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The Judiciary of New York (officially the New York State Unified Court System) is the judicial branch of the
Government of New York The Government of the State of New York, headquartered at the New York State Capitol in Albany, encompasses the administrative structure of the U.S. state of New York, as established by the state's constitution. Analogously to the US federa ...
, comprising all the
court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...
s of the
State of New York New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. state ...
(excluding extrajudicial
administrative court An administrative court is a type of court specializing in administrative law, particularly disputes concerning the exercise of public power. Their role is to ascertain that official acts are consistent with the law. Such courts are considered s ...
s). The
Court of Appeals A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much ...
, sitting in Albany and consisting of seven judges, is the state's
highest court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
. The Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court is the principal intermediate appellate court. The
New York State Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
is the trial court of general jurisdiction in civil cases statewide and in criminal cases in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Outside New York City, the 57 individual County Courts hear
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...
criminal cases. There are a number of local courts in different parts of the state, including the
New York City Civil Court The Civil Court of the City of New York is a civil court of the New York State Unified Court System in New York City that decides lawsuits involving claims for damages up to $25,000 and includes a small claims part (small claims court) for cases i ...
and
New York City Criminal Court The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts a ...
. By one estimate,
debt collection Debt collection is the process of pursuing payments of debts owed by individuals or businesses. An organization that specializes in debt collection is known as a collection agency or debt collector. Most collection agencies operate as agents of ...
actions are 25% of all lawsuits in state courts. The system is administered by the Chief Judge of the State of New York, working with the Chief Administrative Judge, other administrative judges, the Office of Court Administration, and other agencies.


Courts

In general, the judicial system is composed of the appellate courts and the trial courts, consisting of the superior courts and the local courts. The appellate courts are the: * Court of Appeals * Appellate Division of the Supreme Court * appellate terms of the Supreme Court * appellate sessions of the County Court The superior courts are the: * Supreme Court * County Court * specialized courts (Family Court, Surrogate's Court, Court of Claims) And the inferior courts are the local courts: * District Court * New York City courts ( NYC Civil Court, NYC Criminal Court) * city courts * justice courts (town and village courts) There are also other tribunals that are not normally considered part of the New York State Unified Court System or the judiciary proper.


Court of Appeals

The
New York State Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by ...
is the state's highest court. In civil cases, appeals are taken almost exclusively from decisions of the Appellate Divisions. In criminal cases, depending on the type of case and the part of the state in which it arose, appeals can be heard from decisions of the Appellate Division, the Appellate Term, and the County Court.


Appellate Division of the Supreme Court

The
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...
is the state's second-highest court, and is regionally divided into four judicial departments. It primarily hears appeals from the superior courts in civil cases, the Supreme Court in criminal cases, and the County Court in felony criminal cases in the Third and Fourth Judicial Departments. In addition, in civil cases it may hear appeals from the appellate terms of the Supreme Court when these courts have heard appeals from one of the lower trial courts.


Superior courts

The court of general jurisdiction in New York is the
New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
. (Unlike in most other states, the Supreme Court is a trial court and is not the highest court in the state.) There is a branch of the New York Supreme Court in each of New York State's 62 counties. In New York City, the Supreme Court in each county hears all
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...
cases; outside New York City, these cases are generally heard in the County Court. The Supreme Court hears civil cases seeking money damages that exceed the monetary limits of the local courts' jurisdiction. The Supreme Court has exclusive jurisdiction over most cases in which a party seeks equitable relief such as an
injunction An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in p ...
,
declaratory judgment A declaratory judgment, also called a declaration, is the legal determination of a court that resolves legal uncertainty for the litigants. It is a form of legally binding preventive by which a party involved in an actual or possible legal ma ...
actions, or proceedings for review of many administrative-agency rulings. The court also has exclusive jurisdiction over matrimonial actions seeking a
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving th ...
,
legal separation Legal separation (sometimes judicial separation, separate maintenance, divorce ', or divorce from bed-and-board) is a legal process by which a married couple may formalize a separation while remaining legally married. A legal separation is gra ...
, or
annulment Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning al ...
of a marriage. In several counties the Supreme Court has a specialized Commercial Division that hears commercial cases. The New York State County Court operates in each county except for the five counties of New York City (in those counties, the
Civil Court Civil law may refer to: * Civil law (common law), the part of law that concerns private citizens and legal persons * Civil law (legal system), or continental law, a legal system originating in continental Europe and based on Roman law ** Private la ...
, Criminal Court and Supreme Court operate in place of a typical County Court). In many counties, this court primarily hears criminal cases (whereas the Supreme Court primarily hears civil cases), and usually only
felonies A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...
as lesser crimes are handled by local courts.


