Just over one year ago, as I first began my term as chief administrative judge, I stated in my article for this special bar association section of the New York Law Journal that although our court system faced unprecedented challenges, unprecedented does not mean insurmountable. Throughout my first year as Chief Administrative Judge, the people of the New York State Unified Court System proved me rightrising to meet challenge after challenge, from tackling oldest cases to recovering after the devastating natural disaster that was Superstorm Sandy.
Despite facing many daunting challenges, our court system, under the steady leadership of our Chief Judge, has much to be proud of this year. First, courts across the state have begun to develop and implement locally-tailored operational reforms to improve efficiency in case management. In addition, this past summer I joined many of my judicial colleagues from the Appellate Divisions and Surrogate’s Courts in returning to the trial court as part of a highly successful effort to help clear scores of older cases.
