After Schenectady County Court Judge Matthew Sypniewski was elected to the position in November 2014, he was assigned an appeal for which he had found the defendant, Brian Novak, guilty of all charges when he served as a Schenectady City Court judge.

In his capacity as a county court judge, Sypniewski affirmed Novak's conviction.

New York's highest court on Sept. 6 is slated to hear arguments in the case, People v. Novak, Number 94, in which Novak argues Sypniewski should have recused himself from the case to “maintain the appearance of impartiality.”