MEMBER VOIR DIRE - ROSSTON RAMSEY (OAKLAND)

BY AGNES JURY (MASON)

For this edition of the newsletter, we meet RAM member and Oakland County Juvenile Referee Rosston Ramsey.
 
Rosston currently serves as a Juvenile Referee in Oakland County, Michigan, where he handles child welfare, delinquency, and other family law matters. His focus is on making fair and thoughtful decisions that promote accountability while keeping the best interests of children and families at the center of the process.
 
Rosston began his legal career as a Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Mary Ellen Brennan in the Oakland County Circuit Court, where he spent five years assisting with legal research, opinion drafting, and case preparation. He then served for another five years as an Assistant Prosecutor in Oakland County, handling a wide range of criminal matters, including capital offenses, and gaining substantial courtroom and trial experience. Drawing from both judicial and prosecutorial experience, Rosston brings a balanced perspective to his work on the bench. He cares deeply about professionalism, fairness, and ensuring that the work done in family court promotes justice and positive outcomes for young people and families.

Rosston is happily married to his wife, Ellen, and credits her with always being able to make him laugh. Family is clearly central to his life. His parents have been married for 37 years, and he is close with his siblings: his older brother Blake, younger sister Ria, and younger brother Roman. He and Ellen also share their home with Zoey, their 14-year-old Shih Tzu mix, who Rosston describes as his “best friend.”
 
One of Rosston’s proudest moments as a lawyer was being hired as the first African American man to serve as a Juvenile Referee in Oakland County, at least to the best of his knowledge. He hopes people understand the significance of the work performed in juvenile and family court, emphasizing the role these proceedings can play in shaping future generations, breaking damaging cycles, and restoring communities.
Like many attorneys, Rosston has strong advice for anyone considering law school: do the hard work yourself. His guidance to future law students is simple but direct: “Don’t use AI to brief the cases for you — doing the tedious things will make you a better lawyer.”
 
Outside the courtroom, Rosston enjoys movies and describes himself as a true cinephile who goes to the theater nearly every week. His all-time screen favorites include The Office and The Wire for television, and after much deliberation, he selected Remember the Titans as his all-time favorite movie. He is currently reading The Final Score by Don Winslow, and his music taste ranges from Luther Vandross and Fred Hammond to Jay-Z, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tems, and Leon Thomas.
 
Rosston also enjoys traveling and considers Cuba to be the most awe-inspiring place he has visited, describing the experience as “traveling in a time machine.” His favorite vacation so far was a 2024 family trip to Tulum. If he could trade places with anyone for a day, however, he would choose NBA star Victor Wembanyama because, in Rosston’s words, “dunking without jumping just seems like a good time.”
 
When asked about life outside the legal profession, Rosston shared that his most treasured material possession is his grandfather’s Bible, and the best advice he has ever received is to “Keep God first in all that you do.” If he could develop one superpower, he would choose a selective photographic memory that would allow him to decide what to remember and what to forget.
 
Rosston approaches life with humor and perspective. If time travel were possible, he would tell his 16-year-old self: “You’re stuck at 5’9 buddy, I’m sorry.” He admits he is not a fan of Ferris wheels, trips to the Secretary of State, or mandatory cybersecurity trainings, although he concedes the latter are necessary.
 
His current vehicle is a Ford Mustang Mach-E, although if money were no object, he would skip driving altogether and ride in a fully loaded Sprinter van with a driver. He also admits that good food is his vice and that his favorite place to spend money is “anywhere with good food.”
 
Rosston’s concerns extend beyond the courtroom as well. He worries about increasing tribalism in American politics and the growing tendency to dismiss those with differing viewpoints. At the same time, one of the greatest compliments he has ever received was: “You make people feel seen.”
 
As for the future, Rosston hopes to spend his later years somewhere warm, “getting on my wife’s nerves.” If he could choose an alternative career, he would pursue sports broadcasting. And if he had the final word on his tombstone, it would read: “He loved deeply, led his family well, and did his part to leave the world better than he found it.”
Please join us in welcoming Rosston to RAM. We look forward to getting to know him better in the years ahead.