New York Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman convened a special panel last week to find ways to expand services for the poor.
This provided a platform for one of his top lieutenants to advocate for — are you ready for this? — poor lawyers.
Or, at least, unemployed lawyers.
Deputy Chief Administrative Judge Michael Coccoma wants to put them all on the public, um, payroll.
With so many law-school grads out of work, Coccoma asked last week, “Why can’t we develop funding streams and programs which would provide an opportunity for these attorneys … [to provide] legal services for the poor?”
Coccoma’s plan would let new grads give a little and get student-loan forgiveness in return. “This is an idea which I believe you should consider recommending to the Legislature to appropriate funding for,” he said.
Actually, it’s an idea that’s a bit of a headscratcher, given the current state of the New York fisc.
And if the new kids at the bar can’t find work, maybe that’s a message from the market: New York has enough lawyers already — and maybe too many.
According to the American Bar Association, the state’s already lousy with ’em, with more attorneys outright than any other state and double the national per-capita average.
Maybe some should go chase ambulances elsewhere.
Certainly the last thing New Yorkers need is to put them on welfare — and pay off their student loans to boot.
Lippman — whose fundamental liberalism was just highlighted in The New York Times — has yet to meet a tax dollar he’s not hot to spend.
So it’s probably too much to expect him to haul Coccoma up short.
He should, though.
Once again, New York is on its uppers, and talk of new “funding streams” for anything — let alone paying down young lawyers’ student loans — is absurd and inappropriate.
So Lippman’s pet projects will simply have to wait. The courts need to come back to Planet Earth.