Specialized courts

* The
Family Court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plainti ...
has exclusive jurisdiction over certain matters involving minors, including juvenile delinquency charges, status offenses, child abuse and neglect, termination of parental rights, adoption, and guardianships. It also handles aspects of domestic relations disputes including child support and child custody (although only the Supreme Court can grant a divorce). * The
Surrogate's Court A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as Orphans' Courts ...
exercises
exclusive jurisdiction Exclusive jurisdiction exists in civil procedure if one court has the power to adjudicate a case to the exclusion of all other courts. The opposite situation is concurrent jurisdiction (or non-exclusive jurisdiction) in which more than one cour ...
over
probate Probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased, or whereby the estate is settled according to the laws of intestacy in the st ...
and related matters, and also has jurisdiction over certain guardianship matters (concurrent with the Supreme Court) and over
adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, fro ...
proceedings (concurrent with the Family Court). * The Court of Claims hears actions seeking monetary damages against the State of New York itself. The judges are appointed by the Governor subject to confirmation by the State Senate.


Local courts

* City courts handle the arraignment of felonies, try misdemeanors and lesser offenses, and try civil lawsuits involving claims of up to $15,000. The
New York City Criminal Court The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts a ...
and the
New York City Civil Court The Civil Court of the City of New York is a civil court of the New York State Unified Court System in New York City that decides lawsuits involving claims for damages up to $25,000 and includes a small claims part (small claims court) for cases i ...
are the local courts in the 5 boroughs of New York City. Some city courts have small claims parts for the informal disposition of matters involving claims of up to $5,000 and/or housing parts to handle landlord-tenant matters and housing violations. * The District Court is the local criminal and civil court in Nassau County and the five western towns of Suffolk County. It arraigns felonies and tries misdemeanors and lesser offenses, as well as civil lawsuits involving claims of up to $15,000, small claims and small commercial claims up to $5000, and landlord-tenant actions. *
Justice courts In the New York State Unified Court System, a justice court is a local court that handles traffic tickets, criminal matters, small claims, and local code violations such as zoning. Constitutionally, justice courts are part of the state legal syst ...
(town and village courts) try misdemeanors and lesser offenses in towns and villages. These courts are the starting point for all criminal cases outside cities, and handle a variety of other matters including small claims,
traffic ticket A traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a motorist or other road user, indicating that the user has violated traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding ...
cases and local
zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...
matters. They also arraign defendants accused of felonies. These courts may hear civil lawsuits involving claims of up to $3,000 (including small claims cases of up to $3,000). Unlike all other courts which are state-funded, the town and village justice courts are locally funded. Justices are chosen by local election and are not required to have a law degree, license to practice or any other formal legal or law enforcement training, although upon election they are provided with training and are subject to an annual continuing education requirement.


