New York judges complain for lack of pay raise

06/27/07

New York judges complain for lack of pay raise

Judith S. Kaye, chief judge of New York, has threatened to sue the state because of the lack of proper pay raise.

New York ranks 48^th in the country in judicial pay, claims a study carried out by the National Center for State Courts. The judges of New York have not seen any hike in their salaries since 1999. The study further states that since 2004, the number of judges asking for loans against their pensions has increased by 10%. Terming the condition "unacceptable", the leaders of the State Bar Association and Trial Lawyers Association asserted that such situations mar the endeavors toward drawing the "best and brightest minds" to the court.

After Kaye's threat to sue, Gov. Spitzer has termed the complaint "frivolous", and added that even if New York judges take their battle for higher salaries into court, they would hardly win.

Cozen O'Connor names its first board of directors
Philadelphia-based law firm Cozen O'Connor has, for the first time, appointed members to its board of directors. The initial panel comprises of the firm's management team and additional nine firm partners scattered geographically.

Administrative partner Vincent R. McGuinness and department heads Lawrence T. Bowman, Ann T. Field, Michael J. Heller, Elliott R. Feldman, and William P. Shelley form the administrative committee, while Thomas M. Jones, Thomas McKay, Michael J. Sommi, Joseph A. Ziemianski, Edward L. Baxter, Mark J. Foley, Kevin J. Hughes, Jeffrey A. Leonard, and Richard M. Dunn add up as the nine partners. This year's nine partners were recruited by advisory committee member John J. Cunningham and founders Stephen A. Cozen and Patrick J. O'Connor. Starting next year, the board members will be nominated by shareholders of the firm based on staggered term.

Founded in 1968, Cozen O'Connor is a top 100 law firm. It has grown from four attorneys practicing in Philadelphia to 500 attorneys practicing in 21 national offices and two international offices in London, England, and Toronto.

BIZARRE NEWS

U.S. flags to fly high in Arizona classrooms
It's a democracy. Arizona legislators have made it a law for every classroom from seventh grade through university level to hoist a flag, and display copies of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Originally, it was compulsory to have 2 feet by 3 feet flag, but there has been some adjustment to the effect. Schools can now have flags which are visible, recognizable, and are not made of paper. A number of schools received donations, some in kind (flags) and some in dough, to adhere to the new law before the deadline. Some schools spent huge amounts to purchase the essentials. Mostly, colleges and universities were seen struggling as many of their classrooms did not have the required equipments. Arizona community colleges had to convert 2,500 classrooms, while the three State universities needed to renovate more than 1,400 classrooms.