Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani today announced the appointment of Douglas Keith as Executive Director and Senior Legal Officer of the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary (MACJ), alongside two reforms to strengthen the integrity and independence of the City's judicial selection process: the Committee's first-ever publicly available Code of Conduct, and a new agreement restoring, and for the first time formalizing, the New York City Bar Association's role in evaluating judicial candidates.
Judges make decisions that shape New Yorkers' lives, from family disputes to criminal cases and civil matters. The new Code of Conduct establishes clear and transparent ethical standards for those responsible for evaluating judicial candidates, while the agreement with the City Bar brings independent, trusted input into the selection process. Together, the measures will strengthen accountability and public confidence in how the City selects judges.
Keith joins MACJ from the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, where he served as Deputy Director of the Judiciary Program and Co-Founding Editor of State Court Report. He brings a decade of experience focused on judicial selection mechanisms nationwide, court independence and the protection of individual rights.
"Judges make decisions every day that shape New Yorkers' lives, and the process for selecting them must be worthy of the public's trust," said Mayor Mamdani. "With Douglas Keith's leadership, our first-ever Code of Conduct, and a restored partnership with the City Bar, we are strengthening the safeguards that ensure judges are evaluated on their merits, free from favoritism and with the independence our judiciary demands and New Yorkers deserve."
"New York City's criminal, family, and civil courts make decisions with tremendous impact on people's lives," said Douglas Keith, Executive Director and Senior Legal Officer of the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. "I am looking forward to facilitating a process that ensures the judiciary has the independence it needs to do its vital work, that ensures the city's courts reflect the diverse public that they serve, and that is worthy of the public trust."
"An independent and impartial judiciary begins with a rigorous and principled selection process," said Ramzi Kassem, Chief Counsel to the Mayor and City Hall, who supervises the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. "Our new Code of Conduct establishes clear ethical obligations for every Committee member, including the Chair, while our agreement with the City Bar brings invaluable scrutiny and expertise back into candidate evaluations. Douglas Keith's deep experience strengthening courts nationwide and protecting individual rights is the final building block that will help us carry out this responsibility with the integrity New Yorkers deserve."
"I look forward to working closely with Doug Keith in his role as Executive Director to ensure a fair, independent, and merit-based selection process for every judicial appointment," said Ali Najmi, Chair, Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. "Together with the restoration of the City Bar's independent review, and our new Code of Conduct, we are setting a new standard for judicial selection in New York City."
"I congratulate Douglas Keith on his appointment and welcome the thoughtful reforms that accompany his selection. These measures strengthen both the integrity of the process and the independence of the judiciary New Yorkers rely on every day," said New York State Unified Court System Chief Administrative Judge Joseph A. Zayas. "I am confident that the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary, under its new leadership, will advance a selection system grounded in fairness, merit, and public trust."
"I am delighted that Douglas Keith has been appointed Executive Director of the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary," said Council Member Gale A. Brewer, Chair of the Governmental Operations, State & Federal Legislation Committee. "His background at the Brennan Center and experience with judicial selection make him eminently qualified for this job. In these precarious times, appointing qualified judges is more important than ever."
"The integrity of our judicial system begins with the integrity of the process through which judges are selected. As Chair of the New York State Senate Judiciary Committee, I understand the importance of ensuring that those entrusted with administering justice are selected based on their qualifications, independence, and commitment to fairness," said New York State Senator Luis R. Sepúlveda, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "I commend Mayor Mamdani for his commitment to strengthening transparency and accountability through the establishment of the Committee's first-ever public Code of Conduct and the restoration of its partnership with the New York City Bar Association, providing an additional layer of independent review. I also congratulate Douglas Keith on his appointment as Executive Director of the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. His extensive experience brings valuable expertise and leadership to this important role. These efforts represent meaningful steps toward strengthening public trust and ensuring a judiciary that is independent, reflects the diversity of our communities, and upholds equal justice for all New Yorkers."
"A fair and independent judiciary begins with a transparent, rigorous, and merit-based selection process," said Twyla Carter, Attorney-in-Chief and Chief Executive Officer of The Legal Aid Society. "We commend Mayor Mamdani for appointing Douglas Keith and taking meaningful steps to strengthen accountability, restore independent review, and ensure our courts reflect the diversity of the communities they serve. These reforms are critical to building public trust and ensuring equal justice for all New Yorkers."
"Douglas Keith brings to MACJ a deep understanding of judicial selection and a strong commitment to fair and independent courts. The Mamdani administration has made an excellent choice," said Judge Lawrence K. Marks, former Chief Administrative Judge of the New York State Unified Court System. "His expertise and judgment will serve the Committee well as it works to identify judges worthy of New Yorkers' trust."
