Queens Civil Court Judge Terrence O’Connor is required by law to retire by December, but a decision from the Court of Appeals could bring an earlier end to his judicial career.

The New York Court of Appeals heard arguments this week on his possible removal from the bench, six months after the state Commission on Judicial Conduct said he should be stripped of his judgeship for being “belligerent, rude and condescending” to attorneys in the courtroom and failing to cooperate with its investigation into his conduct.