Barbara J. Howard is the principal of the law firm of Barbara J. Howard Co., L.P.A., a practice that focuses in family law.  Howard has practiced in the area of family law her entire legal career, which has been her sole focus for at least the last 25 years.  Her practice covers domestic relations, paternity and related juvenile law.  She has been certified by the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA) as a Family Relations Law Specialist since it was first made available in 1999.  Howard is also trained in Collaborative Law, and is a member of the Cincinnati Academy of Collaborative Professionals (CACP).

Howard is the President-Elect of the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA).  A past president of the Cincinnati Bar Association, Howard presently serves on the Board of the Cincinnati Bar Foundation as well as the Volunteer Lawyers for the Poor. She is very active in the American Bar Association where she has served in the House of Delegates since 1986.  She has held a variety of positions in the American Bar Association, currently serving as a member of the Board of Editors of the ABA Journal.  Howard has been one of nine attorneys and judges working through the OSBA Family Law Committee to re-write Ohio’s spousal support statute, an effort that has spanned over six years.  Howard is also active in non-legal aspects of the Cincinnati community.  She has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Xavier University since 1995.  She also serves on the Boards of Trustees of the Athenaeum, Cincinnati Union Bethel and the Corporate Guild of Dress for Success Cincinnati.

Howard is a graduate of Xavier University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science magna cum laude and received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Cincinnati College Of Law.