Courthouses in New York City begin reopening Wednesday
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The Queens Supreme Court, Civil Term building on Sutphin Boulevard will reopen to judges, clerks and some other personnel Wednesday. Eagle file photo by David Brand
By David Brand
Judges, clerks and chambers staff will begin returning to courthouses throughout New York City tomorrow, nearly three months after a Queens Supreme Court justice became the first judge in the state to test positive for COVID-19, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore said Tuesday.
Courthouses in the five boroughs have been closed for most in-person matters since late-March. Criminal Court and Civil Court proceedings have been conducted remotely since April 7, while many matters remain on hold.
As courthouses in the state’s 57 other counties began to gradually reopen in May, the New York City legal community awaited a decision by DiFiore about the local plan. DiFiore said she was taking cues from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s state reopening plan, which enabled some sectors of the New York City economy to resume Monday.
Under the court reopening plan, proceedings will still be conducted remotely, but judges’ chambers, clerks’ offices and back offices will reopen to staff.
“We will rigorously monitor safety protocols and day-to-day operations, carefully balancing the justice needs of those served by our New York City courts with the safety of all those who work in and visit courthouses in the five boroughs,” DiFiore said.
The court system will also set aside designated space in Civil and Supreme Court for unrepresented litigants who lack internet access or who otherwise cannot use remote services, DiFiore said.
Queens Supreme Court, Criminal Term Administrative Judge Joseph Zayas said the court has administratively adjourned all non-emergency matters in criminal court since March. On Monday, criminal court judges will begin advancing all cases they have tabled, he said.
There will be 11 “electronic appearance parts” in the courthouses where judges will begin hearing the delayed cases via videoconference, Zayas said. The technology was funded by the Queens District Attorney’s Office in 2019, with approval from the state legislature, he said.
“It’s going to be limited in-person proceedings with few people coming from the outside,” Zayas said. “But I think everyone is ready to come back.”
Judges and local bar association leaders have been preparing for the reopening plan over the past few days, said Queens County Bar Association President Clifford Welden. On Friday, Zayas and Queens Criminal Court Supervising Judge Michelle Johnson met with the QCBA to review changes to court procedures and discuss the potential reopening plans, Welden said.
Acting Civil Term Administrative Judge George Silver and Justice Marguerite Grays will also meet with QCBA executive members. Welden said. Queens court leadership and the Office of Court Administration have communicated plans and developments throughout the shift to remote proceedings, he added..
“The bar association promotes the steps that OCA has been taking in order to move cases along and having the residents of Queens County have their legal matters resolved,” Welden said. “OCA has been very good about including the Queens County Bar Association in some of their plans.”
Welden said he saw a silver lining in the nearly three-month-long halt on in-person proceedings. Matters have moved to Skype for Business and attorneys have become well versed in filing documents through the court’s eFile system.
“We’ve made technological advances that will be better in the long run,” he said.
