Former Judge Janet DiFiore of Albany, NY; ethical troll

The state of New York provided Janet DiFiorewith a law license in 1982 after he graduated from St. John’s University School of Law.

FYI: Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo was duped into appointing Janet as the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals in 2016. Janet didn’t receive the appointment because she was the most qualified attorney in New York. She received it because she had proven to be a reliable lackey for state political hacks.

Dennis Quirk, head of the New York State Officers Union filed a 13-page complaint with Jerold Ruderman, who chairs the grievance committee in the Ninth Judicial District that makes the following allegations of Janet’s misconduct.

• Improperly intervened in a disciplinary case involving Quirk
• Refused to comply with court orders when the chief judge was sued by 46 older judges forced out out of their jobs
• Ruled on cases instead of recdusing herself involving the law firm Greenberg Traurig, which personally represented her in the litigation involving the older judges
• Engaged in a pattern of unethical conduct
• Commission on Judicial Conduct investigating whether Janet improperly used her influence to urge court officials to punish Quirk in a disciplinary proceeding
• Engaged in improper ex parte (one-sided) communications with a member of the disciplinary counsel in seeking to effectuate outcome of investigation
• Conspired with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo on the appointment of four additional judges to the state Court of Claims to clear the pathway for Janet’s daughter, Alexandra Murphy, to run for and be elected to a judicial seat on the state Supreme Court in Westchester County

Rather than await an ethics investigation that may well have led to her being tossed off the bench, Janet did what any coward would do, she resigned from the bench in July 2022.

As we speak (ca. January 2023), Janet practices her so-called brand of law in New York, New York.