Extrajudicial courts

There are numerous
administrative court An administrative court is a type of court specializing in administrative law, particularly disputes concerning the exercise of public power. Their role is to ascertain that official acts are consistent with the law. Such courts are considered s ...
s which are not considered part of the judicial branch of government. * The
Traffic Violations Bureau The Traffic Violations Bureau (TVB) is an administrative court of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles that adjudicates non-criminal traffic violations (other than parking violations) in New York City.Vehicle and Traffic Law article 2-A ...
(TVB) is a part of the state Department of Motor Vehicles that adjudicates non-criminal traffic violations (other than parking violations) in New York City. * The
New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings The New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) is an administrative office of the New York City government. It is a non-mayoral executive agency and is not part of the state Unified Court System. Administrative trials nei ...
(OATH) is an agency of the
New York city government The government of New York City, headquartered at New York City Hall in Lower Manhattan, is organized under the New York City Charter and provides for a mayor-council system. The mayor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for the ad ...
that conducts administrative hearings, overseeing the operations of four tribunals: the OATH Tribunal, the Environmental Control Board, the Health Tribunal, and the Taxi & Limousine Tribunal. * The
New York Court for the Trial of Impeachments The Court for the Trial of Impeachments, and the Correction of Errors was established by the New York State Constitution of 1777. It consisted then of the Lieutenant Governor of New York (who is ''ex officio'' President of the State Senate), the Cha ...
, often referred to as the Impeachment Court or sometimes as the High Court of Impeachment, is for the trial of state officers who had been
impeached Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...
by the
State Assembly State Assembly is the name given to various legislatures, especially lower houses or full legislatures in states in federal systems of government. Channel Islands States Assembly is the name of the legislature of the Bailiwick of Jersey. The Bail ...
.


Appeal structure

As New York has 11 separate trial courts, and some courts appeal differently based on which Judicial Department they are located in, the sequence of appeals is fairly complex: * The Supreme Court, County Court civil and felony cases, Family Court, Surrogate's Court, and Court of Claims appeal to the ''Supreme Court, Appellate Division''. * In the 1st and 2nd Departments: the New York City Civil Court, New York City Criminal Court, other City Courts, District Court, Town Justice Courts, Village Justice Courts, and County Court non-felony criminal cases appeal to the ''Supreme Court, Appellate Term''. * In the 3rd and 4th Departments: City Courts, Town Justice Courts, and Village Justice Courts appeal to the ''County Court, Appellate Session.''


Law


Precedent

Decisions of the
New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by ...
are
binding authority A precedent is a principle or rule established in a previous legal case that is either binding on or persuasive for a court or other tribunal when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts. Common-law legal systems place great value ...
on all other courts, and persuasive authority for itself in later cases. Decisions of the
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...
department panels are binding on the lower courts in that department, and also on lower courts in other departments unless there is contrary authority from the Appellate Division of that department. Decisions by the Supreme Court, Appellate Term must be followed by courts whose appeals lie to it. Published trial court decisions are persuasive authority for all other courts in the state. The '' New York Reports'' and '' Appellate Division Reports'' contain the opinions, memorandums, and motions sent by the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court Appellate Division, respectively. The appellate term and trial court opinions are published selectively in the '' Miscellaneous Reports''. The current versions are the ''New York Reports 3d'' (cited as N.Y.3d), the ''Appellate Division Reports 3d'' (cited as A.D.3d) and the ''Miscellaneous Reports 3d'' (cited as Misc.3d).


Procedure

The ''
Civil Practice Law and Rules The New York ''Civil Practice Law and Rules'' (CPLR) is chapter 8 of the ''Consolidated Laws of New York'' and governs legal procedure in the Unified Court System such as jurisdiction, venue, and pleadings, as well certain areas of substantive l ...
'' (CPLR) governs
legal procedure Procedural law, adjective law, in some jurisdictions referred to as remedial law, or rules of court, comprises the rules by which a court hears and determines what happens in civil, lawsuit, criminal or administrative proceedings. The rules are ...
such as
jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. J ...
,
venue Venue is the location at which an event takes place. It may refer to: Locations * Venue (law), the place a case is heard * Financial trading venue, a place or system where financial transactions can occur * Music venue, place used for a concer ...
, and
pleading In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement of a party's claims or defenses to another party's claims in a civil action. The parties' pleadings in a case define the issues to be adju ...
s, as well certain areas of
substantive law Substantive law is the set of laws that governs how members of a society are to behave.Substantive Law vs. Procedural Law: Definitions and Differences, Study.com/ref> It is contrasted with procedural law, which is the set of procedures for making, ...
such as the
statute of limitations A statute of limitations, known in civil law systems as a prescriptive period, is a law passed by a legislative body to set the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. ("Time for commencing proceedings") In ...
and
joint and several liability Where two or more persons are liable in respect of the same liability, in most common law legal systems they may either be: * jointly liable, or * severally liable, or * jointly and severally liable. Joint liability If parties have joint liabili ...
. Many counties use the
New York State Courts Electronic Filing System The New York State Courts Electronic Filing System (NYSCEF) is the electronic court filing (e-filing) system used in the New York State Unified Court System. E-filing in criminal cases in the Supreme Court and County Court A county court is a co ...
(NYSCEF) for electronic court filing (e-filing, like the federal PACER system).


