While many New Yorkers might not be paying attention this holiday season, they could feel the weight in future years of who Gov. Kathy Hochul picks this December to lead the state judiciary.
The newly elected Democrat will choose from a list of seven names unveiled this week by a state panel tasked with screening applicants to be chief judge of the state Court of Appeals.
“This will matter for all New Yorkers,” Hochul said this week. “The court rules on a tremendous range of issues — from housing protections to business disputes to medical malpractice to voting rights.”
State law requires Hochul to announce a decision between Dec. 8 and Dec. 23 on nominating a permanent replacement for ex-Chief Judge Janet DiFiore after she resigned amid an ethics probe this summer.
The state Senate then has 30 days to vote on confirming whoever Hochul might pick from the list that includes sitting state judges, longtime prosecutors, an attorney at a progressive nonprofit group and even a medical expert.
Here are the seven candidates for chief judge:
- Anthony Cannataro is currently the acting chief judge after being appointed to the Court of Appeals by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
- Abbe Gluck, a Yale-trained lawyer and medical school professor, previously served as the lead counsel for the White House COVID-19 Response under President Biden.
- Hector LaSalle heads the busy Appellate Division, Second Department in Brooklyn where his administrative record could catch Hochul’s eye.
- Jeffrey Oing, an associate justice at the Appellate Division, First Department in Manhattan, could become the first Asian American to lead the Court of Appeals.
- Alicia Ouellette is the dean of Albany Law School, an expert on disability issues, and former assistant solicitor general and assistant state attorney general.
- Edwina Richardson-Mendelson could be the first Black woman to be chief judge after serving on the Court of Claims and overseeing anti-bias initiatives under DiFiore.
- Corey Stoughton is a longtime criminal defense attorney who has worked for The Legal Aid Society and the New York Civil Liberties Union.
Whoever eventually becomes the next chief judge could tilt the ideological balance of the court, which has leaned rightward in recent years, despite the progressive bent in state politics.
One decision that particularly angered Democrats this year saw the Court of Appeals toss new congressional lines approved by Albany Democrats, opening the way for Republicans to seize control of the US House this fall.
State lawmakers have said they are looking for someone who will lead the Court of Appeals in a more progressive direction compared to its time under DiFiore’s leadership.
“We will be looking more closely at them their their writings, their management experience and their opinions to confirm whether they match the sentiment of most New Yorkers and will protect laws that we care about, whether it’s rent stabilization or criminal justice reforms,” state Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Brad Hoylman, whose committee will consider the nomination, said Friday.
Picking someone like Acting Chief Judge Cannataro, whose selection would open up another seat for Hochul to fill, could signal tacit approval of the status quo while a pick like Stoughton, a veteran attorney at nonprofits like The Legal Aid Society and the New York Civil Liberties Union could push the courts in a progressive direction.
Several of the candidates also reflect opportunities to make the court more racially diverse though experts say all the candidates appear impressive in their own ways.
Hochul has said she is looking for someone skilled in getting jury trials back on schedule amid a backlog in cases caused by the pandemic, which could benefit a candidate like Hector LaSalle who has experience in managing a hectic appellate division in Brooklyn.
“It’s a pretty extraordinary list,” Albany Law School Professor Vincent Bonventre, a longtime Court of Appeals watcher, told The Post on Friday. “Each one of them comes with very strong reputations. They have very impressive credentials and backgrounds.”
He added the next chief judge will have their work cut out for them considering how far the Court of Appeals has fallen in recent years from being the role model it once was for the rest of the nation.
“The Court of Appeals is nowhere near the court that it traditionally has been,” Bonventre said. “I don’t think you can find anybody who honestly is going to tell you that it is.”