By Lauren Berg

Law360 (May 13, 2020, 9:56 PM EDT) -- The New York State Unified Court System on Wednesday said it will begin the gradual reopening of in-person operations next week in 30 upstate counties that have met Gov. Andrew Cuomo's coronavirus safety benchmarks, in a state that has seen 17 judges sickened by the deadly illness.

Chief Judge Janet DiFiore and Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks announced the plan following weeks of limited operations, consolidated court facilities and virtual proceedings in order to restrict courthouse traffic and stop the spread of COVID-19.

Beginning next week, New York state judges and chambers staff, as well as clerks and support staff, in 30 counties will return to work at their courthouses, according to the announcement. New cases will also be able to be filed in those counties electronically, the judges said.

"As we enter this first phase of our return to our courthouses, we will move carefully and steadily," Judge Marks said in a statement Wednesday. "We will regularly review our safety and other practices, adapting our protocols and facilities as needed, as we strive to serve the justice needs of New Yorkers while balancing the safety of all those who work in and visit our courthouses."

Counties opening courthouses Monday are Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates, Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Oneida, Otsego and Schoharie.

Two days later, on May 20, courthouses in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties will reopen.

The reopening plan comes after the court system reported in late April 168 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among its court employees, including 17 judges, three of whom have died: Supreme Court Justices Noach Dear, Johnny Lee Baynes and Steven Milligram.

Justice Baynes, who sat on the Supreme Court in Brooklyn, died on March 26 after serving nearly three decades on the bench. He first sat as a housing court judge from 1993 to 2004 before moving to New York City civil court in 2005 and finally being appointed as acting Supreme Court judge in 2010. He was elected a full-fledged justice the next year.

Justice Dear served as a New York City councilman from 1983 to 2001 and took the bench in New York City civil court in 2008. He was appointed acting Supreme Court justice in 2010 and won election to the post in 2015. He died on April 19.

Justice Milligram was a judge for New York's Ninth Judicial District, representing Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties. He was the Monroe town judge for nearly eight years before he was elected to the Supreme Court in November, according to his Facebook profile. He died on April 28.

During the first phase of reopening, courthouse areas that will be used include judges' chambers, clerks' offices and back offices, according to Wednesday's announcement. Social distancing and other steps to restrict courthouse traffic will be enforced to protect everyone's health and safety, the judges said.

Visitors who are not court employees will have to undergo COVID-19 screening before entering a courthouse, anyone entering the courthouse will have to wear a mask, and all staff who interact with court visitors will have to wear a mask. Courts will provide masks for those who need one, according to the announcement.

Court facilities will be regularly sanitized, with hand sanitizer dispensers available through the courthouses, the judges said.

"I look forward to next week's return of judges and staff to courthouse facilities in many of our upstate counties — marking a major first step in our resumption to in-person court operations," Judge DiFiore said in the statement. "I am thankful to Administrative Judges Craig Doran and Anthony Cannataro, who are leading our statewide planning efforts, and to all the judges and staff in these upstate counties, for their hard work in preparation for this milestone."

New York state courts aren't the only ones trying to figure out how to reopen.

Federal courts will rely on data from public health officials to gauge the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic in their individual jurisdictions and determine how quickly to restore operations, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts said in guidelines issued late last month.

And last week, the federal courts asked Congress for $36.6 million in additional funding to pay for more judgeships and to enhance courtroom safety measures and teleworking infrastructure to handle the anticipated backlog of cases building up due to the pandemic.

On Tuesday, the Judicial Council of California said it has started a Pandemic Continuity of Operations Working Group to study best practices and publish a framework for the state's 58 superior courts to keep the judicial system operating during the pandemic.

--Additional reporting by Frank G. Runyeon, Sarah Jarvis, Kevin Penton, Khorri Atkinson and Craig Clough. Editing by Bruce Goldman.

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