...a New York State Commission on Government Integrity, (1) which Peter Bienstock was the executive director of. (2) Richard Emery, who is here, was a distinguished member of that commission, (3) which, when it concluded its work, recommended the abolition of the elective system for selecting New York State trial judges. (4)

The ideas put forward did not prevail at the time, certainly, in terms of political change. (5) I am certainly happy that the views of that commission, Norman tells me, have contributed to his own thinking on the subject, and perhaps that of others. (6)

More recently, I have been chairing a commission appointed by Chief Judge Kaye with a mandate of promoting and enhancing confidence in judicial elections in this state. (7) When she asked me to chair this commission in the fall of 2002, she said, "Don't get hung up with appointive systems and changing the elective system and the idea of amending the New York State Constitution, because you know there's no support for that." Finding out what we could do to promote confidence in judicial elections was the task and assignment of our commission, a commission of twenty-nine citizens and judges--a lot of different backgrounds, from every part of the state. (8)

We made a number of recommendations, (9) some of which have been adopted by administrative rule and by the Court of Appeals, through its rulemaking authority and supervisory functions, with respect to the court system. (10) But many recommendations that we made can only be implemented by the Legislature, and the Legislature has so far been reluctant to embrace any change in the elective process, with one exception having to do with campaign filings being sent to a central office rather than having to search throughout fifty-seven counties for information as to what is going on in the elective process in the state. (11)

When Norman invited me to participate in today's program, I responded by email as follows (I'm not sure what was on my mind when I gave him this response, but this is what I said):

"What would you think of a philosophical reflection by me on the role of a judge in our society and why it is important to always look at and try to improve the way we select our judges, notwithstanding the enormous resistance to any change from public leaders, political party officials, the bar, and the people themselves, who do not vote in elective systems or get much involved in appointive systems, except for the various special-interest groups? Everyone seems to have his own idea of reform, as I have discovered, leading to no consensus or even any real attempt at consensus, thereby keeping in place a failed system."

I concluded my email by saying, "Are we tilting at windmills?"

Norman called me immediately and asked me to explain my email. I now do so.

I start with a personal reflection. I have been a member of the bar for forty-five years (and I suspect that I am joined by at least a few of you) and have spent time in almost all those years on the subject of government reform--ethics reform, campaign finance reforms, voter participation reforms, judicial selection reforms, and the like. These are not subjects for the short-winded or for the faint of heart. I have noticed in all of those efforts the different points of view that manifest themselves, the difficulty of groups compromising deeply felt positions, the intense resistance by those with political power to change the status quo and give up the advantages they believe they have under the present system, and, most noticeably, the absence of a public groundswell in support of specific changes.

Finding sufficient common ground to effect reform is certainly a very elusive goal, in my experience....

NOTE: All illustrations and photos have been removed from this article.



Looking for additional articles?
Search our database of over 3 million articles.

Looking for more in-depth information on this industry?
Search our complete database of Industry & Market reports by text, subject, publication name or publication date.

About Goliath
Whether you're looking for sales prospects, competitive information, company analysis or best practices in managing your organization, Goliath can help you meet your business needs.

Our extensive business information databases empower business professionals with both the breadth and depth of credible, authoritative information they need to support their business goals. Whether it be strategic planning, sales prospecting, company research or defining management best practices - Goliath is your leading source for accurate information.