Administration

The Judiciary of New York is a unified state court system that functions under the
Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals refers to the position of chief judge on the New York Court of Appeals. They are also known as the Chief Judge of New York. The chief judge supervises the seven-judge Court of Appeals. In addition, th ...
who is the ' Chief Judge of New York. The Chief Judge supervises the seven-judge Court of Appeals and is chair of the
Administrative Board of the Courts Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
. In addition, the Chief Judge establishes standards and administrative policies after consultation with the Administrative Board and approval by the Court of Appeals. The Administrative Board is composed of the chief judge and presiding justices of each Supreme Court Appellate Division department. The Chief Administrator (or Chief Administrative Judge if a judge) is appointed by the Chief Judge with the advice and consent of the Administrative Board and oversees the administration and operation of the court system, assisted by the Office of Court Administration. The court system is currently divided into thirteen judicial districts: seven upstate districts each comprising between five and eleven counties, five districts corresponding to the boroughs or counties of New York City, and one district on Long Island. In each judicial district outside New York City, an Administrator (or Administrative Judge if a judge) is responsible for supervising all courts and agencies, while inside New York City an Administrator (or Administrative Judge) supervises each major court. Administrators are assisted by Supervising Judges who are responsible in the on-site management of the trial courts, including court caseloads, personnel, and budget administration, and each manage a particular type of court within a county or judicial district. District Executives (outside New York City) and Chief Clerks (inside New York City) assist the local administrators in carrying out their responsibilities for supervising the day-to-day operations of the trial courts. The district administrative offices are responsible for personnel, purchasing, budgets, revenue, computer automation, court interpreters, court security, and case management. The
New York State Reporter New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
of the
New York State Law Reporting Bureau New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
is the official reporter of decisions and is required to publish every opinion, memorandum, and motion sent to it by the Court of Appeals and the Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court in the '' New York Reports'' and '' Appellate Division Reports'', respectively. The State Reporter is appointed by the Court of Appeals. The
Judicial Conference of the State of New York The Judicial Conference of the State of New York is an institution of the New York State Unified Court System responsible for surveying current practice in the administration of the state's courts, compiling statistics, and suggesting legislation a ...
is responsible for surveying current practice in the administration of the state's courts, compiling statistics, and suggesting legislation and regulations. The
New York State Judicial Institute The New York State Judicial Institute is located about north of New York City on the campus of the Pace University School of Law in White Plains, NY. Spearheaded by New York State Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye and Chief Administrative Judge Jonatha ...
serves as a statewide center for the education, training, and research facility for judges, justices, and other personnel. All courts, except justice courts (town and village courts), are financed by the state in a single court budget. During 2009, the judiciary had approximately 1300 judges, 4.6 million new cases, and a budget in excess of $2.5 billion. it had a $2 billion budget, 3,600 state and locally paid judges and over 15,000 nonjudicial employees in over 300 locations around the state.


Personnel

There are several
officers of the court In common law jurisdictions, the generic term officer of the court is applied to all those who, in some degree in the function of their professional or similar qualifications, have a part in the legal system. Officers of the court may include ent ...
, including judges, jurors, and
bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their o ...
s, and other personnel.


