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New NY Judges Attend Legal Boot Camp

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Approximately 100 new judges are sworn-in in New York State each new year.

In addition to receiving chambers, staff members, courthouse assignments, and robe fittings, every new judge must take a four-day crash course during the first week of January to make up for their lack of judicial experience.

Last week the “Judge School” program took place with 84 fresh judges in White Plains New York at the New York State Judicial Institute at Pace University’s Law School.

The New York Times spoke with one of the new judges, 44-year-old Christopher Robles. He told the news outlet, “The transition is not something you can prepare for.”

Formerly s Brooklyn defense lawyer, Judge Robles has been newly assigned to Brooklyn Criminal Court. He told The Times, “You go from advocating for one side, to becoming an impartial party who now has to apply the law equally.”

The dean of the judicial institute, which is a full-time education and training center for Judges and other employees of the New York State Unified Court System, Judge Juanita Bing Newton, spoke with The Times. She said that the program’s goal is to provide the tools to judges that they will need to quickly take control of their courtroom.

On Tuesday, January 2, in his opening speech, Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks told those in attendance that a judge can always continue to learn on the job, as long as you “never lose your humility.” He said, “Perfection is not the goal here — all judges make mistakes. Judges get in trouble when they’re arrogant.”

According to an article in the NYT, “The weeklong course has been offered for 30 years by the state court system, which employs 1,250 judges, and oversees another 2,400 town and village judges — who have their own training programs in Albany. The week in White Plains is packed with presentations mostly by senior state court judges. There are no robes or gavels, but all aspects are addressed in a broad curriculum that ranges from general ethics and courtroom conduct to narrow points of decision writing, search and seizure rules, domestic violence issues and orders of protection.”

On Tuesday night, there is a general introductory class called “The Black Robe,” and on Thursday morning is a more in-depth class called “Facial Sufficiency of Accusatory Instruments.”

A deputy chief administrative judge Micheal Coccoma welcomed the judges to “this new life you have assumed,” in his lecture on the “Art of Judging.”

Judge Coccoma cautioned about coming down with “black robe disease,” in which the major symptom is disillusions of grandeur.

He said, “Oftentimes, judges get their black robes on and they think they walk on water. They think they can do no wrong, and that everyone has to laugh at their jokes. Remember, No crown comes with that black robe.”

By: Rebecca Gold

 

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