Hon. Melvin Schweitzer See Rating Details

Supreme Court
New York County
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Attorney Average Rating:   5.4 - 4 rating(s)
Non-Attorney Average Rating:   10.0 - 1 rating(s)
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Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.


General Rating Criteria

* Temperament (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Scholarship (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Industriousness (1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Ability to Handle Complex Litigation (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punctuality (1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters (1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* General Ability as a Trial Judge (1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flexibility In Scheduling (1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)


Criminal Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation (1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
General Inclination Regarding Bail (1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Involvement in Plea Discussions (1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)


Civil Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation (1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Involvement in Settlement Discussions (1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
General Inclination (1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)
Comments


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What others have said about Hon. Melvin Schweitzer


Comments


Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY6768
Rating:10.0
Comments:
Excellent jurist. Negative comments must be from disgruntled lawyers. He does not punt on discovery, etc. Law clerks do conferences. Commercial Division judges have huge case loads, and they can't be spending hours every day dealing with lawyers' egos and bad behavior.

Other

Comment #: NY6767
Rating:10.0
Comments:
Judge Schweitzer is an extraordinary jurist. Comments like those posted that smear his reputation are likely by those attorneys who lost, deservedly, in cases before him. He is patient, smart as a whip, intellectually curious, fair, compassionate yet practical and ever-cognizant and respectful of the law. He treats lawyers and litigants with respect and courtesy. His extremely low reversal rate is a testament to his thoroughness and fairness.I have worked with many judges, but Judge Schweitzer leads the pack.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY4585
Rating:7.0
Comments:
Thoughtful and intelligent. Strives to be fair. Opinions are usually sound. Gets a bad rap in some of the ratings, but a judge can't please everyone.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY3486
Rating:2.0
Comments:
Possibly the worst sitting judge in NYC Supreme. An intellectual wasteland. Responds imperiously and frivilously to complex issues. Only interest is getting out in a hurry and doing as little work as possible. Woe to the litigant who lands in his court.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY2649
Rating:2.5
Comments:
this judge never shows up in court, and his assistant PJ Wilker is for all practical purposes the judge. He takes little interest in the cases and is intellectually vacant

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY2400
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Schweitzer also sits on the Supreme Court. In this capacity he delegates all of the Court functions to his law Secretary, Philip Jay Wilker. Wilker's
job is to clear the docket. A recent
First Department Decision reversing Schweitzer, indicates that Schweitzer held that the interests of justice required that the case be tried in France becaue some of the documents were in French. Schweitzer never appears in Court and litigants are never allowed to go on the record absent a rare trial. Wilker is then free to strong arm litigants. Wilker is also the Principal Law Clerk for the Court of Claims and has been for years -- and thus wields significant power. The courts function is to go home early.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY2399
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Schweitzer also sits on the Supreme Court. I