NYCLA ISSUES RESPONSES TO MATTERS REGARDING INDEPENDENCE OF THE JUDICIARY AND ITS SUPPORT TO INCREASE JUDICIAL SALARIES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

CONTACT: Anita Aboulafia (212) 267-6646, ext. 225 (phone) (212) 406-9252 (fax) aaboulafia@nycla.ora

 

NYCLA ISSUES RESPONSES TO MATTERS REGARDING INDEPENDENCE OF THE JUDICIARY AND ITS SUPPORT TO INCREASE JUDICIAL SALARIES

 

April 14, 2005 – NEW YORK, NY – The New York County Lawyers’ Association (NYCLA) has issued in the past week three strongly worded responses to matters regarding judicial independence and increasing judicial salaries. The three matters are: a statement condemning recent attacks upon the judiciary as an unwarranted threat to the balance of powers among the three branches of government, a report declaring that U.S. House Resolution 97 and Senate Resolution 92 “impinge on the independence of the judiciary,” and a resolution calling for an immediate 18% cost-of- living increase in compensation for judges and justices in the New York State Unified Court System covering the six years for which there was no salary adjustment and annual, automatic cost-of-living increases in the future. Commenting on the measures regarding judicial independence, Norman L. Reimer, NYCLA President, said, “If there were ever a time in our nation’s history when the public should be vigilant about the independence of the judiciary, this is it. The survival of our democracy depends upon it.”

 

Board of Directors’ Statement

On April 11, NYCLA’s Board of Directors unanimously approved a statement condemning recent attacks on the judiciary. The statement read, in part, “Criticism that takes the form of a pejorative attack or, as in recent days, an expressed intention to institute impeachment proceedings, threatens to undermine the rule of law and violate the constitutionally mandated separation of powers that is the cornerstone of our democracy.”

 

Committee on Federal Courts’ Report

On April 6, NYCLA adopted a report prepared by its Committee on Federal Courts commenting on United States House Resolution 97 and Senate Resolution 92, introduced in the 109th Congress, which deal with the use of foreign judgments, laws and pronouncements by the federal courts in interpreting the U. S. Constitution. The report notes the Resolutions inappropriately impinged on two important doctrines – judicial independence and the separation of powers. The Report expresses its “…strong concerns about the tenor and content of H. Res. 97 and S. Res. 92. Even as non-binding Resolutions, we believe that they have the potential to chill judicial independence and, if enacted, could serve as a justification for impeachment attempts based upon the contents of judges’ opinions…and undermine the delicate balance of powers enshrined in our Constitution.”

Board of Directors’ Resolution

On April 11, NYCLA Board adopted a resolution stating, “The pay disparities between federal district judges and judges and justices in the New York State Unified Court System are demoralizing, disrespectful and discouraging, as is the fact that other state employees have received raises while state judges and justices have not.” To remedy the disparities, the resolution “recommends an immediate increase of 18% to reflect the cost-of-living increase since judicial salaries were last increased, and further recommends legislation providing for an automatic, annual cost-of-living increase.”

 

The New York County Lawyers’ Association (www.nycla.org) was founded in 1908 as the first major bar association in the country that admitted members without regard to race, ethnicity, religion or gender. Since its inception, NYCLA has pioneered some of the most far-reaching and tangible reforms in American jurisprudence and has continuously played an active role in legal developments and public policy.

 

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