Jonathan Lippman

Jonathan Lippman (born May 19, 1945) is an American jurist who served as Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 2009 through 2015. He is currently Of Counsel in the Litigation & Trial Department of Latham & Watkins’ New York office. Early life and education Lippman is a Manhattan native. He attended New York City public schools, including Stuyvesant High School, graduated from New York University (NYU) in 1965, and received his J.D. degree from the New York University School of Law in 1968. Legal career In 1989, he became the deputy chief administrator for management support of the New York State court system, responsible for the day-to-day management. In 1995, then-Governor George Pataki appointed Lippman as judge of the New York Court of Claims. In 1996, Lippman became New York's chief administrative judge. He served in that capacity for 11 years until 2007, the longest anyone has spent in that position. In 2005, he was elected to the State Supreme Court for a 14-year term. In May 2007, then-Governor, Eliot Spitzer, appointed Lippman to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department. On January 13, 2009, Governor David Paterson appointed Lippman to the position of Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals. Lippman was chosen from a list provided to Paterson by the New York Commission on Judicial Nomination, in a process that drew scrutiny in 2008 when the commission did not refer any female or minority candidates to the governor for selection. Lippman was confirmed in his position by voice vote of the State Senate on February 12, 2009. He succeeded Judith Kaye, who served as the state's first female Chief Judge from 1993 to 2008.