After serving as acting director of the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) since Jan. 1, Jason M. Nemes has been appointed director of the agency that provides administrative support to the Kentucky court system. Chief Justice Joseph E. Lambert has named Nemes director of the AOC, effective today. Nemes took on the role of acting director after the resignation of then AOC Director Melinda L. Wheeler.
"When Jason was named acting director, it was not my intention to make him permanent in that position," said Chief Justice Lambert. "However, during the last few months I have observed his outstanding performance and his desire to make the AOC a truly service-oriented organization. I have also been contacted by Supreme Court justices and dozens of judges and circuit clerks throughout Kentucky who have praised Jason's work and suggested that I remove the acting from his title. It is my pleasure to do that today."
"Jason possesses all of the qualities necessary to transform the culture and perspectives of the AOC," said Supreme Court Justice William E. McAnulty Jr. of Jefferson County. "I have no doubt he will be successful during his tenure there."
"I am pleased with the news," said Jon L. Fleischaker, a partner with Dinsmore & Shohl in Louisville. "I believe Jason will do a good job and be a catalyst for positive change."
Nemes was named chief of staff and counsel for the Office of Chief Justice in June 2005 after serving as a law clerk for Chief Justice Lambert.
Nemes, 29, is a native of Louisville. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Kentucky University where he pursued a double major in government and sociology and a minor in criminology. After completing undergraduate studies at Western, Nemes spent a year in Washington, D.C., where he served as a legislative aide to two members of Kentucky's congressional delegation. He ranked among the top in his class when he graduated from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law. He currently serves as an adjunct professor of constitutional law and appellate practice at U of L.
"Jason has one of the finest legal minds I have taught in my years on the faculty," said Sam Marcosson, professor of law for the U of L School of Law. "His unparalleled intellectual curiosity and tremendous enthusiasm for the law made it a joy to work with him even when we didn't agree on particular points. These qualities led me to recommend that Jason return last year as an adjunct faculty member and we taught a class in constitutional law together in which he was a wonderful asset to our students."
Nemes and his wife, Leslie, reside in Louisville with their son, Samuel.
The AOC supports the activities of more than 3,500 Kentucky Court of Justice employees, including the elected offices of justices, judges and circuit court clerks, and executes the Judicial Branch budget.
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