Marion Superior Judge Cynthia Ayers was honored today by her colleagues and the business community during Indiana Black Expo for her many years of service on and off the bench.

Judge Ayers took the bench nearly 19 years ago and was one of the first female African-American judges elected to a Superior Court in Indiana. She presides in the Civil Division.

The judge chairs the Indianapolis Bar Association's Mortgage Foreclosure Task Force and spearheaded a new Local Rule for Marion County to require meetings between borrowers and lenders for all foreclosure civil suits to seek alternatives to foreclosure.

She is a member of the Committee for Character and Fitness of the Indiana Supreme Court, the Indiana Judges Association, American Inns of Court, and the National Bar Association Judicial Council. The judge was recognized at a luncheon that brought together African-American appointed and elected officials from around the state to network with minority-owned businesses.