Defenders recognize Judge Lippman for his advocacy

Slowing down is not part of Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman‘s plans for the remainder of his tenure as head of the state’s court system.

“I think there’s a lot to do and I certainly don’t intend to rest for one second in those seven months,” he told The Daily Record on Wednesday during a visit to the Monroe County Bar Association. “We go full blast, 100 mph, until the end of my term and then I contribute in other ways.”

Judge Lippman, who has served as chief judge since early 2009, must retire, by law, at the end of the year in which he turns 70. On May 19, he reached that milestone, which was also recognized Wednesday by nearly 100 lawyers and judges who stopped by to pay tribute.

“I think we should sing a special song,” said MCBA Executive Director Mary Loewenguth, before Judge Craig J. Doran announced Judge Lippman “had a magical birthday” the day before and everyone broke into singing “Happy Birthday.”

Judge Lippman was in town for an evening reception honoring the two newest judges on the Court of Appeals: Judge Eugene M. Fahey of Buffalo and Leslie E. Stein of Albany, who began serving in February. (http://bit.ly/1F6oN7v).

Monroe County Public Defender Timothy P. Donaher took the opportunity to present the chief judge with a few gifts in appreciation of his “unwavering commitment and dedication to indigent legal services.”

Donaher, on behalf of the Monroe County Public Defender’s Office, gave Judge Lippman a plaque “in recognition of your dedication to indigent defense and the constitutional rights of all,” and a first-edition of “Gideon’s Trumpet,” a book by Anthony Lewis that Judge Lippman called his favorite.

The book tells the story behind the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1963 landmark decision in Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, which requires states to provide counsel to criminal defendants who cannot afford an attorney and basically led to the creation of the public defender system.

Monroe County Conflict Defender Chuck Noce then read a proclamation signed by County Executive Maggie Brooks, recognizing Judge Lippman’s work to improve the quality of indigent criminal defense, supporting increased funding for civil legal services and vigorously promoting pro bono service. The proclamation also declared May 20, 2015, as Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman Day in Monroe County.

“I think it’s safe to say no chief judge in our state’s history has been more dedicated to providing quality legal services to the poor than Judge Lippman,” said Donaher.

Judge Lippman praised the quickly gathered group of mostly public defenders and civil legal services providers, saying there is nobody more important in the pursuit of justice than them.

“Not everybody gets out of bed in the morning and says I’m going to help people,” Judge Lippman said. “That’s what our profession is all about. That’s what lawyers are supposed to do. I think it defines us, this idea of serving others and helping others. You shouldn’t become a lawyer unless that’s what you have in mind.”

He added that he did not mean lawyers should not make a good living and have nice things, but that there is more to the profession than feathering one’s own nest. He told the group they were the ones he most respected and admired for daily working to make equal justice a reality.

“And the bar does get it, particularly in this county,” Judge Lippman said. “Monroe County is such a great place for pro bono work and lawyers who get it and understand the nobility of our profession. We understand if our profession and the judiciary don’t stand up for people in need of legal representation, no one else is going to do it.”

He said progress is being made, but there is still a lot to be done.

Judge Doran, administrative judge of the Seventh Judicial District, said before the gathering on the fifth floor of the Telesca Center for Justice, Judge Lippman had walked in on a meeting upstairs of various Empire Justice Center people from across Western New York, talking about their needs and what is important to them.

“Imagine the feeling in that room — and I wish you all could have been there,” Judge Doran said. “Judge Lippman barged in and stood in the back of the room. I feel bad for the poor guy that was talking. He turned around and looked at Judge Lippman and then did a double take. Immediately, after that, everybody in the room shot up to their feet and gave Judge Lippman a rousing round of applause. That says a lot more than any words can say about what this man has meant to this business, of making sure that every one of our fellow citizens has the representation they need, whether it be a criminal matter or a civil matter.”

He told the younger attorneys to appreciate the event, saying they have been in the presence of someone who truly changed the face of representation for people who otherwise would not have had access to the legal system.

“It’s a rare opportunity to spend a little bit of time with a pioneer in this world who has single handedly changed the course of history in this state and I’m sure many others in our nation, literally making the lives of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people better,” Judge Doran said.

Photos by Vasiliy Baziuk