NYLJ: Paterson Set to Nominate Lippman as Chief Judge

Paterson Set to Nominate Lippman as Chief Judge
The New York Law Journal by Joel Stashenko - January 14, 2009

ALBANY - Governor David A. Paterson will introduce Justice Jonathan Lippman tomorrow as his nominee to become New York's next chief judge, said several sources who have been notified of the governor's decision. Justice Lippman has been presiding justice on the Appellate Division, First Department, since 2007 and between 1996 and 2007 he was the longest-serving chief administrative judge in state history (NYLJ, Oct. 9, 2007). If confirmed by the state Senate, which now has a Democratic majority, Justice Lippman will succeed Judith S. Kaye as chief judge. Mr. Paterson has scheduled a news conference for tomorrow morning at the Capitol to announce his selection. Judge Kaye was the first woman member of the Court of Appeals and its first female chief judge, named in 1993 by then-Governor Mario Cuomo. She was forced by mandatory retirement rules to step down on Dec. 31 after turning 70 earlier last year.

Justice Lippman, 63, worked closely with the former chief judge promoting her agenda, including her initiatives to make jury duty less onerous and to create more "problem-solving" courts to adjudicate specific kinds of offenses, such as drug courts. But Judge Kaye and Justice Lippman were unsuccessful in lobbying lawmakers for a pay raise for state judges, a quest Justice Lippman would no doubt take up again as chief judge. Judge Kaye sued the Legislature in 2008 to force the first pay increase for state judges since 1999. Mr. Paterson selected Justice Lippman from a list of seven names sent him on Dec. 1 by the Commission on Judicial Nomination. Others on the list were Court of Appeals Judges Theodore T. Jones Jr. and Eugene F. Pigott Jr., Second Department Justice Steven W. Fisher and private practitioners Evan A. Davis, George Carpinello and Peter L. Zimroth. Joel.Stashenko@incisivemedia.com

Here's the Albany Times Union article:

Lippman to be named new chief judge
The Albany Times Union by Irene Jay Lui - January 13, 2009 

Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman is expected to be named by Gov. David Paterson to the position of Chief Judge, according to a source with knowledge of the situation. He will replace Chief Judge Judith Kaye, who retired at the end of last year. Kaye appointed Lippman to the position of Chief Administrative Judge in 1996, a job in which he has served as her trusted adviser and lieutenant. He was considered Kaye’s favored choice as her replacement. The appointment of the Chief Judge has been controversial, as Paterson blasted the Commission on Judicial Appointments for not recommending a woman in its list of prospective candidates. The Commission is required to submit a list of seven candidates, from which the governor much choose. Hon. Jonathan Lippman In January 1996, Jonathan Lippman became Chief Administrative Judge of all New York State courts by appointment of Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye. In that capacity, he oversees the administration and operation of the Statewide court system with a $2 billion budget, 3,600 State and locally paid Judges and 15,000 non-judicial employees in over 300 locations around the State. Judge Lippman is the longest serving Chief Administrative Judge in New York State history.

Judge Lippman has played a central role in many far-ranging reforms of New York’s Judiciary and legal profession. These reforms include establishment of problem-solving community courts, domestic violence courts, integrated domestic violence courts and drug courts; creation of specialized commercial and matrimonial parts; opening of Family Court to the public; extensive reform of the jury system and elimination of mandatory jury sequestration; new rules governing fiduciary appointments; rules governing multidisciplinary practice of law; rules prescribing continuing legal education for all attorneys; and reforms relating to promoting public confidence in judicial elections. Judge Lippman serves as Chair of the New York State Court Facilities Capital Review Board, and is a member of the New York State Probation Commission. He is the President of the Conference of State Court Administrators, a member of the Board of Directors of the National Conference of State Courts, and a member of the New York State Bar Association. Judge Lippman grew up in Manhattan and attended New York University, from which he graduated, Phi Beta Kappa and cum laude, in 1965 with a B.A. in Government and International Relations. He received his J.D. from New York University School of Law in 1968, the same year he was admitted to the New York Bar.

Starting in an entry level position in the court system’s legal series, Judge Lippman worked his way up though the non-judicial ranks in a career in the courts spanning more than thirty (30) years. In 1989, he became Deputy Chief Administrator for Management Support, responsible for the day-to-day management of the New York State court system. In 1995, Governor George E. Pataki appointed him a Judge of the New York Court of Claims. In 2005, he was elected to the State Supreme Court for a 14-year term, from 2006 to 2019. Judge Lippman is the recipient of the Benjamin N. Cardozo Award of the Jewish Lawyers Guild, the Bernard Botein Medal of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the Harlan Fiske Stone Award of the Trial Lawyers Association of the City of New York, the Robert L. Haig Award for Distinguished Public Service of the New York State Bar Association’s Commercial and Federal Litigation Section, the Millennium 2000 Award of the New York State Bar Association’s Judicial Section, the 2002 New York State Trial Lawyers Association Judicial Recognition Award, the 2002 Cervantes Society Hispanic Heritage Recognition Award, the 2003 New York University School of Law Law Alumni Association Public Service Award, and the New York State Bar Association 2006 Award For Excellence In Public Service.