Arthur Donald Spatt (December 13, 1925 – June 12, 2020) was a
United States district judge
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...
of the
.
Education and career
Born in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
, Spatt was a Navigation Petty Officer in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
from 1944 to 1946, and received a
Bachelor of Laws
A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...
from
Brooklyn Law School
Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a Private university, private law school in New York City. Founded in 1901, it has approximately 1,100 students. Brooklyn Law School's faculty includes 60 full-time faculty, 15 emeriti faculty, and adjunct faculty.
...
in 1949. He was in private practice in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
from 1949 to 1978. He was a state court judge in the
Supreme Court of the State of New York
The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
, Tenth Judicial District from 1978 to 1982, then an Administrative judge of
Nassau County from 1982 to 1986, and an associate justice of the New York Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department, from 1986 to 1989.
Federal judicial service
On October 25, 1989, Spatt was nominated by President
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
to a seat on the
vacated by
Henry Bramwell. Spatt was confirmed by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
on November 21, 1989, and received commission on November 27, 1989. He assumed
senior status on December 1, 2004.
His service terminated on June 12, 2020, due to his death at his home in
Commack, New York, of the effects of
blood cancer
Tumors of the hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (American English) or tumours of the haematopoietic and lymphoid tissues (British English) are tumors that affect the blood, bone marrow, lymph, and lymphatic system. Because these tissues are al ...
.
Notable rulings
Spatt penned the ruling in the Mahender and Varsha Sabhnani
slavery
Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
federal criminal trial. He awarded rare double damages to
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
n maids - Samirah, $620,744, and Enung, $315,802. The
judgment
Judgement (or judgment) is the evaluation of given circumstances to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions.
In an informal context, a judgement is opinion expressed as fact. In the context of a legal trial ...
's award of double damages in federal criminal trials is notable, since the punitive sums are only, ordinarily granted in civil cases.
On August 20, 2012 Spatt suspended a Nassau County law that would have allowed County Executive Edward Mangano to reduce negotiated employee benefits.
See also
*
List of Jewish American jurists
This is a list of notable Jewish American jurists. For other famous Jewish Americans, see Lists of American Jews.
Supreme Court of the United States
United States courts of appeals
United States district courts
* Ronnie Abrams, J ...
References
External links
*
1925 births
2020 deaths
Brooklyn Law School alumni
Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
Lawyers from Brooklyn
Military personnel from New York City
New York Supreme Court justices
United States district court judges appointed by George H. W. Bush
21st-century American judges
Deaths from cancer in New York (state)
Deaths from blood cancer in the United States
{{US-federal-judge-stub