ONLY THREE SURVIVE
As we reported on Tuesday, due to widespread budget cuts triggered by the pandemic, the New York State Office of Court Administration (OCA) has denied recertification to 46 senior judges; meaning that their terms will expire at the end of this year.
Only three appellate judges were recertified and survived termination because, according to OCA spokesperson Lucian Chalfen, they handle “additional assignments that are important to the court system.” Per Chalfen, Appellate Division, First Department, Administrative Judge Angela Mazzarelli was retained because she serves on several task forces and commissions. Appellate Term, First Department, Justice Carol Edmead presides over a “complex” caseload and matters of election law. While Appellate Term, Second Department, Administrative Judge Jerry Garguilo is handling a large (civil) opioid trial.
With nearly four dozen terminations announced, the judiciary seems to be sticking to its cost-cutting plans--despite sharp criticism from state legislators and representatives of the legal community. New York State Assembly member Jeffrey Dinowitz, who chairs the Assembly Judiciary Committee, urged Chief Administrative Judge, Lawrence Marks, to reconsider his decision. Dinowitz suggested that the court system wait a little longer before making such a drastic move, as he believes a new “tax hike” on wealthy New Yorkers, or a coronavirus relief package from D.C., could plug the budget deficit and provide a lifeline to the courts. “This decision, which by definition is a form of age discrimination, will exacerbate the crisis facing our court system and will significantly impact the already huge backlog facing many of the courts due to COVID-19,” said Dinowitz.
In response, Judge Marks wrote, “[t]o avoid layoffs of non-judicial employees this fiscal year—something I am sure you agree should be an absolute last resort—we are compelled to take additional painful and difficult steps such as the decisions regarding certification[.]” Despite these assurances, the OCA’s decision to deny recertification is bound to affect law secretaries and court clerks who worked for these judges, and who either will now be laid off or will have to apply to other judges with open positions.
With caseloads only likely to increase in the wake of the pandemic, the loss of these jurists is certain to adversely impact the courts’ ability to timely address cases.
"It is a travesty," noted Lucas A. Ferrara, a partner at Newman Ferrara LLP. "This is a move that will adversely impact the administration of justice for years to come."
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The judges impacted by OCA’s determination include:
Hon. David Friedman
Hon. Ellen Frances Gesmer
Hon. Jeffrey A. Cohen
Hon. John M. Leventhal
Hon. Joseph J. Maltese
Hon. Eugene P. Devine
Hon. Sheri S. Roman
Hon. Ben R. Barbato
Hon. Robert T. Johnson
Hon. Donald A. Miles
Hon. Howard H. Sherman
Hon. Fernando Tapia
Hon. Lester B. Adler
Hon. Steven L. Barrett
Hon. Nicholas J. Iacovetta
Hon. Joseph R. Glownia
Hon Larry D. Martin
Hon. John J. Ark
Hon. James J. Piampiano
Hon. Antonio I. Brandveen
Hon. Jeffrey S. Brown
Hon. Stephen A. Bucaria
Hon. Thomas Feinman
Hon. Lucy A. Billings
Hon. Kathryn E. Freed
Hon. Robert D. Kalish
Hon. Joan A. Madden
Hon. Alan C. Marin
Hon. Michael J. Obus
Hon. Anthony J. Paris
Hon. Norman W. Seiter
Hon. Joseph J. Esposito
Hon. Maureen A. Healy
Hon. Bernice D. Siegal
Hon. Richard Lance Buchter
Hon. Daniel Lewis
Hon. Ira H. Margulis
Hon. Raymond J. Elliott, III
Hon. Orlando Marrazzo, Jr.
Hon. Stephen J. Lynch
Hon. Vincent J. Martorana
Hon. Robert F. Quinlan
Hon. Lawrence H. Ecker
Hon. William J. Giacomo
Hon. Bruce E. Tolbert
Hon. Thomas A. Adams