By Jennifer E. Forward
Jennifer Forward is a 2025 graduate of Albany Law School and graduated from Cazenovia College in 2022 with a B.S. in Psychology and Criminal Justice. While at Albany Law, she was deeply involved in the Anthony V. Cardona ’70 Moot Court Program, serving on the Moot Court Board for two years and leading the program as its Executive Director in her final year. Originally from Morrisville, NY, Jennifer now resides in Syracuse, NY, where she has worked at Lippes Mathias, LLP since her law school graduation, focusing her practice on health law and labor and employment law.
Judge Victoria Graffeo’s fourteen years on the New York Court of Appeals were defined by meticulous statutory interpretation, clarity, and a commitment to bright-line rules that continue to shape state jurisprudence.
Judge Victoria Graffeo’s fourteen years on the New York Court of Appeals were defined by meticulous statutory interpretation, clarity, and a commitment to bright-line rules that continue to shape state jurisprudence.
Defying early expectations that she would be strictly pro-prosecution, her majority opinions expanded criminal jurisdiction in People v. Kassebaum and curtailed police overreach in People v. McIntosh. They safeguarded press freedoms in Holmes v. Winter and affirmed municipal zoning authority in Wallach v. Town of Dryden.
Across criminal law, intellectual property, constitutional protections, and land use, Judge Graffeo combined respect for precedent with adaptability to modern realities, leaving a steady and lasting imprint on New York law, even after her controversial non-reappointment.
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To read the paper, open HERE.
To read the paper, open HERE.
