MAYOR’S ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
WHEREAS, it is the policy of the City of New York that the judicial appointment process be merit-based, independent, fair, and publicly credible, and that the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary operate pursuant to clear standards of transparency, ethics, and institutional integrity while preserving the confidentiality of individual applicants;
NOW, THEREFORE, by the power vested in me as Mayor of the City of New York, it is hereby ordered:
Section l. Committee Established. The Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary (hereinafter called the Committee) is hereby established in the Office of the Mayor to recruit, evaluate, consider, and recommend highly qualified judicial candidates for appointment, and to evaluate the incumbent judges for reappointment, to Criminal Court, Family Court and, for interim appointments in Civil Court in the City of New York.
§ 2. Functions. The Committee shall:
a. Take steps to recruit and encourage highly qualified persons for such appointments to serve as judges in New York City and to receive from any source the names of candidates appearing to have the highest qualifications for judicial office;
b. Evaluate and conduct all necessary inquiries to determine those persons whose character, ability, training, experience, temperament, and commitment to equal justice under law fully qualify them for judicial office;
c. Consider all relevant information to determine which of the highly qualified candidates are best qualified for judicial office and refer to the Department of Investigation for screening all persons the Committee proposes to nominate for appointment;
d. Nominate and present to the Mayor three candidates for appointment to each vacant judicial office, except that when multiple vacancies are under consideration the Committee may, at its discretion, unless otherwise directed by the Mayor, present fewer than three nominations for each vacancy, and provide such information as may be necessary to inform the Mayor of the qualifications of each nominee; and
e. Evaluate the qualifications of each incumbent judge for reappointment to judicial office and present the Committee’s recommendation to the Mayor. If the Committee finds the incumbent judge is not highly qualified for reappointment, or if the Mayor, following receipt of the Committee’s recommendation, finds that the incumbent judge is not highly qualified for reappointment, the Committee shall nominate and present to the Mayor three candidates for appointment to the resulting vacancy other than the incumbent, except that when multiple vacancies are under consideration the Committee may, at its discretion, unless otherwise directed by the Mayor, present fewer than three nominations for each vacancy, and provide such information as may be necessary to inform the Mayor of the qualifications of each nominee.
§ 3. Public Hearings.
a. The Mayor shall notify the Committee of the name of any person chosen for appointment from among the nominees submitted by the Committee and shall notify the Committee of the name of each incumbent judge chosen for reappointment as recommended by the Committee. The Committee shall promptly thereafter conduct a public hearing except in the case of the reappointment of an incumbent judge. Such hearing shall be upon reasonable notice and any person may present information concerning the fitness of the nominee for appointment. Based upon the information received, the Committee may reconsider the nomination. If any reconsideration results in withdrawal of a nomination, the Mayor shall be notified immediately by the Committee.
b. The Committee may from time to time conduct public hearings concerning the process of judicial selection.
§ 4. Appointments by the Mayor.
a. The Mayor shall not consider a judge for appointment unless nominated by the Committee and shall not consider an incumbent judge for reappointment unless recommended for reappointment by the Committee.
b. Judicial vacancies shall be filled within ninety days unless additional time is required to satisfy a public interest as determined by the Committee.
c. After the Mayor appoints a nominee to fill a judicial vacancy, the remaining nominations submitted by the Committee for that vacancy shall expire immediately, unless another vacancy exists in the same court. In such case, the remaining nominations shall be valid for consideration for appointment to that court for six months after their submission to the Mayor or until such vacancy or vacancies are filled, whichever is earlier.
§ 5. Committee Membership.
a. The Committee shall consist of nineteen members, each residing, having a principal place of business, or having significant ties to the legal community in the City of New York, all of whom shall be appointed by the Mayor. At least one Committee member shall reside in each of the five boroughs.
i. The Mayor shall select nine members including the Chairperson who shall serve in that capacity at the pleasure of the Mayor.
ii. The Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals shall nominate four members for appointment to the Committee by the Mayor.
iii. The Presiding Justices of the Appellate Division for the First and Second Judicial Departments shall each nominate two members for appointment to the Committee by the Mayor.
iv. Two deans of law schools within the City of New York, as determined by the Mayor, shall each nominate one member for appointment to the Committee by the Mayor, with authority to nominate rotating biannually among eligible deans.
v. Should the Mayor not appoint any person nominated by the Chief Judge, a Presiding Justice or dean, he shall notify the nominating official and request the name of a substitute nominee. Should any nominating official decline or otherwise fail to provide the nominations described in this subdivision, the Mayor shall appoint such members in such nominating officer’s stead.
