NY Chief Judge DiFiore Urges 'Patience' With Courts' Path to Full Restart Subject to Change
Electronic filing of motions in pending cases resumed, and judges in civil, matrimonial and family courts were authorized to refer matters for virtual alternative dispute resolution, DiFiore said.
May 04, 2020 at 05:07 PM
3 minute read
As the virtual capabilities of the New York state court system continue to expand, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore acknowledged in a video Monday that the courts' path back to full function is still in flux.
Key indicators of the COVID-19 pandemic, including deaths and new hospitalizations, continue to decline in New York, DiFiore noted, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said the state's reopening is likely to be gradual.
"Any plan we put in place will track the governor's safe and prudent reopening of the state. As to the details of our plan, the honest answer is that we don't know yet what those details will entail," DiFiore said.
Court leaders are "considering all the possible scenarios and timetables for a safe, phased‐in restart of our work," DiFiore said, including the filing of new cases and the resumption of trials. She thanked the state's legal community for its patience, cooperation and constructive guidance along the way, acknowledging that public health conditions in New York may change with little notice.
Virtual conferences and other proceedings are ongoing, with a goal of clearing the entire backlog of undecided motions before courts reopen, DiFiore said.
On Monday, the electronic filing of motions in pending cases resumed, and judges in civil, matrimonial and family courts were authorized to refer matters for virtual alternative dispute resolution, DiFiore said.
Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks previewed the changes in a memo April 30, writing that judges had held conferences and other virtual proceedings in more than 25,000 cases since April 13, and a third of those had been settled or otherwise disposed. Judges are hearing more matters every day, DiFiore said.
DiFiore also addressed the expected shortage of seats for September's bar exam. Law school deans outside New York have criticized the move to restrict initial registration to the graduates of New York law schools. The issue has been an "agonizing one," DiFiore said, but the state will rely on public health guidance to determine whether more people can register after the initial period.
She closed the video by again urging everyone to be patient.
"I know it is sometimes difficult to practice patience, particularly at a time like this, but patience, along with careful, deliberate forward movement, will be a small price to pay to ensure the best possible outcome in a very uncertain world," she said.
READ MORE:
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllRetired Judge Susan Cacace Elected Westchester DA in Win for Democrats
In Eric Adams Case and Other Corruption Matters, Prosecutors Seem Bent on Pushing Boundaries of Their Already Awesome Power
5 minute readEric Adams Trial Set for April as Defense Urges Dismissal of Bribery Count
Major Drug Companies Agree to Pay $49.1 Million to 50 States, Territories
3 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Gibson Dunn Sued By Crypto Client After Lateral Hire Causes Conflict of Interest
- 2Trump's Solicitor General Expected to 'Flip' Prelogar's Positions at Supreme Court
- 3Pharmacy Lawyers See Promise in NY Regulator's Curbs on PBM Industry
- 4Outgoing USPTO Director Kathi Vidal: ‘We All Want the Country to Be in a Better Place’
- 5Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality Of FCC's Universal Service Fund
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250