Tiffin Municipal Court Judge Mark Repp is stepping into a temporary role at the Fostoria Municipal Court starting July 17.
"I was asked to do some additional work and I agreed to help out," Repp said Friday.
Repp's new position is administrative judge, and was assigned by Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor.
The position comes with no pay raise, although compensation will be provided for travel time, according Supreme Court of Ohio guidelines.
Repp will still work as the Municipal Court judge in Tiffin. This additional assignment will put him in charge of daily operations at Fostoria Municipal Court.
"He is not required to be at Fostoria's court all the time, but he is in charge of overseeing its operations," Ohio Supreme Court Judicial Assignment Specialist Diane Hayes said.
Operations include filling staff positions and supervising staff and court employees. It is an interim position lasting through Oct. 17.
The decision offered to Repp comes at a time when Fostoria and Tiffin municipal courts are considering a merger.
Fostoria Mayor Eric Keckler and Fostoria City Council have been deliberating the possibility of merging courts that would save the city of Fostoria an estimated $400,000 in operating costs for their court.
"Repp was chosen from a pool of area judges," Hayes said. "Retired Crawford County Judge James Hoover was also chosen by O'Connor for an interim term that lasts from the end of June to September, Hayes said.
According to Article 4 of the Ohio Constitution, judges can be assigned to area courts, whether they are sitting or retired.
Any interim positions appointed by O'Connor are scheduled to expire in the fall, after which the governor is to fill the vacancy, created by the April death of newly elected Judge Barbara Marley.
"There is no timeline for when the governor appoints this new judge," Hayes said.
Previously, the Seneca County Republican Executive Committee voted to have Barbara Dibble serve as the presiding judge of Fostoria's Municipal Court and made the recommendation to Gov. John Kasich.
Since the vacancy, Kevin Smith, a retired Findlay judge, has been presiding in Fostoria's municipal court.