b. The Chairperson shall be responsible for convening meetings of the Committee; making recommendations, on behalf of the Committee, to the Mayor; and for the selection of the Commission’s Executive Director and other necessary staff.
c. Members shall serve for a term of four years, except that members appointed at the recommendation of deans of law schools shall serve for a term of two years. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the members first appointed shall serve until December 31, 2029, and members first appointed to a two-year term shall serve until December 31, 2027. Vacancies in the Committee shall be filled in the same manner as initial appointments and a member filling such vacancy shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term. Members shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor.
d. Members of the Committee shall be selected to ensure that only candidates with the highest qualifications are nominated for appointment to judicial office. Committee membership shall reflect the full breadth of the legal profession and shall include members with experience in, among other areas, criminal defense and prosecution; family law and child welfare; representation of parents in Family Court; representation of children or child-services in Family Court; civil rights and public interest law; indigent legal services, and commercial litigation and complex civil practice.
e. Members shall not be considered by the Committee for judicial office while serving as a member of the Committee or within one year thereafter.
f. Membership of the Committee shall reflect the cosmopolitan population of the City of New York and the Committee shall take all steps possible to consider every applicant and embrace those protected by the City’s Human Rights Law, including on the basis of race, color, creed, age, national origin, immigration or citizenship status, gender, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, partnership status, caregiver status, sexual and reproductive health decisions, uniformed service, height, weight, lawful source of income, status as a victim of domestic violence or as a victim of sex offenses or stalking, and whether children are, may be or would be residing with a person, or conviction or arrest record.
§ 6. Outreach and Public Education. The Chairperson shall engage in outreach and public education efforts designed to promote awareness of the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary and to encourage applications from highly qualified candidates for judicial office. Such efforts shall include, but not be limited to, meeting with bar associations, legal services organizations, affinity bar associations, law schools, and other relevant legal and civic organizations to explain the Committee’s role, procedures, and application process. The Chairperson may take such additional steps as appropriate to increase the accessibility, diversity, and size of the applicant pool, consistent with the Committee’s confidentiality obligations and applicable law.
§ 7. Confidentiality. All Committee communications concerning judicial qualifications of candidates shall be made and held in confidence, except such communications that the Committee receives at public hearings, or as otherwise may be necessary and proper to the conduct of Committee proceedings.
§ 8. Transparency and Public Reporting.
a. The Committee may adopt such procedures and policies as it may deem appropriate to govern its functions, including, but not limited to, standards for evaluating the best qualified candidates for nomination, and criteria for recommending the reappointment of incumbent judges.
b. The Committee shall publish and maintain on its publicly accessible website a general description of the stages of the judicial evaluation process and the non-exclusive criteria used to assess candidates’ qualifications, temperament, integrity, and fitness for judicial office.
c. The Committee shall publish, on at least an annual basis, aggregate and non-identifying information including the number of applications received, the number of candidates advancing at each stage of review, the number of candidates recommended to the Mayor, and aggregate demographic information concerning applicant pools and appointees, consistent with applicable law.
d. The Committee shall maintain a searchable public record identifying judicial appointees, the court of appointment, and the date of appointment.
e. Nothing in this section shall require disclosure of individual application materials, deliberations, or confidential references.
§ 9. Ethics. Members of the Committee are considered “part time public servants” and to be vested with “substantial policy discretion” and as such shall be bound by the ethics obligations contained in Chapter 68 of the New York City Charter. The Committee shall adopt a code of conduct consistent with the obligations contained in this order and Chapter 6 of the Charter, which shall be published on the Committee’s publicly accessible website.
§ 10. Financing and Staff.
a. Members of the Committee shall receive no compensation for their service as members.
b. The Committee shall be provided with paid staff and sufficient facilities to carry out its functions, including the thorough investigation of the qualifications of all candidates for judicial office.
c. Members of the Committee and its staff shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in connection with the responsibilities of the Committee.
§ 11. Chief Counsel to the Mayor and City Hall. The Office of the Chief Counsel to the Mayor and City Hall shall supervise and coordinate the activities of the Committee and shall advise the Mayor and the Committee regarding measures which may enhance the ability of the Committee to consider the best qualified candidates for judicial nomination. The Chairperson, Chief Counsel to the Mayor, and Corporation Counsel shall consult each other as necessary to ensure the success of the Committee and the appointment of judicial nominees of the highest caliber by the Mayor.
§ 10. Prior Order Revoked. Executive Order No. 14, dated April 12, 2022, hereby is REVOKED and the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary established thereunder is hereby abolished.
§ 11. Effective Date. This Order shall take effect immediately.
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Zohran Kwame Mamdani
Mayor