New York Gov. Kathy Hochul nominated Judge Hector LaSalle as the next chief judge of the New York State Court of Appeals on Thursday and backed his pick for a chief administrative judge.
LaSalle is currently the presiding justice of the New York Supreme Court’s Second Department in Brooklyn, the largest appellate court in the United States.
Hochul, a Democrat, acknowledged that New York’s justice system needs to improve, noting a backlog caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and said LaSalle “shares my urgency in ensuring that our court system is functioning better.”
“I’m proud to nominate the Honorable Hector D. LaSalle as the next Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals. New York’s Court of Appeals has a long history as a beacon of justice, and Judge LaSalle is an outstanding jurist in that tradition,” Hochul said in a statement….