Sam Salamey
19th District Court Chief Judge
Born on September 2, 1959. At the age of 15 years, Sam sought work to support himself and to assist his family in providing for the family of eleven. Over the next 11 years, Sam pursued full time employment and schooling until he graduated with a Juris Doctorate Degree in Law in 1985.
In 1978, Sam resigned this position to take a job with the Dearborn Police Department as a police community relations officer a position Sam held for 2 years before leaving it to take the job of a vocational technician with the Dearborn Board of Education at Fordson High School.
After graduating from Law School, Sam immediately took a job as an Associate Attorney with the prestigious Law Firm of Berry, Hopson, Francis, Mack, and Seifman. Sam was promoted to a full partner position with the firm within 3 years of joining; the shortest time for an associate to become a partner. While with the firm, Sam served as a Prosecuting Attorney for the cities of Garden City and Romulus for about 8 years. In 1993 Sam was appointed to the bench of the 19th District Court in Dearborn as a Judicial Magistrate a position he held for 14 years.
In addition to serving as a Judicial Magistrate with the Court, Sam served as the President and Senior Attorney of the Law Firm of Salamey and Associates which he founded in 2002. In 2007, the firm became Salamey & Farhat, PLLC.
In 2012, Salamey ran for Dearborn District Court Judge and was elected to the bench. The Michigan Supreme Court appointed Judge Salamey as Chief Judge of the 19th District Court, effective Jan. 1, 2023.
Through the various positions and the many life experiences encountered, Chief Judge Salamey learned that to progress and advance, it is imperative to become positively and seriously engaged in the affairs of the community. As such, he joined many professional and community organizations and contributed time and resources to numerous community organizations including municipal Boards such as the City of Dearborn Board of Ethics. Chief Judge Salamey was appointed to the Board as a commissioner and was elected by his fellow commissioners to chair the Board. He has and remains committed to contributing to Dearborn's greatness and its residents.