Lisa Cairo and a bevy of Democrats to be screened for Supreme Court

                                                                 

Nassau Supreme Court

The Nassau Bar Association today sent out its screening schedule for this fall's judicial candidates, primarily for Supreme Court.

And it looks like Family Court judge Lisa Cairo, the daughter of Nassau GOP chairman Joseph Cairo,  is a sure-fire bet to be a Republican-proposed cross-endorsed candidate for Supreme Court this year.

She is the only Republican on the list of candidates being screened for Supreme Court.

In comparison, given the many Democratic hopefuls on the list, it appears their party has yet to make a selection.

A cynic suggests another reason for putting so many Democrats up for screening is that judicial candidates being considered for elected office can engage in more political activity -- and give more contributions to their party -- than incumbent judges who are not running.

Each party every year agrees to cross-endorse a certain number of the other party's candidates in judicial elections -- from District Court to Supreme Court.

They also have agreed to only cross-endorse candidates found to be qualified by the Bar Association -- though they have made exceptions in the past.

The screening requirement is why candidates initially named for cross-endorsement suddenly disappear from the nominated lists. The Bar Association only makes public those candidates found to be qualified; it says nothing publicly about those candidates who were found to be unqualified.

Each party never really publicizes how many judicial slots they get every year, but reportedly the Nassau GOP and the Nassau Democratic party  each get at least one Supreme Court cross-endorsement this fall. 

Both parties have already announced their cross-endorsed candidates for district, county and family courts in November.

So here is this year's list of Supreme Court candidates to be screened by the bar association's judiciary committee:
                                                                   

• Stacy Bennett was elected to the Family court in 2007 as a Democrat and was appointed acting Supreme Court justice for the matrimonial division in 2012. Hard to imagine the Bar Association finding her not qualified after so many years on the bench.

• Lisa Cairo, a Republican, was cross endorsed for Family Court in 2020.

• Gary Carltun is a Democrat elected in 2019 after being cross endorsed for the District Court bench.

• Lisa Daniels is a Democrat who has run unsuccessfully twice against Nassau Republican Legislator Howard Kopel of Lawrence. She was quietly appointed in December to the board of the Nassau University Medical Center by Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul on recommendation of lameduck Democratic County Executive Laura Curran.

• Mili Makhijani is the principal law clerk to Democratic Supreme Court Justice Justice Randy Sue Marber.

• Scott Mandel is a former Democratic member of the Long Beach City Council, who joined with dissidents against former Democratic City Manager Jack Schnirman after they discovered he had approved large severance packages to some employees and accepted more in termination pay than allowed by city charter or work contract.

           Mandel had been the principal law clerk for retired Supreme Court Hope Zimmerman and now works in the court's law department.

• Greg Roth is the principal law clerk for Democratic Supreme Court Justice James McCormack. McCormack's wife, Marie, was recently appointed to the District Court after both parties cross endorsed her nomination. 

• Adam Small, a Democrat, is a "support magistrate" in Nassau Family Court  according to the court directory.

The judiciary committee is also screening other candidates for other courts, or multiple courts. At least two Republicans are in this list. 

It seems too late to screen for Michael Montesano, a Republican state assemblyman who was appointed Monday by the county legislature to the District Court.

Mastroianni ran for district court as a Republican in the past. Veronica Irwin is the head of the Long Island Hispanic Bar Association and is chief law clerk for Democratic Supreme Court Justice Sharon Gianelli. Scott Siller, a Democrat, is a former District Court judge.