Judge Nestor Diaz sworn-in to Queens bench

Newly elected Queens Civil Court Judge Nestor Diaz (second from right) was sworn in by Queens Criminal Supreme Court Administrative Judge Joseph Zayas (right) while his wife and daughter looked on Dec. 16.

Image via Zoom

By Rachel Vick

Newly elected Queens Civil Court Judge Nestor Diaz was inducted into the judiciary during a virtual ceremony Dec. 16.

Though the ceremony was not the in-person celebration Diaz had imagined, the joy and sense of pride in his accomplishment was not diminished, he said.

“To become recognized for my hard work, my genuine efforts to contribute to the wellbeing of my neighbors and the standing of the legal profession, especially among those from a Hispanic heritage, this is beyond my wildest imaginings,” said Diaz, the first Dominican man elected to the Civil Court bench in Queens.

“This is not as much about me as it is that as the son of immigrants I could rise to this level of success in the justice system,” he added during the ceremony.

The past president of the Latino Lawyers Association of Queens County and assistant district attorney in Brooklyn was joined by his family in person and on Zoom.

After being officially sworn in by Queens Criminal Supreme Court Administrative Judge Joseph Zayas, Diaz was lauded by colleagues from the Queens bench, including Justices Carmen Velasquez and Lourdes Ventura, and elected officials like Catalina Cruz.

Cruz, a former Latino Lawyers Association president, said she considers Diaz a mentor.

“I can't wait to see how much further he’ll go up,” Cruz said. “It’s been quite a year and this is one of the few memorable beautiful things that we can take from 2020; being able to have one of our friends, one of our family members — because in the Latino Lawyers we are family — go to the bench and represent us.“