Hon. Troy Russell McClelland III

Judge McClelland is the Chief Judge of the State Court of Forsyth County. He has served as a Judge of the State Court since December 2003, and as Chief Judge since January 2013.

Judge McClelland was born and raised in Savannah, Georgia. He graduated from Armstrong State College (now part of Georgia Southern University) in 1979 with a B.S. in Political Science and obtained his law degree from the University of Georgia in 1982.

Judge McClelland served as a Law Clerk to the Hon. John Harvey, Judge of Superior Court, Atlantic Judicial Circuit from 1982 – 1983 and then worked as Assistant District Attorney in the Rome Judicial Circuit from 1983 – 1984. He began practicing law in Forsyth County in 1984 as Assistant District Attorney, and later served as Chief Assistant District Attorney for the Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit.  In 1992, he opened his own law practice, then eventually co-founded the law firm of Dreger & McClelland.

Judge McClelland served as President of the Council of State Court Judges and was a member of the Judicial Council from 2019 – 2020. He was appointed to the Judicial Council COVID-19 Task Force in May of 2020 and served as the Vice-Chair of the Task Force and Chair of the Civil Subcommittee. He is serving his second term as a member of the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism and is a member of the Commission’s CLE Committee. Judge McClelland was an inaugural member of the Executive Committee of the Council of Accountability Court Judges and currently serves as the Chair of the Council’s Data and Research Committee. Judge McClelland established the Forsyth County DUI Court in 2006 and continues to preside over the DUI Court today. He has been a long-time active member of many community organizations, including the Cumming-Forsyth County Optimist Club, Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce and Leadership Forsyth.  The Judge and his family are actively involved at The Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit. Judge McClelland is also active as an adult leader with Sea Scout Ship 2222 and Venture Crew 39 in Cumming, and is a member of the Executive Board of the Northeast Georgia Council, BSA.

Judge McClelland and his wife, Janice, have been married for 35 years. Their son, Matthew, graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2020 and is now a Lieutenant serving as a Surface Warfare Officer in the United States Navy.