S139B

The New York State Senate passed legislation requiring judges in the state's 100 busiest town and village courts to be licensed attorneys, addressing what sponsor Sen. Ryan called a "two-tiered, parallel but not equal justice system." Senate Print 139B passed 44-18 on a roll call vote. The bill, which takes effect January 1, requires judges in these high-volume courts to have three years of training, bar admission, and five years of legal practice experience. Ryan noted that New York is one of only eight states allowing non-lawyer judges to sentence defendants to jail time, and that the affected courts handled 200,000 criminal arraignments in 2018-2019 alone. He acknowledged the bill represents only a partial solution, as the vast majority of town courts statewide would remain unaffected and many lack adequate resources and oversight from the Office of Court Administration. Eighteen senators voted against the measure, though no opposing arguments were recorded in the transcript.