Some in-person trials to start March 22

In her weekly message on the status of the court system during the COVID-19 pandemic, New York State Chief Judge Janet DiFiore announced Monday that in-person operations, including some jury trials, are expected to resume at the end of the month.

And in her annual State of the Judiciary speech on Tuesday, she lauded the state’s judges and staff for their dedication during the pandemic.

DiFiore said jury summonses are being mailed out in preparation for jury selection to begin statewide on March 22.

“Over the last week, the seven-day rolling average for COVID positivity in New York state has continued to decline and is now at the lowest level since the holiday season,” she said in the video message. “We will move forward responsibly and deliberately, carefully monitoring the COVID metrics and the public health guidance as we get closer to the 22nd.”

In preparation for the resumption of in-person activity, the court system’s safety measures and protocols are being reviewed.

“Virtual courts have shown us a new way, and our judges and staff have done a great job of safely meeting the demand for our services in the midst of this historic pandemic, but we all know that technology can only go so far to supplant the human element that is essential to the delivery of justice services,” she said.

In general, the default approach will be to continue virtual appearances to limit the number of people in courthouses, but judges will have the discretion to schedule a limited number of in-court matters when they decides it’s appropriate.

During her State of the Judiciary speech, delivered virtually on Tuesday, DiFiore praised the court system’s judges and court staff for their “extraordinary perseverance over the past year.”

“We suffered the loss of loved ones, friends and colleagues; the economy was savaged; and the virus forced our courts to transform how we operate and deliver our services. While it was immediately obvious that we had to make dramatic changes in our operating model, closing the courts was never an option for us,” she said.

She praised the success of the court system’s virtual operations, which was adopted “in record time, through excellent planning and execution by our leadership team.”

Although she announced a return to some in-person operations, DiFiore noted that “we are still conducting the vast majority of court business virtually.”

She said court officials will continue to work with the technology experts who helped with the success of the virtual model during the pandemic to continue with some useful remote technology tools.

Courts in the state are now remotely conferencing more than 20,000 cases weekly. Cases are being settled and referred to virtual alternative dispute resolution. Motions are being heard remotely and more than 1,000 virtual bench trials and hearings are being held each week.

DiFiore also brought up the state’s budget deficit and the potential impact on the judiciary, which has already absorbed a 10 percent reduction in planned spending.

“We had to make some very difficult decisions, including instituting a strict employee hiring freeze, deferring certain payments, eliminating all non-essential discretionary spending and denying all but three of the application of state Supreme Court justices who requested certification to remain on the bench for additional two-year terms beyond age 70,” she said.

The result was that no court staff had to be laid off. But additional cuts would require layoffs, she said.

She also reiterated her call for reforms that would simplify the court system’s complex trial court structure.

“Our constitutional proposal to simplify the structure of our trial courts will go a long way toward addressing undeniable disparities in our present system,” she said.

The plan would consolidate New York’s 11 different trial courts into a simple three-level structure.

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