chief Judge in the 15th Judicial District Court for the City of Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Judge Creal was appointed to the 15th Judicial District Court bench in March of 1999.

Judge Creal graduated from Ann Arbor Pioneer High School. She attended Kenyon College where she received her B.A. in History. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Prior to taking the bench, Judge Creal was in private practice with the firm of Creal & Creal, P.C. from 1990 to 1999. She previously practiced in Washington, D.C.

Judge Creal presides over civil cases, which include landlord-tenant matters, general civil cases, and small claims appeals; traffic cases; and criminal cases involving drinking and driving. She fostered the creation of and presides over the 15th Judicial District Sobriety Court, a specialized docket which provides intensive probation supervision and treatment for repeat drinking and driving offenders.

Judge Creal has served her community in a variety of ways including:

Member, State Board of Ethics - 1997 to 1999
Member, Charter Township of York Planning Commission - 1996 to 1999
Member, State Committee on Juvenile Justice - 1994 to 1996
Councilmember, City of Ann Arbor - 1993 to 1994
Member, Ann Arbor Planning Commission - 1990 to 1994
Board member of Milan Area Chamber of Commerce, Milan Rotary Club, Christmas in April/Washtenaw, and Aid in Milan

She currently serves on the boards of Dawn Farm, Senior Citizens Housing of Ann Arbor, the Ann Arbor YMCA, and the Washtenaw County Historical Society.

Judge Creal has been a member of the State Bar of Michigan since 1989 and the District of Columbia Bar Association since 1990. She is a member of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and the Michigan Association of Drug Court Professionals. She is also a member of the Michigan District Judges Association, the American Judges Association, the American Bar Association, and the Washtenaw County Bar Association.

Elizabeth Pollard Hines, Chief Judge Pro Tempore

Elizabeth P. Hines was elected to the 15th Judicial District Court bench in 1992. She served as Chief Judge from 1997 to 2001, and is the former Presiding Judge of the District Court Division of the Washtenaw County Trial Court.

Judge Hines received her Bachelors of Art, with honor, from the University of Michigan in 1974, and her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School in 1977.

Before being elected to the bench, Judge Hines served as an Assistant Prosecutor for the Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney's office for 15 years. As First Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, she prosecuted many cases including those involving crimes against childrean and child protection.

Judge Hines has served the community in a variety of ways:

Appointed as the first Chair of Ann Arbor's Domestic Violence Coordinating Board in 1987
Trainer for the Michigan Judicial Institute on issues related to domestic violence
Represented her district court colleagues on an Executive Committee managing a Judicial Oversight Demonstration Initiative sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice - 1999 to 2004
Member, Governor's Task Force on Children's Justice - 1991 to 2004
Member, Governor's Task Force on Batterer Intervention Standards
Recently re-elected to the Board of Governors of the American Judges Association
Served as the Chair of the Domestic Violence Committee of the American Judges Association
Appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to the Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure
Helped create and launch "Street Outreach Court", which is a community project of the Washtenaw County criminal justice system and advocates for the homeless
Handles a specialized court docket dedicated to domestic violence cases
Selected by the National Center of State Courts to serve on a Multi-disciplinary Advisory Committee working to develop a toolkit for jurisdictions interested in using a problem-solving approach - January 2006
Appointed by the President of the American Judges Association to chair the Access to Justice Committee - October 2006
Appointed to the Executive Committee of the American Judges Association - September 2007

Judge Hines is a member of the State Bar Association, the Washtenaw County Bar Association, the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, the American Judges Association, and the Michigan District Judges Association.

Ann Mattson, Judge

Ann Mattson was appointed to the 15th Judicial District Court bench in 1994. She served as Chief Judge from January 2002 though December 2007.

Judge Mattson is a graduate of the University of Michigan-Flint where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Before beginning her judicial career, Judge Mattson worked as an Assistant Prosecutor for the Washtenaw County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

Judge Mattson is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Washtenaw County Bar Association, the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, and the Michigan District Judges Association. She has served as a presenter for the Michigan Judicial Institute, the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, and other professional organizations.

An active community servant, Judge Mattson is a member of the Executive Committee of the Girl Scouts of the Huron Valley Council and co-chairs the Youth Services Committee of the Kiwanis Club of Ann Arbor.

M. Colleen Currie, Magistrate

M. Colleen Currie was appointed to the 15th Judicial District Court bench by Chief Judge Julie Creal in mid July 2008.

Magistrate Currie obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature with distinction from the University of Michigan in 1990 and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1994.

Prior to her appointment, she held the position of Judicial Attorney to Judge Timothy P. Connors of the Washtenaw County Circuit Court from 1998 to 2008.

Magistrate Currie was a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin from 1994 to 2004 when she voluntarily resigned her membership. She is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the Washtenaw County Bar Association, the Women Lawyer's Association of Michigan and the Michigan Association of District Court Magistrates. She has been admitted to practice law in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.