On Monday, December 9, 2024, Spotlight News reported that a New York State Supreme Court judge mandated the Colonie Town Court to accept filings from a local attorney, T. Patric Moore, after the court previously rejected his submissions due to alleged ethical concerns surrounding Town Court Justice David R. Green. The ruling, delivered by Supreme Court Justice Kimberly O’Connor, stemmed from an Article 78 proceeding initiated by Moore, who sought to overturn the Town Court’s refusal to process his legal documents.

Justice O’Connor determined that the clerk of the Town Court failed to fulfill her obligation to accept Moore’s filings, citing Judiciary Law mandates that require clerks to accept documents unless they meet specific exceptions, none of which applied in this case. Following her ruling, the Town Court was instructed to accept all of Moore’s submissions.

The situation began in March when Moore filed his Article 78 petition, challenging the court’s rejection of his submissions. Mary Falace, the Chief Clerk of the Town Court, had informed Moore that she had been directed to reject any papers from him. This directive allegedly came from Senior Town Justice Andrew Sommers, who stated he was unable to provide a reason for his instructions due to ethical restrictions.

During the proceedings, Falace revealed that shortly after her conversation with Moore, Judge Green contacted her, expressing frustration over the rejection of Moore’s filings. Justice O’Connor took the unusual step of ordering an evidentiary hearing to investigate whether Judge Sommers acted beyond his authority or neglected his legal duties. After three days of testimony from various witnesses, the court upheld Moore’s right to file his papers. However, the ruling did not address the ethical implications raised about Judge Green.

Testimony revealed that the controversy began when a tenant involved in an eviction case claimed to have communicated with Judge Green, who was allegedly advocating for her landlord. According to the tenant, Judge Green negotiated terms regarding overdue rent while the eviction case was still pending. She reported multiple interactions with the judge, where he indicated that the eviction would not proceed while also advising her that she could remain in her apartment.

Falace testified that the withdrawal notice provided by the tenant matched the format previously used by Judge Green in past eviction cases prior to his judicial appointment. This prompted Spotlight News to request documents from the Town Court to analyze the similarities in the paperwork.

In the Town’s post-hearing brief, it was confirmed that Judge Green acknowledged negotiating with the tenant regarding the eviction proceedings. Judge Sommers also testified that Judge Green had mentioned that Moore sometimes handled cases for him. During his testimony, Moore clarified that he did not charge the landlord, Lorraine Johnston, nor did he have a formal retainer agreement, although she was not a previous client.

The hearings raised concerns about potential ethical violations, suggesting that Judge Green might have been using Moore to file eviction cases on his behalf, which could represent a conflict of interest. Judge Sommers indicated he found this situation difficult to comprehend.

In response to these concerns, Judge Sommers sought advice from the Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics. The committee’s opinion indicated that if Moore was acting as an agent of Judge Green, the court should not accept filings from him. Following this guidance, Judge Sommers instructed Falace to reject Moore’s submissions.

The Town attempted to keep the advisory opinion confidential, aware of an ongoing investigation by the Commission on Judicial Conduct, which examines allegations of misconduct among judges in New York State. According to reports, Judge Green’s sister, who works at his office, was interviewed as part of this investigation, which focuses on whether Judge Green acted inappropriately in eviction cases and whether Moore was improperly used as an intermediary in filing cases on Green’s behalf.

As of now, neither Moore nor Judge Green has commented on the unfolding situation or the ongoing investigation.

 

 

Source: Spotlight News