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WPCNR FOR THE RECORD. Governer Andrew Cuomo’s remarks at DiFiore Swearing-In Ceremony on Monday, February 8. From the Governor’s Office February 9. 2016:
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. 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.
To all of my colleagues, my statewide colleagues, the Attorney General, the Comptroller, my Counsel, the elected officials who are here, law enforcement – I will not try to replicate Judge Pickett’s list, who I believe was exhausted.
But to Janet’s family, because public service is a family affair and Janet could not have accomplished what she accomplished if she didn’t have a family who sacrificed and who was there with her day-in and day-out and I know that from personal experiences. So let’s give the DiFiore Family a round of applause. Headed by Dennis Glazer, who is the head of the family.
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.
Chief Justice DiFiore being applauded after taking her oath
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.
Today, we stand on the shoulders of those giants who came before and we honor their legacy by reaching even higher in our pursuit of justice.
Appointments to the Court of Appeals are one of my most important duties for the Governor of the state. I am the 56th Governor of New York but I will be one of only two Governors in the history of the state to have appointed an entire court. The other governor was the 52nd Governor of the State of New York, the Honorable Mario Matthew Cuomo. Now I thought it would be impressive to have achieved that in just six years – until I found out that my father did it in five. And trust me, he would have really appreciated that bit of trivia at the dinner table.
My father loved the court, he began his career here as a clerk. He brought me here when I was twelve years old. He was in private practice and he brought me to hear him argue a case and the impression of this grandeur courtroom struck me even then. This court is easy to love. This courtroom itself shows us its stature – it is graced with powerful portraits, each beautiful in its own right, bringing its own perspective and quality. But the portraits are even more beautiful, even more powerful, as a collective. So too with the judges who now serve on this bench.
Chief Judge DiFiori and Governor Andrew Cuomo share a light moment
Each one a superb portrait of judicial excellence and public service and even more powerful and magnificent in their assembly. The members of the court reflect the New York experience. They’re from all across the state, and bring experience as advocates, politicians, practitioners; prosecutors, civil rights and worker rights advocates, and administrators. And they have lived New York: the opportunities and the obstacles, the promise and the peril. As Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “The life of the law has not been logic; it has been experience.” This court reflects that experience.
Today we see the complete court becoming clearer. As we sit here today, across the street Michael Garcia is going through his hearings before the State Senate to see that he is confirmed. He is fulfilling the vacancy left by the retirement of Judge Susan Read, who served with dedication and honor. Let’s give her a round of applause.
Now the newspapers have speculated why I might have chosen Mike for the nomination – if there was something special about Mike. Just between us, I’ll tell you right now, there is something special about Mike. No Governor named Cuomo would believe the court is complete without a boy from Queens. That I can tell you. Toward the end of this year Judge Pigott will retire.
He has served on every level of our courts; served with distinction in Vietnam. He has made Buffalo proud and he still makes Buffalo proud. His tenure as the acting chief judge – while brief – has been superlative. The court was unified, in fact there were no dissenting opinions, there was no disharmony, no negative press, and most importantly, he kept the court within the 2 percent spending cap. I hope the next chief judge follows your lead. Thank you Judge Pigott. We all owe you a debt of gratitude. Thank you [inaudible].
At the end of this year, I will have my last selection for the court. The last piece in this beautiful mosaic. I’m thinking about who the nominee should be already. It should be a person who has a dynamic personality. A person for whom the appointment is clearly a raise in stature, and a person who would get a hefty raise in compensation by moving into the position. There’s really only one choice. I’m thinking of nominating myself. I am sure the Senate would quickly confirm to create the vacancy.
Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals Janet DiFiore addressing the court.
Today the business at hand is the investiture of chief judge Janet DiFiore. Now while the commission’s list was excellent, it did not take me a long time to make a decision. Janet was the obvious and clear choice for this position. She is uniquely qualified to fulfill this demanding role – and it is, as Judge Pigott pointed out. Her professional credentials and experience combined with her personal skill and integrity equip her to not only manage but to excel in this multifaceted position of chief judge of the court of appeals.
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.
