| BRONX, NY - Chief Administrative Judge Jonathan Lippman
today announced the appointments of Hon. John P. Collins and Hon. Gerald
V. Esposito as Administrative Judges of the State Supreme Court in
the Bronx. Judge Collins will head the Criminal Term of the court, while
Justice Esposito will oversee the Civil Term. The appointments, which take
effect immediately, were made in consultation with Presiding Justice Milton
L. Williams of the Appellate Division, First Department, and with the approval
of Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye.
Judge Lippman said, "I am proud and delighted to be able to appoint
two such talented and qualified individuals to take on the critical task
of leading the Bronx Supreme Court in these challenging times. They are
both highly respected by their colleagues and all of the legal community.
John Collins has been a superb trial judge in the Criminal Term of the
Supreme Court in the Bronx for over two decades, ably supervising this
division for the last three years and serving as Acting Administrative
Judge since the spring. On the civil side, Gerald Esposito, a Supreme Court
Justice since 1995, has demonstrated exceptional expertise in the handling
of a varied and challenging civil caseload during his tenure on the bench,
disposing and settling the most complex cases with fairness and efficiency.
Both men are well known for their strong work ethic, knowledge of the law
and impeccable integrity. The appointments of these two outstanding jurists
will provide focused and energetic leadership in both the civil and criminal
divisions of the court."
Judge Collins has been serving as Acting Administrative Judge in Bronx
Supreme Court since April of this year and prior to that supervised the
criminal division of this court, where he has been a trial judge since
1981. Judge Collins was first appointed to the bench in 1978 when he was
named a New York City Criminal Court Judge and later became an Acting Supreme
Court Judge in 1981. Before ascending to the bench, he was both an Assistant
District Attorney and Bureau Chief in the District Attorney's Office in
Manhattan. Judge Collins is a graduate of Fordham University and New York
University Law School.
After several decades of private practice specializing in all aspects
of civil litigation, in 1994 Gerald Esposito was elected to the State Supreme
Court in the Bronx. He was assigned to a special trial part, presiding
over medical malpractice, labor law, negligence and commercial cases, where
he achieved an extremely high disposition and settlement rate. Justice
Esposito is a member of the New York Judicial Conference Board, which helps
to set overall policy for the state's judiciary. He is a graduate
of Fordham University School of Law and Fordham Business School, is a lecturer
on legal topics, and has published numerous noteworthy decisions.
|
