Judge Miriam A. Perry: Professional Background and Legal Expertise

Hon. Miriam A. Perry is a judge for the Fifteenth District Court of Michigan in Washtenaw County. She was appointed to the bench by Governor Gretchen Whitmer on December 16, 2020, filling the vacancy created by the resignation of the Hon. Elizabeth Pollard Hines.

Perry hears criminal and traffic cases.

Prior to her appointment, she was a clinical teaching fellow in the Veterans Legal Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School. Before beginning her fellowship, Perry had worked for fourteen years as an assistant public defender with the Washtenaw County Public Defender’s Office (2006 to 2020).

Her legal career also includes serving as a judicial attorney with the Third Circuit Court (2001 to 2006) and a law clerk with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

Perry received a B.A. in economics from Spelman College in 1993. She went on to complete a J.D. at the University of Michigan Law School in 1998. She was admitted to practice in Michigan in 2001.

After graduating from law school, Perry spent two years teaching English in Japan as part of the Japanese Exchange in Teaching program.

Her memberships have included the Washtenaw County Bar Association, the Michigan District Judges Association, the American Judges Association, the Black Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan, the NAACP, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. (Ann Arbor Alumnae Chapter), and the Kiwanis Club.

Perry is a lifelong resident of Ann Arbor, Michigan.