By John Ennis

Posted 11-17-2006

Earlier this year, New York’s Supreme Court judicial selection system (where party bosses choose which candidates will appear on the ballot) was ruled unconstitutional by a federal court. LexMetrics will summarize the major players (and their positions) in the battle to reform the current process.

Continue reading "THE CARD" »

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By John Ennis

11-10-2006

Tuesday’s election marked the passing of an era. No longer will New York Supreme Court justices be decided by a judicial nominating convention system — a method the federal courts have ruled unconstitutional. In the pursuit of reform, the state faces several choices. Here are two:

Continue reading "Appoint or Vote?" »

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By John Ennis

Posted 11-03-2006

This week’s lead story, Robes in the Closet?, examines the effort to get more openly gay and lesbian judges on the bench. LexMetrics will look at the numbers behind this movement.

Continue reading "Gays and the Bench: By the Numbers" »

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By John Ennis

Posted 10-27-2006

How do you know when a region has changed from red to blue? Presidential elections, held once every four years, are an imperfect indicator. The personalities of the candidates might affect the outcome of a single election just as much as party affiliation. Also, to notice a regional switch from one party to the other, an observer needs a sample size that could take a decade or two to reliably reveal itself, even if the shift had actually occurred sometime earlier. 

Continue reading "Red to Blue?" »

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By John Ennis

Posted 10-20-2006

In this week’s lead story, The Friends of Vito Lopez, the Institute for Judicial Studies examined the process of campaign fund raising as it pertains to judges.

Continue reading "The Song Remains the Same" »

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By John Ennis

Posted 10-13-06

This week’s lead story Plea Policy No Bargain, examines the Queens District Attorney’s novel approach to plea bargaining. LexMetrics took the opportunity to look at this issue from a numerical point of view. 

Continue reading "Plea Vise" »

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By John Ennis

Posted: 10-06-06

A judicial campaign consultant quoted in this week’s lead story, “The Judge Who Came in From the Cold” declares, “When a man runs against a woman in New York County, he generally loses.” This passes for conventional wisdom in the borough of Manhattan, but is it true?

Continue reading "Gender Judgment" »

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By John Ennis

Posted: 09-29-06

 
The New York State Board of Elections publishes all contributions to any judicial campaign that has raised more than $1,000. Their Supreme Court database goes back to 1999. IJS has analyzed the contributions for all the judges currently sitting on the Supreme Court in the five boroughs of New York City. Here are the judges who have raised more than $25,000 since 1999:

Continue reading "Electioneering" »

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By John Ennis

Posted on 09-22-06

In the wake of Lopez Torres v. New York State Board of Elections, the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals Second Circuit affirming that New York’s Supreme Court primary selection system is unconstitutional, a debate has emerged on how to approach its reform. One factor often overlooked by the media is judicial experience prior to joining the Supreme Court. This analysis will explore that issue from the eye of the storm: Brooklyn.

Continue reading "Experience Preferred?" »

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By John Ennis

Posted on 09-15-06

Here’s an old favorite from First-Year Torts, inspired by a passage in Tom Wolfe’s 1987 novel Bonfire of the Vanities:

Facts:  Your client is recuperating from knee surgery in a Westchester hospital when complications arise.  It requires the attention of a specialist and the patient is transferred to a Medical Center in Manhattan.  He emerges from the operating room well enough, but with little chance of recovering full mobility, which had been anticipated prior to the initial surgery.

Question: Where and when did the malpractice occur?

Answer:  In the ambulance while on the Major Deegan Expressway.

Reason:  You want a Bronx jury.

Continue reading "The "Bronx Effect"" »

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(Click on image to enlarge) 

Despite the Bronx's recent reorganization of its criminal justice system, its backlog of felonies continues to grow, outpacing the other boroughs.

Source: Office of Court Administration. 

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