Past President Henry Greenberg To Chair Commission to Reimagine the Future of New York’s Courts

Past President Henry Greenberg To Chair Commission to Reimagine the Future of New York’s Courts

6.17.2020

By Brendan Kennedy

In an effort to better equip the New York State court system to keep pace with society’s rapidly evolving changes, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore announced today that she was forming the Commission to Reimagine the Future of New York’s Courts.

The commission will be chaired by New York State Bar Association immediate past president Henry M. Greenberg and will study the enhanced use of technology and online platforms and make recommendations to improve access to justice.

“I thank Chief Judge DiFiore for the honor of chairing the Commission and working with such an extraordinary group of judges and lawyers,” Greenberg said. “The COVID-19 pandemic offers a unique opportunity to reimagine how courts deliver services and consider innovative proposals for the justice system of the future.”

Greenberg, a partner at the Albany law firm Greenberg Traurig, just concluded his term as NYSBA president. He focused his tenure in part on making technological changes such as creating a virtual bar center, revamping the NYSBA website, partnering with legal technology companies Clio and Paladin to create a pro bono network in response to COVID-19 and conducting the first-ever virtual House of Delegates meeting in NYSBA’s 140-year history.

The commission, which is comprised of judges, lawyers, academics and technology experts, will provide immediate recommendations for the courts as in-person operations resume this month and will develop a blueprint that the courts can use well into the future.

“The Commission, therefore, will explore the enhanced use of technology and online platforms, and regulatory and structural innovations, to more effectively and efficiently adjudicate cases and improve the accessibility, affordability and quality of legal services for all New Yorkers,” Greenberg said.

President-elect T. Andrew Brown, past president Seymour James and executive committee member Mark A. Berman have also been asked to serve. Below is the full roster:

Chair
Henry M. Greenberg

Hon. Ariel E. Belen, Retired Associate Justice of the Appellate Division, Second Department, and Administrative Judge of the Supreme Court, Kings County

Mark A. Berman, partner, Ganfer Shore Leeds & Zauderer

Andrew Brown, managing partner, Brown Hutchinson; Vice-Chancellor, New York State Board of Regents; president-elect, New York State Bar Association

Hon. Anthony Cannataro, Administrative Judge, Civil Court of the City of New York

Mylan L. Denerstein, partner, Gibson Dunn

Hon. Craig J. Doran, Administrative Judge for the Seventh Judicial District

Richard A. Edlin, Vice-Chairman, Greenberg Traurig,

Robert J. Giuffra, Jr., partner, Sullivan & Cromwell

Dennis E. Glazer, retired partner, Davis Polk & Wardwell

Hon. Timothy C. Idoni, County Clerk of Westchester

Hon. Edwina G. Mendelson, Deputy Chief Administrative Judge for Justice Initiatives

Seymour James, partner, Barket Epstein Kearon Aldea & LoTurco

Brad S. Karp, chairman, Paul, Weiss

Roger Juan Maldonado, partner, Smith, Gambrell & Russell; immediate past President of the New York City Bar Association

Jack Newton, chief executive officer & co-founder, Clio

Sharon M. Porcellio, member, Bond Schoeneck & King; co-chair, Advisory Group to the New York State Federal Judicial Council

Paul C. Saunders, chair, New York State Judicial Institute on Professionalism in the Law

Arthur J. Semetis, president, Arthur J. Semetis, P.C.

Paul Shechtman, partner, Bracewell

Michael A. Simons, Dean, St. John’s Law School

Madeline Singas, Nassau County District Attorney

Hon. Leslie E. Stein, Associate Judge, New York Court of Appeals

Ari Ezra Waldman, Professor of Law and Computer Science, Northeastern University School of Law and Khoury College of Computer Sciences