Local Attorney Calls for Open Interview Process and Diversity in Third Judicial District

Albany County, NY – All across Albany County, every member of the Albany County Democratic Committee has received a letter penned and individually signed by Amy Joyce, informing them they have the power to help select the candidate who will replace retiring NYS Supreme Court Justice Joseph Teresi.

Not only does every member have a voice in the process, they also have the power to remedy a growing concern: the lack of diversity on the trial courts Statewide, and specifically here in the Third Judicial District. As Amy explains, there are currently ten men who serve as elected Supreme Court Judges on the trial bench. Historically, only four women have been elected in the Third Judicial District and none of those women currently serve on the trial bench. But Albany County County Democratic Committee members have an opportunity to make a large impact on the process.

"The Rules of the Committee provide that if a Committee Member requests than an individual be interviewed by the Law Committee for a judicial vacancy, then the Law Committee must convene and conduct interviews,” Joyce wrote.

It’s Amy’s hope that the Committee Members and elected officials will seize this opportunity to engage in the process, and request the Law Committee to interview her. As the Principal Law Clerk for NYS Supreme Court Justice Michael Lynch for the past nine years, Amy both knows the work of Supreme Court and the importance of increasing the diversity of the trial Court bench.

Amy Joyce resides, with her husband and three children, in Delmar, NY and is a fourth generation Albany County resident. Prior to her Principal Law Clerk position she served as Deputy County Attorney for former Albany County Executive Michael G. Breslin. The Third Judicial District encompasses Albany, Columbia, Greene, Sullivan, Schoharie, Rensselaer and Ulster Counties.