Results tagged “chiefjustice”

Governor David Paterson appointed Jonathan Lippman to become the chief justice of the NY Court of Appeals, the state's highest court. Paterson said praised Lippman, the presiding justice of the First Judicial Department of the Appellate Division of State Supreme Court, for "the implementation of nationally significant reforms, including jury reform, contributed to the creation of problem-solving courts, such as special drug courts and domestic violence courts" and his "role in keeping the courts open after the attacks on Sept. 11." Outgoing chief justice Judith Kaye stepped down due to the mandatory retirement age and Paterson still isn't happy that the nominees were all men, "Though I am thrilled to choose Judge Lippman to serve as our next chief judge, I firmly believe that we must revise the process for future judicial nominations to ensure that those under consideration represent all New Yorkers." Fun fact: Lippman is a childhood friend of Sheldon Silver.

Showing how divided its philosophies are, Supreme Court justices ruled, 5-4, to limit the power cities have integrating schools and placing students by race. Schools in Louisville, Kentucky and Seattle, Washington had been trying to maintain diversity by, as the NY Times explains, "limiting transfers on the basis of race or using race as a 'tiebreaker' for admission to particular schools." However, the majority found those programs to be unconstitutional and Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in his opinion, “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race."

The top judge in New York State, Court of Appeals Chief Justice Judith Kaye, has threatned to sue the state if judges don't get raises by the summer. And according to the NY Times, a proposal to give them raises seems to have been a victim of the last minute deal-making for the state budget - Governor Spitzer did include a retroactive pay raise for judges, but lawmakers proposed a raise for both judges AND legislators. Then both were "dropped during closed-door budget negotiations." Ya gotta love bureaucracy - especially when Governor Spitzer, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver say they are all for a judicial pay raise.

With the NJ Supreme Court decision that gay couples should have the same rights as heterosexual couples just one day old, it's still unclear whether or not New York will accept a NJ same-sex civil union or marriage, though it has with other states. Mayor Bloomberg said, "New York City has a policy of accepting bona-fide marriages from other jurisdictions. I've always believed it's not the government's business whom you marry." And City Council Speaker Quinn who is openly gay said, "New York State's Legislature must also act to address this injustice in New York so that all citizens are treated equally on both sides of the Hudson River."

Part One: POP QUIZ! Name as many of the seven dwarves as you can. Count with your fingers, or, even take a minute before reading on and scribble down on a scrap of paper as many of their names as you can dredge up.

It's that time of year again. The time of year we spend entirely too much money on going to a bar or party or club that any other night would cost nothing to enter. But we go, we pay and we fight the Bridge & Tunnel crowd for a spot at the bar. Why? We don't know. It's just part of NYE in NYC. This year we're fleeing the country, but for those of you staying on the island here's a list of parties to go to (that is, of course, if none of your friends will have you at theirs):

they're so great online - okay, you can read it, you Time subscribers - so we'll just speculate that Time was upset that an early pick of "Mother Nature" was leaked. And besides, what sells more magazines than one of the world's richest men and his do-gooding wife and an Irish rocker who rocks the sunglasses every chance he can? Managing Editor Jim Kelly explained on the Today show that the selection was to show what people can do in the face of adversity.

This week in Washington, John Roberts was confirmed as the Chief Justice of the United States. While the media will focus on the big cases and the big personalities that decide them, it's easy to overlook the law that happens locally. New York City has a rich legal history full of important cases decided by some of the country's most respected and best loved judges. Local issues have turned into Supreme Court cases, and even city cases that were never appealed can be meaningful across the country simply because they happened here. In the grand scheme of things, Martha Stewart's trial affects you far less than many of the decisions made under the radar in state court.

With Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist's death giving many people agita about WWDD (What Will Dubya Do?), President Bush has done what pundits have predicted (and we're not giving pundits that much credit, because given the hours they had to yak about the loss of Rehnquist, of course they were going to come up with this scenario) and nominated Supreme Court nominee John Roberts to be Chief Justice; here's the White House statement. Now, that must be some kind of burn to the sitting conservative justices, but Bush probably wants to make sure he can choose the Chief Justice for the next 20+ years. Which makes Gothamist want to delve into some Supreme Court history, or, better yet, ask our lawyer friends if the other Justices or Congress can de-Fhief a Justice (we're just curious!).

William Hubbs Rehnquist, the 16th chief justice of the United States Supreme Court, died last night of thyroid cancer. He was 80. While his death does not come as a huge surprise, he has been visibly ailing for months now, that he died days before confirmation hearings begin for John Roberts does turn things around a bit. Rehnquist, who was appointed to the court in 1971 by Richard Nixon, was made Chief Justice in 1986. He oversaw some major decisions in his court, ranging from flag burning (Texas v. Johnson) to election recounts (Bush v. Gore). The Washington Post has a good breakdown of his key decisions. In fact, the obits are already pouring in, so rather than regurgitate them, we'll just point you in their direction.

that someday Law & Order will filter to the highest levels of government. We just didn't figure that it would be in this way: Fred Thompson, who plays District Attorney Arthur Branch, has agreed to be an adviser to President Bush for the Supreme Court justice selection process. Apparently, one term in the Senate and a role on America's longest running cop-and-lawyer show can launch you into guiding one of the most important decisions for our country! Now Gothamist wonders if Thompson can do anything about Tom Delay's complaining about L&O mentioning him in an episode...or if writers will be trying to say anything about the current administration!

The Supreme Court ruled, in a 5-4 decision, that the government can seize private property and turn it over to developers, under the auspices of eminent domain. The Daily News points out that this probably warms of the hearts of developers, taking, for instance, projects like Bruce Ratner's Brooklyn Nets arena or Columbia University's development of 18 acres in Harlem...or any projects that have a "public purpose" element. In the end, it's up to the state government to determine whether or not the property should be seized, so many local lawmakers are pleading with the State Legislature to review eminent domain.

Carnegie Hall and Rockefeller Center. Don't you just love 'em? What would the city be like at Christmastime without the tourist-infested tree in the plaza? Or even worse, what if The Today Show's, Dr. Judith Reichman, had no outlet to provide the nation with her sound expert medical advice? And where else would be better to hear the intricacies of David Sedaris' sexy little voice than Carnegie Hall?