On Tuesday, July 2, 2024, Shermela J. Williams, a judge on the Fulton County Superior Court, filed for an extension of time to submit her answer to the formal charges brought against her by the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission.

The case is entitled “In the Matter of Judge Shermela J. Williams,” with case numbers 2022-102, 2023-223, and 2023-348.

Judge Williams is facing 17 counts of violating the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct related to her handling of cases. The JQC filed the formal charges with the Supreme Court of Georgia in June after their investigative panel found probable cause that Judge Williams had engaged in misconduct.

Through her legal counsel, Judge Williams requested additional time beyond the usual deadline to submit her written response to the specific allegations outlined in the formal charges. The JQC’s director, who oversees the investigation and prosecution of complaints against judges, consented to the request for more time.

As the presiding officer over the JQC’s hearing panel assigned to Judge Williams’ case, Judge Robert C.I. McBurney approved a new deadline of July 22nd for the filing of her answer. The order noted that failure to respond to the charges by that date would result in the factual allegations being deemed admitted, as outlined in the JQC’s procedural rules.

Some of the principal accusations against Judge Williams include showing preferential treatment to an attorney who belonged to the same sorority in a child custody case and failing to issue timely rulings over lengthy periods for other domestic matters. She is alleged to have directly contacted one of the parties in the custody case without informing the other side about the communication.

By consenting to the extension, the JQC hearing panel signaled it found the request for additional preparation time to be reasonable under the circumstances. However, the new deadline of July 22nd leaves little room for further delays in Judge Williams’ submission of her answer to kick off the next step of contested proceedings to determine whether misconduct warranting sanctions had occurred.

Judge Williams‘ courtroom is located at 185 Central Ave, S.W., Atlanta, GA 30303, and can be reached at 404-612-4991.

A copy of the original filing can be found here.