Amici Podcast

Welcome to the latest episode of a brief series of oral history interviews with the trailblazers and pioneers who were instrumental in establishing the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission. Each of the recordings is an excerpt of an interview conducted in preparation for a documentary on the life of Franklin H. Williams. In recognition of a 30th anniversary of the commission, the co-chairs, Ju...

Thirty years ago, the New York courts established the first court-based commission dedicated to racial and ethnic fairness -- the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission. Judge Juanita Bing Newton was there, and in this program she reveals the early dynamics.

Thirty years ago, when the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission was just getting started, Jonathan Lippman was a deputy court administrator (who went on to become Chief Judge). In this segment, Judge Lippman reveals the early discussions and the stonewalling that occurred when the Commission attempted to independently examine issues of racial fairness in the NY courts.

Thirty years ago, the first court-based commission in the nation was established in New York, the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission. In this oral history, one of the founders, the Hon. Samuel Green, discusses the origins.

The Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission was established 30 years ago by then-Chief Judge Sol Wachtler. The following is brief segment of an interview with Judge Wachtler in which he discusses the factors and forces that led him to establish the Commission.

On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Franklin H. Williams Judicial Commission, the co-chairs, Justices Troy Webber and Shirley Troutman, and Executive Director Mary Lynn Nicolas-Brewster, are releasing excepts from oral history interviews with several of the pioneers who helped create and establish the Commission. In this initial episode, we’ll share some insights from Judge Lewis Dougla...

In honor of Asian and Pacific Islander month, we're proud to feature Lieutenant Henry C. Chen, a court officer in the New York City Civil Court. We will be chatting with Lieutenant Chen about his background, Asian Americans in the court system, and a new fraternal organization that he helped start, the New York State Courts Asian Jade Society.

The Gender Fairness Committee of the Third Judicial District has completed oral history interviews with many of the true pioneering women judges in the region. Judge Peters, the first Supreme Court justice, the first Appellate Division justice, the first Presiding Justice, certainly fits the definition of "pioneer."

The Third Judicial District Gender Fairness Committee has conducted oral history interviews with some of the pioneering women judges in the region. This podcast features the Hon. Rachel Kretser, Albany City Court Judge (ret.)

Retired Judge Betty Weinberg Ellerin, 91, discusses the progress women have achieved in the judiciary and the courts during her decades of service, as well as the challenges that remain. Video: https://youtu.be/CNcziTflTe0

In today's diversity dialogue segment, we're proud to feature Rosemary Garland-Scott, an attorney and native of the Bahamas who wears three hats in overseeing ethics standards in the New York Courts.

Omar Cumberbatch, health coach, reformed sugar addict, radio talk show host and deputy district executive for the 9th Judicial District, discusses his roots as the child of a Jamaican mom and a dad from Barbados, and reveals how he built a great career in the NYS Courts.

We're all aware of Brown v. Board of Education, the unanimous 1954 Supreme Court decision that legally anyhow sent Jim Crow in separate but equal to the historical dystopian. But years earlier, in 1947, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion that helped blaze the trail to Brown. In Mendez v. Westminster, the court shielded children of Mexican ancestry from public school...

The Latino Judges Association and The Judicial Friends are jointly sponsoring a virtual Black History Month Literary Program Feb. 10 featuring "The Dead Are Arising" by Les Payne and Tamara Payne. Ms. Payne will be interviewed by CBS anchor Maurice DuBois via Zoom. This Amici podcast interview with Ms. Payne is a sneak preview. To register for the Feb. 10, 6-8 p.m. program, RSVP to Justice Sallie...

In this Diversity Dialogue interview, Sheila Sproule Executive Director of the ADR Inclusion Network Steering Committee, discusses efforts to diversify alternative dispute resolution. Sheila is a management analyst with the NYS Court system's Office of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

Since April 2009, the Honorable Juanita Bing Newton has served as Dean of the New York State Judicial Institute, the capstone of a career as an attorney, a trial judge, and an administrative judge. On the occasion of her retirement, Judge Bing Newton sat with Amici to discuss her life and career to date, and the past, present and future of judicial education.

Sherrill Spatz, Inspector General for the NY Courts, and Kay-Ann Porter Campbell, Managing Inspector General for Bias Matters, discuss the office and its role in battling discrimination and bias in the courts

Betty Campbell, the first African American female commissioner of jurors in the entire State of New York, tells her inspiring story to Diversity Dialogues, a production of the NYS Court's Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

In the latest "Diversity Dialogue" episode, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion brings you an insightful and informative chat with Troy O'Dend'Hal, who brought his experience, skills and diverse background -- Native American and Puerto Rican - to the court system just a year ago.

As part of our celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion is sponsoring a series of interviews with employees of Hispanic descent. Today we feature Sylvia T. Miranda, a court analyst in the civil side of Brooklyn's Supreme Court. Sylvia was born in the Bronx, of Puerto Rican parents, but the family moved back to Puerto Rico and she spent her childhood there. Sylvia...

As part of its "Diversity Dialogue" series, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion is spotlighting employees of Hispanic heritage during Hispanic Heritage Month. Meet Sky Davis -- and learn about her unusual first name, and the world's best sancocho made by her mom, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic

In this Hispanic Heritage Month interview, Elix R. Madera-Fliegelman discusses her roots in Puerto Rico, and how her own experience with domestic violence inspired her to help others.

The Hon. Gerald J. Whalen, Presiding Justice, Appellate Division, Fourth Department, leads a court that has the last word in nearly every case in Central, Western and Southern NYS. In this interview with the NYS Judicial Institute, Justice Whalen discusses his court and judicial philosphy -- and offers some inside hints for lawyers arguing before the Fourth Department.

The Hon. Elizabeth A. Garry, Presiding Justice, Appellate Division, Third Department, is in charge of a court that has the last word in almost every case in a 28-county region of New York State. In this interview with the NYS Judicial Institute, Justice Garry discusses her court's unique role, and her own judicial philosophy.

The Hon. Alan D. Scheinkman runs the busiest appellate court in New York State, and possibly the nation. In this program, created and produced by the NYS Judicial Institute, Justice Scheinkman -- Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division, Second Department -- discusses his court and his judicial philosophy. Welcome to Meet Your PJ, the latest installment in a four-part series on the four "PJs" w...