NYC Bar makes
recommendations on the structure and organization
of Town & Village Courts
Misdemeanor and many summary eviction proceedings
in New York ’s Town and Village Courts
should be heard by, or transferred to, lawyer
judges, and these courts should be consolidated
so that a higher percentage of the justices can
be lawyers, according to a report issued today
by the New York City Bar Association’s
Task Force on Town & Village Courts.
The report, the final in a series of reports
issued by the Task Force, makes 10 recommendations
to achieve these objectives and ease the burden
on litigants facing the loss of their liberty
or their home in these courts. The Task Force’s
three prior reports address the use of outdated
equipment, poor recordkeeping practices, and
inadequate legal and administrative assistance
for justices and court personnel. In all, the
reports make 25 recommendations for improving
the Justice Courts. An Executive Summary and
the recommendations for all the reports can be
found here:
http://www.nycbar.org/pdf/report/Town%20_Village_exec_summary.pdf.
Town and Village Courts, also known as Justice
Courts, differ from other state courts in a number
of ways. They are not state-funded, and, unlike
other courts, their justices need not be lawyers.
68% of justices are non-lawyers, and many counties
in the northern, western, and central parts of
New York State have few, if any, lawyer justices.
Additionally, unlike elected state judges, Town
and Village justices serve on a part-time basis
and are not reviewed for qualifications to sit
on the bench. Yet despite limited legal training,
Justice Courts have broad criminal authority
to handle misdemeanor cases, eviction cases;
and emergency family court proceedings, among
others which affect basic rights.
“While the Task Force believes that all
justices of the Town and Village Courts should
be lawyers sitting on the bench full-time, we
recognize that such sweeping change is not practical
in the short term,” said Phylis Skloot
Bamberger, Chair of the Task Force. “We
are also aware of the desire of communities to
have local courts that understand local interests.
Our recommendations are designed to result in
fewer courts, still tied to the community and
presided over by lawyer-judges who serve full
time. By enhancing the conditions under which
the justices do their work, including benefits,
compensation, facilities, and support, it is
likely that more attorneys will become interested
in being justices and run for office.
“Furthermore,
by giving litigants facing misdemeanor charges
or certain eviction proceedings the opportunity
to appear before a lawyer judge, we are recognizing
that the complexity of the law in these areas,
and the interests at stake, require that these
cases be heard by persons with legal training.”
A summary of these
recommendations can be found here:
http://www.nycbar.org/pdf/report/Town%20_Village_exec_summary.pdf
A copy of the full report can be found here:
http://www.nycbar.org/pdf/report/Town%20_Village_TF.pdf.
The full versions of the three previous Task
Force reports can be found here: http://www.nycbar.org/25_recommendations.htm.
About the Association
The New York
City Bar Association (www.nycbar.org)
was founded in 1870, and since then has been
dedicated to maintaining the high ethical
standards of the profession, promoting reform
of the law, and providing service to the profession
and the public. The Association continues to
work for political, legal and social reform,
while implementing innovative means to help
the disadvantaged. Protecting the public’s welfare remains one of the
Association’s highest priorities.
