Labor & Employment Law

Restraining order bars appointment of Lieutenant Governor

Restraining order bars appointment of Lieutenant Governor

Source: Press release from the Governor?s office dated July 21, 2009

Following State Supreme Court Justice William LaMarca?s issuing a restraining order barring the appointment of Richard Ravitch as Lieutenant Governor, the Governor?s Communications Director, Peter E. Kauffmann, issued the following statement:

"Governor Paterson's appointment of Richard Ravitch as Lieutenant Governor is legally sound and we are confident the appellate courts will ultimately rule in our favor. We will go to the Appellate Division, Second Department, tomorrow to seek to have the preliminary injunction lifted."

In an article published by the Albany Times Union on July 16, 2009, former Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals, Sol Wachtler, said that the Governor?s action in appointing Ravitch is ?clearly unconstitutional, contrary to existing precedent and itself a dangerous precedent.?

The text of Judge Wachtler?s article is posted on the Internet at:

http://archives.timesunion.com/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=8353928

NYPPL comments concerning this issue are posted on the Internet at:

http://publicpersonnellaw.blogspot.com/2009/07/appointing-individual-to-vacant.html

Full post as published by New York Public Personnel Law on July 22, 2009 (boomark / email).