Judges

Judges of the Court of Appeals are appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of Senate upon recommendation of the Commission on Judicial Nomination. Judges of the Court of Claims are appointed in the same manner, without the requirement of a commission recommendation. All other justices are elected, with the exception of those of the New York City Criminal Courts, New York City Family Court, and some other city courts, which are appointed by the mayor. Supreme Court justices are nominated by judicial district nominating conventions (with judicial delegates themselves elected from assembly districts), while New York City Civil Court and Surrogate's Court judges are nominated in primary elections. Family Court judges serve 10-year terms; those outside New York City are elected, while those in New York City are appointed to by the Mayor. Surrogates serve 14-year terms within New York City and 10-year terms elsewhere in the state. Full-time city court judges serve 10-year terms, and part-time city court judges serve six-year terms. District Court judges are elected to six-year terms. Justice court justices are elected to four-year terms. The majority of justice court justices are not attorneys, and non-attorney justices must successfully complete a certification course and participate in continuing judicial education. New York City Criminal Court judges are appointed by the
Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially Mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property ...
to 10-year terms from a list of candidates submitted by the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. New York City Civil Court judges are elected from districts to 10-year terms, with vacancies filled by the mayor and service continuing until the last day of December after next election. Once a judge is elected or appointed, the Chief Judge, in consultation with the Chief Administrative Judge, Administrative Judges, Supervising Judges and the Presiding Justice of the relevant Appellate Division, assigns judges to a court and a part, not necessarily the court and county in which they were elected or appointed, including to the Supreme Court (but not its Appellate Division or Appellate Term) as Acting Supreme Court Judges. Judges are regulated by the ''Rules Governing Judicial Conduct'' promulgated by the Chief Administrative Judge, the ''Code of Judicial Conduct'' adopted by the New York State Bar Association, and the relevant rules of the respective Appellate Division departments. The eleven-member New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct receives complaints, investigates, and makes initial determinations regarding judicial conduct and may recommend admonition, censure, or removal from office to the Chief Judge and Court of Appeals. The Ethics Commission for the Unified Court System administers financial disclosure requirements. The New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics issues confidential advisory opinions regarding judicial conduct. Along with the unusual names for the courts, judges in the Supreme Court and the justice courts are called justices, while in the Court of Appeals and in other courts such as the Family Court, County Court, and Surrogates' courts, they are called judges.


Jurors

The
Judiciary Law The ''Consolidated Laws of the State of New York'' are the codification of the permanent laws of a general nature of New York enacted by the New York State Legislature. It is composed of several chapters, or laws. New York uses a system called ...
states that all litigants (who have the right to a
jury trial A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a signific ...
) have the right to juries selected from a fair cross section of the community and that all eligible citizens shall have both the opportunity and the obligation to serve. Potential jurors are randomly selected from lists of registered voters, holders of a driver's licenses or ID issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles, New York state income tax filers, recipients of unemployment insurance or family assistance, and from volunteers. The
grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a p ...
is organized pursuant to article 190 of the Criminal Procedure Law.


Attorneys

The Court of Appeals promulgates rules for admission to practice law in New York. The
New York State Education Department The New York State Education Department (NYSED) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the supervision for all public schools in New York and all standardized testing, as well as the production and administration ...
promulgates standards for law school education (which defer to the requirements of the ''Rules of the New York Court of Appeals'' pertaining to legal education and prerequisites to the study of law), and the New York State Board of Law Examiners administers the New York State
bar examination A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associ ...
. Attorneys are admitted to the New York
bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar ( ...
by one of the Appellate Division departments rather than by the Court of Appeals, though once admitted to any of the Appellate Division departments the attorney is admitted to practice and appear before all New York courts, including the Court of Appeals. Applicants must be interviewed in person by a member of the Appellate Division department's Character and Fitness Committee after passing the
Uniform Bar Exam In the United States, those seeking to become lawyers must normally pass a bar examination before they can be admitted to the bar and become licensed to practice law. Bar exams are administered by states or territories, generally by agencies under ...
,
Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination The Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination (MPRE) is a 120-minute, 60-question, multiple-choice examination designed to measure the knowledge and understanding of established standards related to a lawyer's professional conduct. It i ...
, New York Law Course, and New York Law Exam. Lawyers are regulated by various state laws, the ''Rules of Professional Conduct'' (based on the
ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct The American Bar Association's Model Rules of Professional Conduct (MRPC) are a set of rules and commentaries on the ethical and professional responsibilities of members of the legal profession in the United States. Although the MRPC generally is ...
), and rules adopted by each department of the Appellate Division. Each department of the Appellate Division has ''attorney grievance committees'' that investigate complaints of attorney misconduct and may issue reprimands or recommend censure, suspension, or disbarment to the Appellate Division. The
New York State Bar Association The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New York. The mission of the association is to cultivate the science of jurisprudence; promote reform in the law; facilitate the administration of justice ...
is a voluntary
bar association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence. The word bar is derived from the old English/European custom of using a physical railing to se ...
of New York, but others exist such the
New York City Bar Association The New York City Bar Association (City Bar), founded in 1870, is a voluntary association of lawyers and law students. Since 1896, the organization, formally known as the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, has been headquartered in a ...
.


