Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick (born January 1, 1942
) is a judge who served as
associate judge
Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...
on the
New York Court of Appeals, the highest court in the state of
New York, from 1994 through 2012, when she reached mandatory retirement age. As of June 2015, she has returned to the practice of law.
Early life and education
Judge Ciparick is the daughter of two migrants from Puerto Rico and grew up in
Washington Heights.
She is a 1963 graduate of
Hunter College and a 1967 graduate of
St. John's University School of Law.
The Board of Trustees of the
City University of New York has authorized Hunter College to award her an honorary Doctor of Laws at commencement exercises scheduled for January 24, 2013.
Legal career
Following law school and passing the bar, Ciparick worked for the
Legal Aid Society
The Legal Aid Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit legal aid provider based in New York City. Founded in 1876, it is the oldest and largest provider of legal aid in the United States. Its attorneys provide representation on criminal and civil mat ...
. In 1978, she was appointed Judge of the
New York City Criminal Court
The Criminal Court of the City of New York is a court of the State Unified Court System in New York City that handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts a ...
. She was elected as a justice of
New York Supreme Court in 1982.
Judge Ciparick was appointed to the
New York Court of Appeals by Governor
Mario Cuomo
Mario Matthew Cuomo (, ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party, Cuomo previously served as ...
in 1994. She was reappointed to the Court by Governor
Eliot Spitzer in 2007. Upon reaching the mandatory retirement age, Ciparick retired on December 31, 2012.
In the well-known Court of Appeals case of ''
Hernandez v. Robles'', the court held, by a 4-2 majority, that the state constitution did not require the recognition of same-sex marriage. Chief Judge
Judith Kaye
Judith Ann Kaye ( Smith; August 4, 1938 – January 7, 2016) was an American lawyer, jurist and the longtime Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, serving in that position from March 23, 1993, until December 31, 2008.
She was the fir ...
wrote a strongly-worded dissent that Ciparick joined.
As of June 2015, she had returned to the practice of law, and was working at the notable law firm of
Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig is a multinational law firm founded in Miami in 1967. As of 2022, the Greenberg Traurig is the 9th largest law firm in the United States.
The firm has 43 offices in the United States, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and ...
.
See also
*
List of Hispanic/Latino American jurists
This is a list of Hispanic/Latino Americans who are or were judges, magistrate judges, court commissioners, or administrative law judges. If known, it will be listed if a judge has served on multiple courts.
Other topics of interest
* List ...
*
List of first women lawyers and judges in New York
This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in New York. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are women who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their s ...
References
External links
Hon. Carmen Beauchamp CiparickJudge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick: A Glimpse into the Senior Associate Judge's Judicial Philosophy Through Her DissentsBiography at the Greenberg Traurig law firm website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ciparick, Carmen Beauchamp
Judges of the New York Court of Appeals
New York (state) lawyers
American jurists
Hispanic and Latino American judges
American people of Puerto Rican descent
Hunter College alumni
St. John's University School of Law alumni
American women judges
Living people
Lawyers from New York City
1942 births
20th-century American women judges
21st-century American women judges
20th-century American women lawyers
20th-century American lawyers