A daughter of two hard-working union-based General Electric retirees, Janaya is a lifelong resident of Cincinnati who grew up in Forest Park and now resides in Bond Hill with her husband William and two dogs Jay and Tommy. At a young age, Janaya chose her path to law after spending countless afternoons at her Uncle’s law firm. These afternoons gave her the opportunity to witness how valuable of an impact their legal work had on their clients’ lives; and with Janaya already having an innate care-taker spirit, she knew then that she wanted to pursue the legal field to be able to provide that same level of service and care to help her community prosper.

After earning her Bachelor of Arts degree from The Ohio State University and her Juris Doctor from Salmon P. Chase College of Law, Janaya began her legal career as an assistant prosecuting attorney with the City of Cincinnati Prosecutor’s Office. Janaya’s experience practicing in Hamilton County courts opened her eyes to the miscarriages of justice regularly occurring in the courts. She felt the best way to ensure justice was served in our courts was to build a qualified, fair, and diverse bench.

With that goal in mind, Janaya joined the Hamilton County Democratic Party’s Judicial Committee. In 2010, she received an appointment from Governor Strickland to serve on the Hamilton County Municipal Court Vacancy Selection Committee. Janaya co-chaired the Hamilton County Democratic Party’s Judicial Committee for six years, and under her leadership, in 2018 more Democratic judges were elected than had ever been in history.  

Prior to joining the bench, Janaya worked with Gerhardstein & Branch, a law firm whose practice was focused solely on civil rights litigation. 

Always an active participant in the community, Janaya serves as the President-Elect of the Cincinnati Bar Association. Janaya will be the first Black woman to lead the Cincinnati Bar Association. Janaya also regularly speaks and volunteers her time working on social justice causes.

Among other various posts, she has most notably served as a member of the Ohio Justice & Policy Center Board of Directors, a member of the Dress for Success of Cincinnati Board of Directors, Vice-President of the Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati, Chair of the Bar Association’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, a member of the Hamilton County Tax Levy Review Committee, and the Cincinnati Zoo Planned Giving Committee.

Along with a host of other accolades and honors, Janaya has been awarded the NAACP Foot Soldier in the Sands award for going above and beyond the call of duty on behalf of the organization and its civil rights agenda. She has been recognized as a YWCA Rising Star, one of the Cincinnati Business Courier’s 40 under 40, and a “Wise Woman” by the One Hundred Wise Women Program. She most recently was honored with the Cincinnati Women’s Political Caucus’ Outstanding Achievement Award.