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Mayor de Blasio Appoints Fidel Del Valle as Commissioner and Chief Judge of the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings

October 22, 2014

NEW YORK—Mayor Bill de Blasio today appointed Fidel Del Valle as Commissioner and Chief Judge of the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH).

Del Valle, the son of Cuban and Puerto Rican immigrants and most recently a private practice attorney, brings a wealth of legal expertise and government administration experience to his new position. As its Commissioner and Chief Judge, Del Valle will be charged with spearheading OATH, the independent central court responsible for holding more than 400,000 hearings each year and consisting of four tribunals: the OATH Tribunal, the Environmental Control Board (ECB), the OATH Taxi and Limousine Tribunal, and the OATH Health Tribunal.

As the OATH Commissioner, Del Valle will also serve as Chair of the ECB, which formulates policies for enforcing quality of life regulations and administers appeal hearings on such violations—including street obstructions, dirty sidewalks, littering and illegal vending—spanning the work of 13 City agencies.

“I’m proud to welcome Fidel aboard as our new OATH Commissioner and Chief Judge,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “With his staunch commitment to justice and his extensive legal background in both private practice and at City agencies ranging from the Taxi and Limousine Commission to our police department, I’m confident our independent court is in good—and fair—hands. New Yorkers are lucky to have him and can rest assured that with Fidel at the helm of OATH, they will be treated justly and have their cases truly heard.” 

“I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and returning to work for the City of New York,” said incoming OATH Commissioner and Chief Judge Fidel Del Valle. “This is an exciting opportunity for me as an attorney and a New Yorker, which really tops my previous professional experience working at various City agencies. From ensuring constituents have a fair shot at appealing their cases to enforcing important regulations that help keep New York City orderly, I am committed to upholding the highest standards of law and ethics at my new post.”

About Fidel Del Valle

Fidel Del Valle is a private practice attorney and President of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services of Brooklyn and Queens. Between 1991 and 1995, Del Valle served as Chairman of the Taxi and Limousine Commission. In this capacity, he developed TLC’s transportation policy and regulatory agenda, in addition to directing the agency’s planning and administration.

Prior to that, Del Valle was Counsel to the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission, where he advised the Chairman on legal matters and managed the Office of Legal Affairs. As Attorney for the New York City Police Department, Del Valle conducted and supervised the prosecution of Police Padlock Law hearings and counseled on high sensitivity litigation. Before that, Del Valle worked at the Probation Department, where he investigated and prosecuted disciplinary and forced medical leave hearings, counseled the Probation Commissioner, and served as the principal liaison with other law enforcement authorities.

Del Valle is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Brooklyn Bar Association and Brooklyn Bar Foundation, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Prospect Park Alliance. Del Valle graduated from Fordham University and earned his J.D. at New York University School of Law. He resides in Brooklyn.

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