Rowan Wilson, Retired Cravath Partner, Confirmed as Chief Judge of New York State Court of Appeals

On April 18, 2023, the New York State Senate confirmed Governor Kathy Hochul’s nomination of retired Cravath partner Rowan D. Wilson as Chief Judge of New York State and the New York State Court of Appeals, the State’s highest court.

Prior to taking the oath of office as Chief Judge of New York State and the New York State Court of Appeals, Judge Wilson had served as an Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals since 2017. He joined Cravath in 1986 and became a partner in 1992, retiring from the Firm’s Litigation Department in February 2017. While at Cravath, Judge Wilson handled numerous corporate and pro bono matters, and he also served as Trustee for the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and for the National Center for Law and Economic Justice, and for twenty‑one years as Chairman of the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, which provides legal representation and community‑based public defense services to the Harlem community.