"The Fund for Modern Courts welcomes the Mayor's appointment of Douglas Keith as Executive Director of the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary. The Committee's work has a direct impact on the quality of justice New Yorkers receive in our courts," said Denise Kronstadt, Executive Director of the Fund for Modern Courts. "Doug brings deep expertise in judicial selection and a longstanding commitment to a judiciary that is fair, impartial, and reflective of the communities it serves. Having worked closely with him, I know the thoughtfulness and sound judgment he will bring to this responsibility."
"As a New Yorker who has worked side by side with Douglas Keith for the past decade, I'm proud that the city will benefit from his extraordinary leadership, his deep understanding of judicial selection, and his fierce commitment to the principle that courts should provide equal justice for all," said Alicia Bannon, Senior Director of the Judiciary Program at the Brennan Center for Justice.
Establishing MACJ's First Code of Conduct
The judiciary exercises enormous power in New Yorkers' lives. The Mamdani administration is establishing clear standards for the people entrusted with evaluating candidates for judicial appointment. MACJ's new, publicly available Code of Conduct codifies ethical obligations governing merit-based evaluations, impartiality, recusals, disclosures and conflicts of interest. The Code applies to every Committee member, including the Chair, and establishes expectations for addressing potential conflicts and appearances of impropriety.
These safeguards are designed to ensure candidates are evaluated fairly and consistently, free from improper influence, and to strengthen public confidence in the judicial selection process.
"Judges should be chosen for their qualifications, not their political connections. Citizens Union has long championed a nonpartisan, merit-based process for the judges the Mayor appoints, and we commend Mayor Mamdani for reforms that make that process stronger," said Grace Rauh, Executive Director of Citizens Union. "The code of conduct for the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary sets clear ethical rules, including on conflicts of interest and external communications, that will help keep the committee independent. Restoring the City Bar's independent review brings back a nonpartisan check that goes back half a century. We also congratulate Douglas Keith on his appointment as the committee's executive director. His work on fair and independent courts at the Brennan Center makes him an excellent choice to lead it."
Restoring the City Bar's role in judicial selection
The Mamdani administration has restored MACJ's formal collaboration with the New York City Bar Association after the prior administration ended the association's independent review of judicial candidates.
Under the new memorandum of understanding, the City Bar's Judiciary Committee will independently evaluate candidates referred by MACJ and provide ratings and supporting feedback to MACJ. MACJ will give those assessments due consideration while retaining responsibility for exercising its own independent judgment.
The agreement restores an additional layer of independent review to the selection process, bringing the City Bar's legal expertise to the evaluation of candidates for judicial appointment.
"The judges appointed by the Mayor will preside in courtrooms where issues critical to the lives of New Yorkers are decided every day, and the New York City Bar Association's independent, rigorous and non-partisan review, which dates back a half century, helps ensure that the judges proposed by the Mayor's Advisory Committee are qualified to administer justice in our city," said New York City Bar Association President Matthew Diller.
Stuart Slotnick, Chair of the City Bar's Judiciary Committee, added, "We have expeditiously completed review of the first tranche of candidates, and we look forward to the ongoing collaboration."
Building a more accessible and accountable judiciary
Today's announcement builds on steps Mayor Mamdani has taken since the beginning of his administration to strengthen judicial selection and broaden public engagement.
On the second day of his administration, Mayor Mamdani appointed civil rights and election attorney Ali Najmi as MACJ Chair and signed an executive order directing the Committee to engage a broader cross-section of the legal community, including public defenders, attorneys representing parents and children in Family Court, and attorneys working in indigent legal services. The order also requires the Committee to regularly publish demographic data on the judicial applicant pool and create a searchable public database to help New Yorkers track upcoming appointments.
Mayor Mamdani has also announced three new judicial appointments-Cary Fischer, Natalie Barros and Andrés Casas-and nine judicial reappointments.
In July, Mayor Mamdani announced the full slate of MACJ members, bringing together practitioners, law professors and former judges with experience across public defense, prosecution, civil rights advocacy, private practice, academia, and public service.
MACJ evaluates candidates for appointments to the City's Family and Criminal Courts, as well as interim appointments to its Civil Courts, and recommends qualified candidates to the Mayor. The Committee assesses candidates' temperament, fairness and judgment as part of its work to ensure the City's judiciary serves all New Yorkers with integrity.
About Douglas Keith
Douglas Keith previously served as Deputy Director of the Judiciary Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, where he led research and advocacy on judicial selection, judicial elections, ethics and court independence. His work included research on judicial nominating commissions and the importance of judicial diversity, advancing efforts to build fair, diverse and impartial courts.
Keith was also a co-founding editor of State Court Report, a Brennan Center publication focused on state courts and state constitutional law. Since joining the Brennan Center in 2015, his work has included research reports, legal briefs and judicial education programs focused on strengthening state courts and protecting individual rights.
He earned his Juris Doctor from New York University School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy Studies from Duke University.
