Jacob James Cunningham Biography – Jacob James Cunningham Wiki

Jacob James Cunningham serves as a judge for the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court located in Oakland County, Michigan. Elected in November 2018, Cunningham made history by becoming one of the youngest individuals to be elected to the Oakland County Circuit Court at just 33 years old.

He began his judicial role in January 2019, initially working in the family division. By May 2022, he transitioned to the civil/criminal division. In the November 2024 election, he secured another six-year term on the bench. Cunningham is noted for being the first openly LGBTQ+ judge on the Oakland Circuit Court and one of the few openly gay judges in Michigan.

Judge Cunningham completed his undergraduate studies at Oakland University in 2007 before earning his law degree from Western Michigan University’s Thomas M. Cooley Law School in 2012. He became a member of the State Bar of Michigan that same year. While pursuing his studies, Cunningham gained practical experience as a clerk at the Birmingham law firm of Williams, Williams, Rattner, and Plunkett PC.

Upon graduation, he served as a Judicial Clerk for the Hon. Wendy Potts (retired) of the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court in the General Civil Division from 2012-2013 and the Business Court from 2013-2014. He also served as a Judicial Staff Attorney for the Hon. Mary Ellen Brennan of the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court in the Family Division from 2014-2018.

Judge Cunningham is a member of the American Judges Association, Michigan Judges Association, Incorporated Society of Irish American Lawyers, Armenian American Bar Association, International Association of LGBTQ+ Judges, Eastern District of Michigan Federal Bar Association, Michigan Inter-Professional Association, and Michigan Supreme Court’s Child Welfare Leadership Workgroup.

Jacob James Cunningham Age

Judge Jacob James Cunningham was born in 1985 in Bloomfield Hills, Oakland County, Michigan.

Jacob James Cunningham Partner

Judge Jacob James Cunningham is married to investigative reporter Hank Winchester. Winchester is an Emmy-winning investigative reporter at the NBC-affiliated WDIV Local 4 station and host of Help Me Hank.

Jacob James Cunningham Salary

Circuit Court Judge Jacob James Cunningham receives an annual salary of $262,300.

Jacob James Cunningham Political Party

He is nonpartisan.

LGBTQ+

Oakland County Circuit Judge Jacob Cunningham is openly gay. He first came out at 16. In November 2018, the Bloomfield Hills native became the first openly LGBTQ+ judge on the Oakland Circuit Court bench and one of only a handful of openly gay judges serving in Michigan. He is a member of the International Association of LGBTQ+ Judges.

“I first came out when I was 16, and have had no qualms about it since. I’m very proud of who I am and what I’ve been able to accomplish. I am who I am, and I can’t help that,” he told Pride Source.

On January 8, 2024, Judge Cunningham administered the oath of office to Rolanda Kelley, the first openly gay woman elected to city council in Ferndale. In a post to her Facebook page, Kelley, who has served as chair of the LGBTQ+ Committee for the Oakland County Democratic Party, said it was “an honor to have my friend, The Honorable Judge Jake Cunningham, the first openly gay judge in Oakland County, administer the oath.”

“I was honored to be asked by Rolanda, who is a neighbor and my friend, to take part in the ceremony, which we both see as further advancing the progress of the gay community in Michigan,” said Cunningham. “I’m confident she will do an excellent job representing the residents of Ferndale throughout her time on city council. She has the best interests of the residents at heart.”