DiFiore Sworn in as Chief Judge of New York

Janet DiFiore was sworn in Monday as the new Chief Judge of New York and of the New York State Court of Appeals.

DiFiore is the state’s second female chief judge, following Chief Judge Judith Kaye, who was nominated by Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s father, the late Gov. Mario Cuomo.

“This is, as I understand, one of the largest crowds that has ever been assembled for an event such as today and I think that is a metaphor for the person who we are going to swear-in today,” said Cuomo, also a Westchester County resident. “There is no one who Janet DiFiore has met, who has worked with her, or who has been on the other side of the table, who doesn’t have a deep respect for her and I think this turnout reflects just that.”

DiFiore was the Westchester County District Attorney for 10 years. She also had experience as a judge, including as a Supreme Court Justice for the New York State Criminal Courts, 9th Judicial District from January 2003 to May 2005.

More of Cuomo’s remarks:

Today is a special day. It is an exciting day, it is an historic day, and it is also an emotional day for many reasons, as you’ve heard. We are gathered together in what is one of the nation’s most beautiful shrines to justice in this Court of Appeals to swear-in the new Chief Judge. Our Court of Appeals has been a cornerstone of the American system of jurisprudence. It has a proud legacy of accomplishments and leadership. It has led the nation with groundbreaking decisions right here, such as People v. Donovan, the precursor to Miranda v. Arizona, protecting the right against self-incrimination; Chamberlin v. Andrews, which advanced the concept of activist government in the constitutionality of unemployment benefits, which was upheld during the Great Depression. And Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad, every first-year law student’s favorite tort case on proximate cause. I want you to know, I am now with the Long Island Rail Road.

This court is the legacy of John Jay, a founding father of this state, this nation and our courts, and our court system, and by the way, a Westchester resident which I think is a good omen. The court developed under the leadership of some of the best in the country: Benjamin Cardozo, Frederick Crane, Stanley Fuld and Charles Breitel. Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman, who retired last year after serving nearly half a century on the courts and left each court better than he found it. We owe him a special thank you. Thank you Judge Lippman.

Chief Judge Judith Kaye, the first woman on the court, the first female Chief Judge, a true trailblazer. I remember the selection process for Judith Kay and I remember what she went through as a trailblazer. It was not easy for her. But she persevered and she succeeded. She was referred to as the “Mother of Justice,” and Judith brought dignity and honor to the role as she transformed the system to address domestic violence, substance abuse and mental illness. Her lasting contributions to this court include reimagining the jury system. She called it jury service, not jury duty. And she was right.

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The breadth of Janet’s experience is impressive. She started as an assistant district attorney in Westchester County; she spent six years in private practice; and then she returned to the DA’s office as chief of the narcotics bureau. In 1998, she stood before the people and she was elected to the Westchester County court. In 2002, she was elected to the Supreme Court and while there, served as supervising judge of the criminal courts with the Eighth Judicial District, eliminating a backlog of criminal cases - the first district in the state to do so. In 2005, Janet DiFiore was elected Westchester County DA, prosecuting about 40,000 cases per year. She was re-elected twice.

Janet has been a true champion for preventing and reversing wrongful convictions. She secured an individual’s release after 16 years in prison based on DNA evidence and then she recommended a series of reforms to protect the innocent. As a prosecutor, she never forgot her job was to do justice – not amass convictions. She would inculpate or exculpate depending only on the facts. Janet was the first to head JCOPE, getting the agency on its feet.

​​Janet DiFiore will not only be Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals but she’s also Chief Judge of the state of New York, a position created in 1977 to address the rampant inefficiencies and backlogs in our courts. As Chief Judicial Officer, Janet will oversee a $2 billion budget with 19,000 employees. She has the leadership skills and the management credentials to streamline and manage that bureaucracy.

It’s not just that positions that Janet has held that qualifies her for this position. It’s not even her performance in those positions. Even more, it is who she is as a person. Janet’s career has never been about Janet – it has always been about the public she serves. That, my friends, is the key to Janet’s success. She’ll make this court a better court and she will write the next chapter of judicial progress into the history books.

Judith Kaye said that the Court of Appeals was “lawyer heaven.” And it is true. This court may be heaven on earth for a lawyer. But I think heaven above has recently acquired a couple of pretty good lawyers in Judith Kaye and Mario Cuomo and I am sure they are both together today, and they are looking down on us, and they are watching us in this ceremony and I am sure they are smiling – because they know we have not let them down, that they taught us well, we learned from their example, and today we honor their life, their love and their legacy in the appointment of Janet DiFiore as Chief Judge of this magnificent court. Thank you.

PHOTO: office of Gov. Cuomo