District attorneys

All counties (including each of the five counties of New York City) elect a
district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a ...
for four-year terms, whose duty it is to prosecute all crimes and offenses cognizable by the courts of the county. District attorneys are legally permitted to delegate the prosecution of petty crimes or offenses. For example, prosecutors don't normally handle
New York City Criminal Court The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts a ...
summons court cases, and the
NYPD The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
's Legal Bureau has a memorandum of understanding with the district attorneys, at least in Manhattan, allowing the NYPD to selectively prosecute them.


Public defenders

The system of
public defender A public defender is a lawyer appointed to represent people who otherwise cannot reasonably afford to hire a lawyer to defend themselves in a trial. Several countries provide people with public defenders, including the UK, Hungary and Singapore, ...
s is run by county governments. Each county must provide representation by any combination of a public defender, legal aid society, and/or panel of qualified lawyers (pursuant to County Law article 18-B). For a comparison of relative activity in 2009 in New York City, legal aid societies handled 290,251 cases of which 568 went to trial, whereas 18-B lawyers represented 42,212 defendants of which 623 went to trial. The state Mental Hygiene Legal Service (MHLS) provides legal representation, advice, and assistance to mentally disabled persons under the care or jurisdiction of state-operated or licensed facilities concerning their admission, retention, care, or treatment.


Other

The county clerk acts as clerk of the Supreme Court, Civil Branch, and commissioner of jurors for the Supreme Court for both the Civil and Criminal branches. They summon people for jury duty, keep court records, and collect revenue. They are appointed by the presiding justice of the Appellate Division of the relevant judicial department. Judicial hearing officers (JHOs) adjudicate most universal summons (summons court) cases in
New York City Criminal Court The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts a ...
, assist in Criminal Court compliance parts in domestic violence cases, and in the
New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
monitor substance abuse program defendants, conduct pre-trial suppression hearings and make recommended findings of fact and law to sitting judges. JHOs are appointed by the Chief Administrator. Support magistrates hear support cases (petitions filed seeking support for a child or spouse) and paternity cases (petitions filed requesting the court to enter an order declaring someone to be the father of a child). A court attorney is a lawyer who works with and assists the judge by researching legal questions and helping to write decisions. The court attorney may also meet with the attorneys or parties to a case to try to reach an agreement without the need for a trial. New York State Court Officers are
law enforcement officers A law enforcement officer (LEO), or peace officer in North American English, is a public-sector employee whose duties primarily involve the enforcement of laws. The phrase can include campaign disclosure specialists, local police officers, prose ...
who provide police services to the New York State Unified Court System (i.e.
bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their o ...
s), and enforce state and city laws at all facilities operated by the New York State Unified Court System.


Analysis and criticism

New York's use of remand (pre-trial detention) and
bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required. In some countrie ...
procedures have been criticized. For example, New York is one of only four states that does not allow judges to consider public safety when making a bail determination. And almost without exception, New York judges only set two kinds of bail at arraignment, straight cash or commercial bail bond, while other options exist such as partially secured bonds, which only require a tenth of the full amount as a
down payment Down payment (also called a deposit in British English), is an initial up-front partial payment for the purchase of expensive items/services such as a car or a house. It is usually paid in cash or equivalent at the time of finalizing the transactio ...
, and unsecured bonds, which don't require any up front payment. The Court of Appeals ruled in 1991 that most people arrested must be released if they are not arraigned within 24 hours, and in 2013, for the first time since 2001, the average time it took to arraign defendants fell below 24 hours in all five boroughs of New York City. But there have been accusations of systematic trial delays, especially with regards to the
New York City stop-and-frisk program New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
. There have also been allegations that excessive pre-trial detention and systematic trial delays are used to pressure defendants to accept plea bargains. In 2006 a commission appointed by Chief Judge Judith Kaye found that the county public defender system provided "an unconstitutional level of representation ..impugning the fairness of New York's criminal justice system". The
New York Civil Liberties Union The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) is a civil rights organization in the United States. Founded in November 1951 as the New York affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, it is a not-for-profit, nonpartisan organization with nea ...
has claimed that public defenders in New York are so overworked and overmatched that poor people essentially receive no legal aid in local criminal courts. Some watchdog groups consider
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
as one of America's most corrupt judicial systems. New York's judicial nominating conventions have been criticized as opaque, brief and dominated by county party leaders. In her 1999 State of the Judiciary address, Chief Judge Judith Kaye called the system of New York trial courts "absurdly complex ..difficult to understand, hard to navigate and a burden to administer" and endorsed a proposal for a two-tier trial court structure with a statewide Supreme Court and a series of regional district courts.


