Appellate Judicial Appointments Made in First Department

Appellate Judicial Appointments Made in First Department

8.3.2020

By Christian Nolan

Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks announced today the appointments of Hon. Carol R. Edmead as presiding justice of the Appellate Term of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department, and Hon. John R. Higgitt and Hon. Eddie J. McShan as associate justices of the court.

Edmead succeeds Hon. Martin Shulman, who has been named to the Appellate Division, First Department. The appointments, effective immediately, were made with the approval of Hon. Rolando T. Acosta, presiding justice of the Appellate Division, First Department.

“I am delighted to welcome these three highly accomplished and hardworking judges to their respective new posts,” said Marks in a statement. “Each brings enormous knowledge, experience and passion to the Court.”

Marks also thanked Shulman “for his dedicated leadership” as presiding justice of the Appellate Term, First Judicial Department, and said he was pleased New Yorkers “will continue to benefit from his extensive expertise.”

The Appellate Term, First Judicial Department, hears appeals from civil and criminal cases originating in New York City Civil Court and New York City Criminal Court in Manhattan and the Bronx. In addition to their responsibilities on the Appellate Term, the appointees will continue to maintain a trial court calendar.

At the time of her appointment, Edmead had been serving on the Appellate Term, First Judicial Department bench as an associate justice. She joined the bench in 1998 upon her election to the New York City Civil Court and was subsequently elected to the state Supreme Court, New York County. Prior to becoming a judge, she served as counsel at the law firm of Nixon, Hargrave, Devans & Doyle and before that as counsel to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Early in her career, she was an associate counsel for the New York City Law Department’s Commercial Litigation Division and as an associate at the law firms of Proskauer Rose and Townley & Updike.

Higgitt was appointed to the Court of Claims in 2018 and designated an acting Supreme Court justice. In 2019, he was elected to state Supreme Court, Bronx County, and assigned to the Civil Term. He joined the Unified Court System in 2002 and over the years has held a variety of titles, including appellate court attorney, principal law clerk, court attorney referee and most recently, chief court attorney.

McShan was elected to the New York City Civil Court bench in 2013 and sat in Bronx County. He was subsequently named an acting Supreme Court justice, assigned to the Supreme Court Civil Term in Bronx County. He joined the Unified Court System in 1998 as an associate law clerk, later serving as a principal law clerk and special referee. Previously, he was in private practice.