New York State Governor, Kathy Hochul, has announced the appointment of the
Honorable Marsha Michael to a vacancy on the New York State Supreme Court,
Appellate Division, First Department.
Justice Michael was born in St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands to Antigua and
Barbuda parents Primrose Francis and Terry ‘Beckett’ Michael. Her grandparents
were Joseph and Kathleen Francis of Newfield.
“Our legal system relies on intelligent, discerning jurists to lead our courts and
dispense justice,” Governor Hochul said. “I’m proud to appoint the Honorable
Justice Marsha D. Michael to the Appellate Division, First Department, and I’m
confident she will serve New Yorkers with distinction.”
Justice Marsha D. Michael currently serves as an Associate Justice on the
Appellate Term of the Supreme Court for the 1st and 12th Judicial Districts. She
was elected to the New York State Supreme Court, in the 12th Judicial District
(Bronx County) in 2018.
Justice Michael began her judicial career in 2015 when she was elected to the
bench as a New York City Civil Court Judge in Bronx County. She was assigned
to New York City Criminal Court where she presided over domestic violence
misdemeanor matters as well as conducted jury trials.
Before joining the bench, Justice Michael served as a Principal Law Clerk to the
Honorable Deborah A. Dowling and Honorable Janice L. Bowman. Justice
Michael began her legal career as an associate at a civil litigation firm in Bronx
County, after earning her J.D. from Albany Law School in 2002.
Justice Michael continues to be a public servant of Bronx County where she has
taught at Monroe College and administers a judicial internship and mentorship
program in partnership with her judicial colleagues and a local Bronx High School.
The interns serve for an entire school year as interns for judges sitting in civil,
criminal, and family court. Justice Michael is also the chair of the Gender Fairness
Committee of the Unified Courts, 12th Judicial District, a member of the Judicial
Friends Organization, the National Association of Women Judges, NY Chapter, the
Judicial Council of the National Bar Association, and a board member of the
Supreme Court Justices Association of the City of New York, Inc.
