Former New Berlin Town Justice Elizabeth Garry, 46, has been appointed to the Third Department of the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court.
``I'm thrilled; this is the pinnacle of my career,'' Garry said Friday.
Beginning March 26, Garry will begin hearing arguments in Albany as she joins 11 colleagues, reviewing state Supreme Court decisions.
``I've been reading and reviewing the law from the Third Department for my entire career, and to go up and serve with those judges is an honor,'' said Garry, who was elected a state Supreme Court justice in 2006.
Since her election, she has been working mostly from state Supreme Court at Wampsville in Madison County. Now, her new base of operations will be Albany, but she doesn't plan to move there.
``I'm not required to,'' said Garry, who lives in the town of New Berlin.
About four days a month, she'll be in Albany, but the rest of the time, she'll work from her New Berlin home, researching and writing.
Garry's rise up the legal ladder has been rapid. She graduated from Albany Law School in 1990 and clerked with former State Supreme Court Justice Irad Ingraham of New Berlin from 1990 to 1994.
From 1995 through 2006, she work for the Joyce Law Firm in Sherburne, and in the middle of that tenure, she was elected New Berlin town judge.
Garry had applied to serve as an appellate judge, but still was surprised when the call came from the office of Gov. David Paterson.
``I got the call March 4,'' she said. ``I was trying a case, literally, charging the jury, when my chambers got a call from governor's office.
``So, I finished getting the jury ready to deliberate, then saw the message from the governors office was marked `urgent,' Garry continued. "But when I called I couldn't reach anybody, at first. You know, you think you know what it is, but you want to be sure.''
Garry was right, however. In three years, she's gone from town court in New Berlin to the Appellate Division, reviewing state Supreme Court cases.
Fellow jurist Kevin M. Dowd, state Supreme Court justice at Norwich, said Garry's appointment is an honor for Chenango County.
``It's an honor for her, personally, and for the county, too,'' he said. ``I know she'll do an excellent job.
``We share the same mentor, Irad Ingraham, and we both learned a lot from him,'' Dowd said. ``I'm a Republican and Beth's a Democrat, but politics don't come between us. She's tried cases in my court and she was always very good, and from what I hear, she's been very good in state Supreme Court. And she's a very nice person.''
The governor's media release announcing this appointment noted that ``Justice Garry resides with her same-sex life partner, step-son and adopted son.''
On Friday, Garry said her son is not adopted. Publicity about her lifestyle in recent days has given her pause, she said.
``I'm very open about who I am and anyone who knows me well, knows that,'' she said. ``But I don't think that should be the focus of a legal appointment.''
The annual salary for Appellate Division justices is $144,000. Appointments are not subject to state Senate confirmation.
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