Gov. Hochul appoints three justices to Appellate Division, Second Department

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Wednesday the appointment of three justices to the New York State Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department, which is located in Brooklyn Heights. The appointments include Judge Donna-Marie Golia, Judge Phillip Hom, and Judge James McCormack.

“Our courts must be led by qualified, fair and impartial jurists,” Gov. Hochul said. “With decades of legal experience and deep knowledge of the law, these three judges will be tremendous additions to the appellate division.”

Hon. Donna-Marie Golia has served as the administrative judge for criminal matters in Queens County since 2022. 

She began her judicial career after being elected to the Queens County Civil Court in 2013. Golia was later appointed as an acting Supreme Court Justice and served as the supervising judge of Queens Civil Court in 2018. 

In 2020, she was elected to the State Supreme Court, Queens County, and later appointed as an associate justice of the Appellate Term, Second Department, in 2021. Golia, a graduate of CUNY Law School, has also worked as a court attorney referee, principal law clerk and assistant district attorney in Queens County.

Hon. Phillip Hom was elected to the Queens Civil Court in 2017 and to the New York State Supreme Court in 2019. 

Hom has a diverse background, having worked in both private practice and the public sector, including roles with the New York City Council and the Comptroller’s Office. In 2023, Hom made history as the first Asian American to serve on the bench of the Appellate Term, Second Department’s 2nd, 11th, and 13th Districts. He holds a JD from the University of Minnesota Law School and has been actively involved in various legal and governmental roles throughout his career.

Hon. James McCormack has been an associate justice of the Appellate Term for the Ninth and Tenth Judicial Districts since 2015. 

McCormack began his judicial career when he was elected to the Nassau County Court in 2006. He later served as an acting justice of the Supreme Court’s 10th Judicial District. McCormack, a graduate of Brooklyn Law School, previously worked as an assistant district attorney in Nassau County and in private practice.

These appointments were made in accordance with the New York State Constitution and Judiciary Law, which allow the governor to appoint justices to the Appellate Division from among those elected as Justices of the Supreme Court. No Senate confirmation is required.

The Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department, is part of New York’s intermediate appellate court system. Located in Brooklyn, it handles civil and criminal appeals from 10 counties, including areas in the Hudson Valley, Long Island and parts of New York City.

The Second Department was established by the New York State Constitution in 1894, originally with seven justices, although the governor could appoint more if needed. Currently, the court has 22 judges. It is the busiest appellate court in the U.S., deciding approximately 65 percent of all cases in New York’s Appellate Division. 

In New York, Appellate Division judges are appointed by the governor and serve a term that lasts until the end of their 14-year term as Supreme Court justices or until they reach the mandatory retirement age of 70, whichever comes first. However, they may be certified to continue serving in increments of two years beyond 70, up to age 76.