After she finished law school, Kim Berkeley Clark spent 16 years prosecuting some of the most gruesome crimes in Allegheny County, including the county's first drive-by shooting, gang war slayings, and child rapes during more than 150 jury trials.

Even in the most politically charged cases, her contemporaries say, she maintained a reputation with judges and opposing counsel as the consummate professional -- well prepared, sensitive, persuasive and sharp. She was also "a great closer" with juries, said Common Pleas President Judge Joseph H. James.

"It could be pretty frustrating. I don't think I ever won against her, " said Common Pleas Judge Kevin G. Sasinoski, who opposed her before district judges in the Mon Valley several times a week during his early years at the county public defender's office.

When she took the bench in Allegheny County Family Court in 1999, the North Side resident again earned acclaim among judges and lawyers for fairness and patience with the delicate cases she tried.

"Not every person can do that job -- taking babies away from parents, terminating parental rights -- those are issues that have lifelong ramifications. It requires a tremendous amount of discernment," said Judge Cheryl Allen, who served with her in family court before returning to a post in criminal court.

After decades of quietly proving her agility in county courtrooms, the 49-year-old administrative family court judge will begin a one-year term as president of the Allegheny County Bar Association this month. She is the first judge and the first African-American woman to assume the leadership of the 6,500-member organization.

In recent years, the association has been led by a legal services agency director, a law school professor and a corporate attorney.

Lawyers expect a lot from the bar association, said Executive Director Dave Blaner, and, to no one's great surprise, "our members have a lot of opinions."

"What people are going to find out is she's a good listener and understands complex issues quickly," he said. "She's somebody who's really easy to be around."

Judge Clark is willing to listen to suggestions and make changes, said Mary Sue Ramsden, who served with her on the association's board of governors. "I think she'll do a nice job of bringing everybody to the table and gaining consensus."

Judge Clark says poverty is the biggest common denominator in family court and often leads people to make bad decisions.

It's not uncommon to see people whose drug and alcohol addictions leave them without money to cover utility bills and the electricity gets shut off.

As for her approach, she said, "I would like to be known as a person who really cares about people and mankind and children's quality of life."

Her role models include the late Senior Common Pleas Judge Henry R. Smith Jr., former Senior Superior Court Judge Justin Johnson, Judge Livingstone Johnson, civil rights pioneer Wendell Freeland and state Supreme Court Justice Cynthia Baldwin, a fellow alumna of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.

During her term at the bar association, she hopes to put together a staff recognition event for the association and continue three ongoing projects launched by her predecessors.

Those programs are: a diversity initiative to encourage more minorities to enter the field; a loan forgiveness program to provide a stipend to cover school loans for new lawyers who take low-paying civil service positions; a pro-bono program to recruit lawyers for low-income or indigent clients.

For many who work with juveniles in the court system, her presidency means family issues may be uniquely highlighted to county residents, said Samuel Costanzo, of the Academy System School for Young Offenders.

"It's extremely important for the organization to be led by a judge who deals with grass-roots issues that affect a lot of people like divorce, custody and delinquent, dependent and neglected children," he said.

"She's always concerned for kids being safe -- not just physically but spiritually and emotionally," said Saleem Ghubril, who works with Judge Clark in her capacity as a board member at the Pittsburgh Project. "She's very poised even when she's dealing with tough challenges. She can speak the truth and be forthright without ever losing her grace," he said.

In chambers, Judge Clark is backed by a staff that includes two lifelong friends, her secretary, Avis Beck, who remembers her as an even-keeled, bright student at Horner Junior High and Wilkinsburg High School, and her law clerk, Emanuel Oakes, who raves about her "slammin'" peach cobbler and claims he and his buddies "weren't allowed on her father's porch" when they were in the second grade together in Wilkinsburg.

She's hardworking and never in a foul mood, they say. Friends know her for her musical talent (she plays clarinet and piano, has been choirmaster and organist at Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Homewood, and does a very lively karaoke rendition of Patti LaBelle's "Lady Marmelade"), her acting (including roles at the annual Bench-Bar Conference) and her unparalleled hat collection (she switches up her wardrobe with a couple hundred she has amassed).

She is married to business owner Walter Hales Jr., who has no problem having a lower profile when they're out in public. "He's the nicest man in the world. He's very proud of me," she said.