New York State Bar Association’s Judicial Section Honors Jurists for Excellence and Advancement of Diversity
1.23.2025
Four distinguished members of New York’s judiciary were honored by the New York State Bar Association’s Judicial Section for excellence and the advancement of diversity on the bench.
New York’s Chief Judge Rowan Wilson and Chief Administrative Judge Joseph Zayas received the Distinguished Jurist Award. Judge Wilson joked with the crowd and humbly gave credit to his staff and others in the Office of Court Administration for the honor. Judge Zayas quoted a Proverb about the importance of diligence in planning, giving credit to his team.
“To the extent that I am viewed as an excellent judge today, it is the people I have surrounded myself to assist me,” he said. “To the extent that I am deemed to be a deserving, it is because of these friends and colleagues.”
Presiding Justice Dianne Renwick, Appellate Division, First Department, and Justice James Hyer, New York State Supreme Court, Westchester County, received the Advancement of Judicial Diversity Award.
Justice Renwick is the first woman of color to be appointed as presiding justice of any appellate division in the state, and only the second woman to lead the First Department since its creation in 1894.
In accepting her award, Justice Renwick thanked those who had come before her to pave the way for women to gain access to the bench. She remarked that she is inspired by the likeness of Constance Baker Motley in the First Department building, which replaced an earlier likeness of the author of the Dred Scott decision.
“We are here because of those who have supported us to reach our goals,” she said. “I look forward to empowering future generations. I am honored to be the first and with God’s help I will not be the last.”
Justice Hyer has a long history working for civil rights as an administrative law judge for the Westchester County Human Rights Commission. He thanked his family and partner for their support and encouraged everyone to embrace diversity.
“It just makes us stronger,” he said.
The commitment to diversity and to the advancement of women on the bench are goals touted by section chair Judge Tanya Kennedy.
“For 100 years this section has served as a pillar of leadership collaboration in the judiciary,” she said. “We honor the men and women who built this legacy. Let us renew our commitment to those principles, ensuring that our next century is defined by the same dedication and vision.”
Those principles of dignity, respect and the rule of law were central themes in the keynote address by Princeton University professor and author Eddie Glaude, Jr. Embracing democracy as a way of life, he says, requires more of all of us.
“Democracy does not come automatically, we have to do more than just vote,” he said. “In affirming the dignity of all people, we must become the kind of people democracy requires. Hatred gums it up, corrodes the soul. What kind of America will you choose, what will we bequeath to our children?”
