Shift to the Left: NY's Top Court Gets First Black Chief Judge and Liberal Majority

New York Governor Kathy Hochul's two nominees to the state's highest court were confirmed by the state's senators, bringing an end to a saga that has rocked Albany since Chief Justice Janet DiFiore's surprise resignation in July broke the Court of Appeals's right-leaning majority. Associate Judge Rowan Wilson, a progressive jurist who is already a member of the court, will replace DiFiore as Chief Judge. Caitlin Halligan, a well-known private lawyer who served as New York's solicitor general in the 2000s, will take Willson's seat as associate judge. Liberals hope that these changes push the court to the left.