NORMAN — District Judge Lori M. Walkley has announced that she is seeking re-election to her position as district judge in the 21st Judicial District. The District includes Cleveland, McClain and Garvin counties.
Walkley was appointed district judge by Gov. Brad Henry in 2003 and was elected unopposed in 2006. In 2006 and again in 2009, Walkley was elected chief judge.
“Prior to my service on the court, I was a trial attorney in Norman and Oklahoma City. That legal experience and my subsequent 6 1/2 years on the bench confirm what I have always believed — that there is no substitute for court related experience to ensure that the justice system works for everyone,” Walkley said.
Walkley is an instructor for judicial seminars that train judges throughout the state and has been a faculty member of the National Judicial College. She is the education chairman of the Oklahoma Judicial Conference. Walkley served two terms as vice president of the Oklahoma Judicial Conference and is the only trial court member of the Supreme Court Policy Committee.
“My work as a trial judge has been the most challenging yet rewarding aspect of my legal career,” Walkley said. “I am acutely aware that each case that comes before me represents an individual or a family. At all times, I strive to apply the law to that individual case evenly and fairly.”
Walkley handles approximately 1,400 cases each year in the areas of criminal matters, civil disputes and family law. She is particularly proud of the programs she developed to help cases move through the system more quickly and to help reduce jail overcrowding in Cleveland County.
Receiving her undergraduate degree as well as her law degree from the University of Oklahoma, Walkley is a longtime resident of Norman. She served as president of the Cleveland County Bar Association and has been active in the Oklahoma Bar Association, serving on the Continuing Education Commission and as an editor of the Oklahoma Bar Journal. She is a former member of the Norman Children’s Right Commission and a former board member for the Center for Children and Families.
Walkley has been married to her husband, Bryan Walkley, for 17 years. They have three daughters, ages 21, 15 and 8. Judge Walkley stays busy being a “soccer, softball and golf mom.” The Walkleys have participated in Habitat for Humanity and Cleveland County Bar Foundation charitable functions as well as various disaster relief programs, church activities and small groups.