History

Historically, county superior courts—like New York's county-by-county Supreme Court—were the highest level of trial court, overseeing a network of inferior trial courts (e.g., municipal courts, recorder's courts, courts of referees and commissioners, etc.), the decisions of which could be appealed within the trial court system to the superior courts. The constitution of 1846 made several changes to the organization of the courts. The
Court of Chancery The Court of Chancery was a court of equity in England and Wales that followed a set of loose rules to avoid a slow pace of change and possible harshness (or "inequity") of the common law. The Chancery had jurisdiction over all matters of equ ...
was abolished and jurisdiction over
equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership *Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the diff ...
was transferred to the Supreme Court. The Court for the Correction of Errors was abolished and jurisdiction over appeals was transferred to the
Court of Appeals A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much ...
. The New York circuit courts, by the constitution of 1821, were abolished and replaced by the district benches of the Supreme Court. The Court of Appeals was established in July 1847, consisting of four statewide elected judges and four justices chosen annually from the Supreme Court. The
Court of Common Pleas A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...
had been established in 1686 in New York City, extended in 1691 throughout the state, had been again restricted to New York City in 1846, and was abolished in 1895. The Court for the Trial of Impeachments was established by the New York State Constitution of 1777 and was split from the Court for the Correction of Errors upon that court's disestablishment in 1846.


See also

*
Government of New York (state) The Government of the State of New York, headquartered at the New York State Capitol in Albany, encompasses the administrative structure of the U.S. state of New York, as established by the state's constitution. Analogously to the US federa ...
*
Law enforcement in New York Law enforcement in New York State is primarily conducted by Police Officers employed by State, City, County Police departments. A number of State, City, Educational, and private companies employ Peace Officers. Types of Law Enforcement Officer ...
*
Law of New York Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vari ...


Citations


General and cited references

* * * * * *


External links

*
Legal Referral Service
(a
lawyer referral service A lawyer referral service maintains a network of lawyers, and connects people in need of lawyers with its participating attorneys. A potential client who contacts a lawyer referral service is directed to a lawyer who practices in the area of law t ...
) from the
New York City Bar Association The New York City Bar Association (City Bar), founded in 1870, is a voluntary association of lawyers and law students. Since 1896, the organization, formally known as the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, has been headquartered in a ...

Lawyer Referral and Information Service
(a
lawyer referral service A lawyer referral service maintains a network of lawyers, and connects people in need of lawyers with its participating attorneys. A potential client who contacts a lawyer referral service is directed to a lawyer who practices in the area of law t ...
) from the
New York State Bar Association The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New York. The mission of the association is to cultivate the science of jurisprudence; promote reform in the law; facilitate the administration of justice ...

Judiciary
in the
New York Codes, Rules and Regulations The ''New York Codes, Rules and Regulations'' (NYCRR) contains New York state rules and regulations. The NYCRR is officially compiled by the New York State Department of State's Division of Administrative Rules. Contents See also * '' New York ...
(22 NYCRR)
New York Slip Opinion Service
from the
New York State Law Reporting Bureau New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

New York Official Reports Service
from
West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

Office of Court Administration
on Open NY (https://data.ny.gov/)
National Center for State Courts
{{Authority control
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...