The Office of Court Administration (OCA) proposes to “consolidate” New York’s trial courts.

The stated reason: the court structure is “complex.” However, announcing that our excellence-achieving court system is complicated does not make it true.

New York’s first courts were established in the 1600s. Recognizing the diversity of complex legal issues, our founders established six separate and distinct trial courts in Upstate New York: Supreme, County, Family, Surrogates, Court of Claims and City. This tapestry of courts provides a court of general jurisdiction – the Supreme Court – as well as other distinct courts with dedicated judges possessing specialized knowledge and skills to accomplish their own important work.

The battle cry for “consolidation” began after creation of OCA, late in the 20th century. For good reason, OCA’s push for consolidated power repeatedly has failed to gain traction.

OCA maintains it wants to consolidate the five specialized Upstate New York courts. However, what OCA proposes is to create a “consolidated” Supreme Court out of five separate constitutionally created courts and then to divide that “consolidated” Supreme Court into six distinct “divisions.” This so-called consolidation merely changes the five specialized “Courts” into six specialized “Divisions,” and renames the City Court.

Any suggestion that OCA seeks to simplify our court structure is belied by OCA’s recent creation of ten additional specialty courts: Community, Drug Treatment, Family Treatment, Domestic Violence, Integrated Domestic Violence, Mental Health, Sex Offense, Veterans, Human Trafficking and Opioid.

A most alarming aspect of OCA’s proposal is that it removes the power of citizens to meaningfully select the judges in their communities who will decide, for example, family matters, or probate disputes, or criminal cases, and vests this fundamental constitutional right in the hands of non-elected administrators. It also transfers to these administrators power to place locally elected judges anywhere in the State without regard to competencies, constituencies, geography or knowledge.

This shift of power to OCA comes at substantial cost. When OCA proposed this idea in 1987, an independent accounting firm, KPMG, determined it would cost taxpayers $38 million per year. That translates into approximately $89 million in 2019 dollars.

OCA’s proposal does not consolidate courts; it consolidates power in the hands of court administrators, at the expense of the electorate, taxpayers and the people the courts were created to serve. It is a threat to an independent, locally elected judiciary comprised of judges with specialized knowledge and skills.

Hon. David R. Demarest (retired Supreme Court Justice, 4th Judicial District) (Hannawa Falls, NY)

Hon. Anthony F. Aloi (retired Onondaga County Court Judge)(Syracuse, NY)

Hon. Robert G. Hurlbutt (retired Supreme Court Justice, Appellate Division, 4th Judicial Dep’t)(Oswego, NY)

Hon. Robert F. Julian (retired Supreme Court Justice, 5th Judicial District (Manlius, NY)

Hon. Robert J. Lunn (retired Supreme Court Justice, Appellate Division, 4th Judicial Dep’t)(Penfield, NY)

Hon. Eugene E. Peckham (retired Surrogate Court Judge, Broome County)(Binghamton, NY)

Hon. Phillip R. Rumsey (retired Supreme Court, Appellate Division, 3d Judicial Dep’t (Homer, NY)

Hon. Norman I. Siegal (retired NYS Court of Claims Judge and Supreme Court Justice)(New Hartford, NY)