Judge James P. Murphy Justice James P. Murphy

Justice James P. Murphy has been appointed as the new administrative judge for the Fifth Judicial District, which encompasses part of Central New York, the state Office of Court Administration announced Wednesday.

Murphy replaces Justice James Tormey, who was the district’s administrative judge for nearly two decades until he died in June following a brief illness.

Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks said he was confident in Murphy’s ability to lead the judicial district, which he’s been doing on an acting basis since Tormey’s death.

“Judge Murphy is an experienced judge widely recognized for his integrity and fairness,” Marks said. “He has also earned a reputation as a capable administrator as demonstrated by his supervision for over a decade of the district’s justice courts and, more recently, as the Fifth Judicial District’s acting administrative judge.”

Murphy was first elected as a justice of the State Supreme Court, Fifth Judicial District, in 2004. He was reelected to the bench last year, and has been assigned to the matrimonial, general civil, and commercial parts.

Aside from his role on the bench, he’s also served as the supervising judge for town and village courts in the Fifth Judicial District, which has more than 200 judicial officers at that level. He was appointed to that role by then Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman in 2007.

Outside that role, Murphy also provides continuing education and training to town and village justices, including those in the Fifth Judicial District. The district encompasses Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oneida, Onondaga and Oswego counties.

Murphy is also the presiding member of the judicial section of the New York State Bar Association, and is the immediate past president of the Onondaga County Bar Association.

Before he was elected to the bench, Murphy was a member of the Onondaga County Legislature, where he was chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. He was elected to the countywide policymaking body three times.

He was previously an assistant district attorney in the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office, and was in private practice for two decades before that. He specialized in civil litigation and municipal law.

Murphy is a native of Syracuse, New York, and he is a graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law.

Chief Judge Janet DiFiore said in a statement that Murphy will be a good fit for the position, in which he’ll work with state court officials on statewide initiatives to improve the judiciary.

“Judge Murphy possesses the expertise and vision to take on the formidable challenges of this important administrative role,” DiFiore said. “I am eager to work with him to implement programs and practices to achieve and maintain excellence throughout the district, advancing the progress made during Judge Tormey’s tenure.”

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