Governor Should Choose a Chief Judge Who Has Fought for the People of New York

By Billy Corriher

Gov. Kathy Hochul could reshape the state’s highest court in the coming days, when she nominates someone to be the next chief judge of New York. With the goal of returning the New York Court of Appeals to its status as “a crown jewel of justice,” Hochul has pledged to choose a capable, intelligent jurist who could someday sit on the U.S. Supreme Court. The governor has the opportunity to accomplish this goal, while also appointing a chief judge who has fought for the rights of all New Yorkers, not just the rich and powerful.

The state’s nominating commission released its list of seven candidates right before Thanksgiving. The list includes several attorneys who have used the law to protect vulnerable and marginalized people. These candidates could help restore the court’s status as a national leader in protecting constitutional rights.

For example, Legal Aid lawyer Corey Stoughton has dedicated her career to defending individual rights. She worked at the New York Civil Liberties Union and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. While at DOJ, Stoughton was the head lawyer on cases challenging the NYPD’s use of force against protestors and the workloads for underfunded public defenders. Throughout her career, Stoughton has worked to advance criminal justice reform, helped defend the right to vote, and fought discrimination.

This kind of perspective is sorely lacking on the Court of Appeals, which is dominated by former prosecutors. There’s currently no one on the court who spent a significant part of their career as a civil rights lawyer or public defender. But Stoughton has been in the courtroom advocating for average New Yorkers facing discrimination or the possibility of a long jail sentence.

Stoughton also satisfies the governor’s criteria of leadership experience. So does Judge Edwina Mendelson-Richardson, a potential appointee who has been on the bench for nearly two decades and has overseen the “problem-solving courts” that help judges understand and respond to the needs of the people they serve and divert people away from jail.

Another shortlister, Yale professor Abbe Gluck, would bring a brilliant intellect to the high court. She’s an expert on health law and the role of state courts. Gluck was a clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and she teaches at both Yale’s law school and its medical school. In her writing, she has criticized both progressive and conservative court rulings, which suggests that she could help unify the high court.

In recent years, President Joe Biden has changed the face of the federal judiciary by appointing diverse judges who were civil rights lawyers or public defenders, such as Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson — the first former federal public defender to sit on our nation’s highest court. His nominees to courts in New York have included voting rights lawyers like Myrna Perez, Natasha Merle, and Dale Ho.

In stark contrast to Biden, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo put former prosecutors like Judge Madeline Singas on the state’s highest court, which is now out of step with the values of the citizenry and the Hochul administration.

Hochul now has the chance to pick a qualified, intelligent chief judge who both understands the challenges of average New Yorkers and can return the court to the preeminence it once held.

Billy is the State Courts Manager at People’s Parity Project.