Editor's foreword.

• Author: Bonventre, Vincent Martin

Judith S. Kaye has a place in history as the first woman to serve as a Judge on the New York Court of Appeals. She also has the distinction of being the first woman to serve as the state's Chief Judge. Additionally, her tenure in the court's center seat, now in its fifteenth year, makes her the longest serving Chief Judge in New York's history, woman or man.

To those who follow her court closely, Chief Judge Kaye is known for her clear and elegant writing, her collegial and measured argument, and her wise, balanced, and compassionate opinions. She is known for her scholarship. It early marked her as the court's foremost student of judicial federalism, leading authority on state constitutional law, and most committed and thoughtful proponent of independent state adjudication. She is known for the firm and forthright voice she raised in dissent to the court's abrupt turn from its progressive jurisprudence during the latter years of her predecessor's tenure as Chief Judge. She is known, upon becoming Chief Judge herself, for harmonizing diverse views within her court to avoid fractured, contentious decisions. She is also known, more recently, for some heartfelt disagreements with current colleagues when they failed to give full effect to rights of the accused, to unpopular claims for equal treatment, and to the role of the judiciary, as an equal branch of government, to enforce politically difficult legal principles. And she is known for restoring and enhancing the court's reputation for integrity. She has conducted all the court's business and represented the state's judiciary with unsurpassed dignity, decorum, and discretion.

To those who keep abreast of current events, whether state or national, Chief Judge Kaye is known for her efforts in jury reform, specialized courts, court reorganization, judicial selection, judicial ethics, legal representation for the indigent, equal treatment in the legal profession and in the courts, and a host of other legal and judicial improvements. She is one of the most recognizable and respected--nay, admired--judicial figures in America. Members of the bench, the bar, and legal academia, in New York and throughout the nation, are familiar with her, her scholarship, and her work as chief executive of the nation's largest and busiest judicial system. She is a beloved inspiration to women--and men as well--whether aspiring members of the legal and judicial professions, accomplished and proud members of those...