N.Y. Const. art. VI, § 22: Commission on judicial conduct; membership; organization and procedure; review by court of appeals; discipline of judges

§ 22. a. There shall be a commission on judicial conduct. The

commission on judicial conduct shall receive, initiate, investigate and

hear complaints with respect to the conduct, qualifications, fitness to

perform or performance of official duties of any judge or justice of the

unified court system, in the manner provided by law; and, in accordance

with subdivision d of this section, may determine that a judge or

justice be admonished, censured or removed from office for cause,

including, but not limited to, misconduct in office, persistent failure

to perform his or her duties, habitual intemperance, and conduct, on or

off the bench, prejudicial to the administration of justice, or that a

judge or justice be retired for mental or physical disability preventing

the proper performance of his or her judicial duties. The commission

shall transmit an* such determination to the chief judge of the court of

appeals who shall cause written notice of such determination to be given

to the judge or justice involved. Such judge or justice may either

accept the commission's determination or make written request to the

chief judge, within thirty days after receipt of such notice, for a

review of such determination by the court of appeals.

* So in original. ("an" should be "any".)

b. (1) The commission on judicial conduct shall consist of eleven

members, of whom four shall be appointed by the governor, one by the

temporary president of the senate, one by the minority leader of the

senate, one by the speaker of the assembly, one by the minority leader

of the assembly and three by the chief judge of the court of appeals. Of

the members appointed by the governor one person shall be a member of

the bar of the state but not a judge or justice, two shall not be

members of the bar, justices or judges or retired justices or judges of

the unified court system, and one shall be a judge or justice of the

unified court system. Of the members appointed by the chief judge one

person shall be a justice of the appellate division of the supreme court

and two shall be judges or justices of a court or courts other than the

court of appeals or appellate divisions. None of the persons to be

appointed by the legislative leaders shall be justices or judges or

retired justices or judges.

(2) The persons first appointed by the governor shall have

respectively one, two, three, and four-year terms as the governor shall

designate. The persons first appointed by the chief judge of the court

of appeals shall have respectively two, three, and four-year terms as

the governor shall designate. The person first appointed by the

temporary president of the senate shall have a one-year term. The person

first appointed by the minority leader of the senate shall have a

two-year term. The person first appointed by the speaker of the assembly

shall have a four-year term. The person first appointed by the minority

leader of the assembly shall have a three-year term. Each member of the

commission shall be appointed thereafter for a term of four years.

Commission membership of a judge or justice appointed by the governor or

the chief judge shall terminate if such member ceases to hold the

judicial position which qualified him or her for such appointment.

Membership shall also terminate if a member attains a position which

would have rendered him or her ineligible for appointment at the time of

appointment. A vacancy shall be filled by the appointing officer for the

remainder of the term.

c. The organization and procedure of the commission on judicial

conduct shall be as provided by law. The commission on judicial conduct

may establish its own rules and procedures not inconsistent with law.

Unless the legislature shall provide otherwise, the commission shall be

empowered to designate one of its members or any other person as a

referee to hear and report concerning any matter before the commission.

d. In reviewing a determination of the commission on judicial conduct,

the court of appeals may admonish, censure, remove or retire, for the

reasons set forth in subdivision a of this section, any judge of the

unified court system. In reviewing a determination of the commission on

judicial conduct, the court of appeals shall review the commission's

findings of fact and conclusions of law on the record of the proceedings

upon which the commission's determination was based. The court of

appeals may impose a less or more severe sanction prescribed by this

section than the one determined by the commission, or impose no

sanction.

e. The court of appeals may suspend a judge or justice from exercising

the powers of his or her office while there is pending a determination

by the commission on judicial conduct for his or her removal or

retirement, or while the judge or justice is charged in this state with

a felony by an indictment or an information filed pursuant to section

six of article one. The suspension shall continue upon conviction and,

if the conviction becomes final, the judge or justice shall be removed

from office. The suspension shall be terminated upon reversal of the

conviction and dismissal of the accusatory instrument. Nothing in this

subdivision shall prevent the commission on judicial conduct from

determining that a judge or justice be admonished, censured, removed, or

retired pursuant to subdivision a of this section.

f. Upon the recommendation of the commission on judicial conduct or on

its own motion, the court of appeals may suspend a judge or justice from

office when he or she is charged with a crime punishable as a felony

under the laws of this state, or any other crime which involves moral

turpitude. The suspension shall continue upon conviction and, if the

conviction becomes final, the judge or justice shall be removed from

office. The suspension shall be terminated upon reversal of the

conviction and dismissal of the accusatory instrument. Nothing in this

subdivision shall prevent the commission on judicial conduct from

determining that a judge or justice be admonished, censured, removed, or

retired pursuant to subdivision a of this section.

g. A judge or justice who is suspended from office by the court of

appeals shall receive his or her judicial salary during such period of

suspension, unless the court directs otherwise. If the court has so

directed and such suspension is thereafter terminated, the court may

direct that the judge or justice shall be paid his or her salary for

such period of suspension.

h. A judge or justice retired by the court of appeals shall be

considered to have retired voluntarily. A judge or justice removed by

the court of appeals shall be ineligible to hold other judicial office.

i. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the

legislature may provide by law for review of determinations of the

commission on judicial conduct with respect to justices of town and

village courts by an appellate division of the supreme court. In such

event, all references in this section to the court of appeals and the

chief judge thereof shall be deemed references to an appellate division

and the presiding justice thereof, respectively.

j. If a court on the judiciary shall have been convened before the

effective date of this section and the proceeding shall not be concluded

by that date, the court on the judiciary shall have continuing

jurisdiction beyond the effective date of this section to conclude the

proceeding. All matters pending before the former commission on judicial

conduct on the effective date of this section shall be disposed of in

such manner as shall be provided by law.