Wives of judges as successful litigators in their husbands' courts

It has come to my attention that the wife of an active-status federal appellate judge Alex Kozinski, California attorney Marcy J. Tiffany,  advertises her law firm and herself as "successfully" practicing in courts from which appeals are taken to her husband's court and in her husband's court.

It is illustrious that Judge Alex Kozinski was the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit from 2007 to 2014.

It is also illustrious that the "seasoned litigator" Marcy J. Tiffany successfully litigated before her husband's court, including the time period when her husband was the Chief Judge of that court.

I do not doubt for a second that Ms. Tiffany litigates successfully in her husband's courts and in courts where judges are depending for their reputations and reversal records upon decisions of Ms. Tiffany's husband's court.

Ms. Tiffany's shining example of practicing in courts where such practice raises huge conflict of interest issues, reminds me of another wife of a judge.

That is New York attorney Ellen L. Coccoma, wife of the Chief Administrative Judge of upstate New York Michael V. Coccoma who practices in front of close-to-retirement judges assigned to her cases by her husband or her husband's subordinates, while her husband controls distribution of post-retirement perks, thus holding in front of these judges a stick with a banana tied to it.

Alex Kozinski is being paraded by the cream of the cream of the legal community as "one of America's most prominent jurists". 

Even though allowing his wife and his wife's law firm to "successfully" litigate in his own court does not seem to appear to the legal community, and law professors' community, as impeachable behavior for a federal appellate judge and a clear violation of the Code of Conduct for federal judges.

With the exception that it is not "appropriate" for lawyers and law professors to talk about "such things" as judicial misconduct and what appears as a conflict of interest. 

It is interesting to mention that Judge Michael Coccoma was recently promoted by New York Chief Judge Lippman to become  Statewide Administrative Judge for Fiduciary Matters, that was announced in Judge Lippman's State of the Judiciary address for the year 2015:

 

And that appointment was, by the way, right after a lawsuit for fraud and fraud upon the court against Michael Coccoma AND his wife Ellen Coccoma was dismissed by a federal court, by yet another Chief Judge, the Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York Gary L. Sharpe.

 

"Coincidentally", at the time of litigation and dismissal, Judge Sharpe's son Michael Aaron Sharpe was employed by the New York State Attorney General, the law office representing Michael Coccoma in that lawsuit. 

 

By the way, the lawsuit was dismissed on "absolute judicial immunity grounds", without reaching the merits of the case, so whether Michael Coccoma did or did not commit fraud upon the court remained subject to inquiry by disciplinary authorities.

 

So, what can beginning law students and those who consider career in law discern from this little pattern?

It is good to marry a judge - it is a path to a successful career.

 

When you are a judge, your conflicts of interest will not be even mentioned by the legal community, and you will be relentlessly (and shamelessly) promoted instead of disciplined.

 

But, the question of a disciplinary inquiry and impeachment for both of these "prominent" judges remains open.

 

Will authorities dare to touch them?