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55-623: The company was founded in 1838 as the Atlantic Insurance Company. Originally a joint-stock company, it became a mutual company on April 11, 1842. Its first chairman was Walter Restored Jones, a member of a prominent upper-class family of attorneys in New York City. The Jones family ran the company for decades. By the 1850s, Atlantic Mutual was the largest marine and general insurance firm in North America and

110-499: A divorce or annulment . The court also has exclusive jurisdiction over "Article 78 proceedings" against a body or officer seeking to overturn an official determination on the grounds that it was arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable or contrary to law. At English Common Law, the lord chancellor, not as a part of his equitable jurisdiction, but as the king's delegate to exercise the Crown's special jurisdiction, had responsibility for

165-709: A court of civil jurisdiction, with most criminal matters handled in County Court . New York is the only state in the United States where the Supreme Court is not the state's court of last resort (which would be the New York Court of Appeals ), but it is a trial court . Also, although it is a trial court, the Supreme Court sits as a "single great tribunal of general state-wide jurisdiction, rather than an aggregation of separate courts sitting in

220-626: A defined jurisdiction focusing on business and commercial litigation. The jurisdictional amount in controversy required to have a case heard in the Commercial Division varies among these Commercial Division courts, ranging from $ 50,000 in Albany and Onondaga Counties to $ 500,000 in New York County, but the Commercial Division rules (Section 202.70) are otherwise uniform. The first specialist commercial judges assigned to

275-504: A member of The Hundred Year Association of New York . In 1995, Atlantic Mutual sold its data center facility in Roanoke, Virginia to MFX Roanoke, Inc. In 2003, the company sold the renewal rights to its commercial overland Marine and Ocean Going Cargo business to Travelers , and its Specialty Lines business to OneBeacon Insurance . In 2004, the company "scaled down its operations to focus solely on personal lines business, particularly in

330-585: A party screening committee. Sometimes, the parties cross-endorse each other's candidates, while at other times they do not and incumbent judges must actively campaign for re-election. Judicial conventions have been criticized as opaque, brief and dominated by county party leaders. In practice, most of the power of selecting justices belongs to local political party organizations, such as the Kings County Democratic County Committee (Brooklyn Democratic Party), which control

385-525: Is an organization (which is often, but not always, a company or business ) based on the principle of mutuality and governed by private law. Unlike a cooperative , members usually do not directly contribute to the capital of the organization, but derive their right to profits and votes through their customer relationship. A mutual exists with the purpose of raising funds from its membership or customers (collectively called its members ), which can then be used to provide common services to all members of

440-547: Is divided into thirteen judicial districts: seven upstate districts each comprising between five and eleven counties, five districts corresponding to the boroughs of New York City, and one district on Long Island. In each judicial district outside New York City, an Administrator (or Administrative Judge if a judge) is responsible for supervising all courts and agencies, while inside New York City an Administrator (or Administrative Judge) supervises each major court. Administrators are assisted by Supervising Judges who are responsible in

495-401: Is not required to grant certification even if judges are capable. In 2020, for example, OCA denied certification to 46 of the 49 judges who applied for it, citing budget cuts and a hiring freeze. These additional six years of service are available only for elected Supreme Court Justices, not for "Acting" Justices whose election or appointments were to lower courts. A referendum to increase

550-451: The County Court , District Court , city courts, or justice courts (town and village courts) outside New York City. The Supreme Court also hears civil cases involving claims for equitable relief, such as injunctions, specific performance, or rescission of a contract, as well as actions for a declaratory judgment . The Supreme Court also has exclusive jurisdiction of matrimonial actions, such as either contested or uncontested actions for

605-402: The U.S. Supreme Court in the 1990s. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 altered the formula under which insurance companies could deduct additions to their financial reserves. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) determined that Atlantic Mutual had strengthened its reserves, but the company countered that it had merely engaged in a computational change. In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court upheld

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660-606: The 1980s as a result of deregulation. In the United States, conversion may be full, to a public company , or in many states, partial, to a mutual holding company . Supreme Court of the State of New York Specialized The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the judiciary of New York . It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as

715-580: The 1980s. Savings and loan industry deregulation and the late 1980s savings and loan crisis led many to change to stock ownership, or in some cases into banks . Many large U.S.-based insurance companies, such as the Prudential Insurance Company of America and the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company have demutualized , with shares of stock being distributed to their policyholders to represent

770-575: The 1st and 2nd Departments, and District Court . (City Courts in other departments appeal to the County Courts instead.) The 1st Department has a single Appellate Term covering Manhattan and The Bronx . The 2nd Department has two Appellate Terms. The Appellate Term for the 2nd, 11th and 13th Judicial Districts covers Brooklyn , Queens , and Staten Island , and generally sits at 141 Livingston Street in Brooklyn. The Appellate Term for

825-884: The 9th and 10th Judicial Districts covers Nassau , Suffolk , Westchester , Rockland , Orange , Dutchess , and Putnam Counties; it generally rotates between the Westchester County Courthouse in White Plains , the Nassau County Supreme Court Building in Mineola , and the Cohalan Court Complex in Central Islip . They occasionally sit at other locations within their jurisdiction. Appellate terms consist of between three and five justices of

880-490: The Appellate Division department panels are binding on the lower courts in that department, and also on lower courts in other departments unless there is contrary authority from the Appellate Division of that department. The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in each judicial department is authorized to establish "appellate terms". An appellate term is an intermediate appellate court that hears appeals from

935-532: The Appellate Division or the Appellate Term). As a result, New York City has too few judges to handle New York City's caseload, which is more than 100,000 cases annually; the population-based formula in the state Constitution does not account for the millions of non-resident workers and visitors in the city, nor the 315,000 business associations that operate in the city. Elected New York Supreme Court justices can be moved or temporarily reassigned anywhere in

990-844: The Commercial Division Advisory Council since 2013 (through at least May 2024). Appeals from Supreme Court decisions, as well as from the Surrogate's Court, Family Court, and Court of Claims, are heard by the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division . This court is intermediate between the New York Supreme Court and the New York Court of Appeals. There is one Appellate Division, which for administrative purposes comprises four judicial departments. Decisions of

1045-644: The IRS' interpretation of the law. After the construction of the World Trade Center , Atlantic Mutual moved its headquarters from 45 Wall Street to 140 Broadway . The company was one of many which insured buildings in and around the World Trade Center , and the firm suffered significant losses after the September 11 attacks . Since Atlantic Mutual was more than 100 years old, the company was

1100-630: The Nassau County Commercial Division since 2009 (as of May 2024), and Justice Thomas A. Stander served in the Monroe County Commercial Division from its inception for ten years. One constant throughout the Commercial Division history has been the involvement of New York attorney Robert L. Haig, who, among other things, co-chaired the 1995 Commercial Courts Task Force, facilitated the 2006 Commercial Division Focus Group study, and has chaired

1155-588: The New York County Supreme Court. Two years later, Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye established a trial level Commercial Division, beginning in New York County (Manhattan) and Monroe County (the 7th Judicial District ). The Commercial Division has expanded to the 8th District (located in Buffalo), and the Albany, Bronx, Kings, Nassau, Onondaga, Queens, Suffolk and Westchester County Supreme Courts. These are specialized business courts , with

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1210-485: The New York Supreme Court in New York City. A similar practice is done in the 9th Judicial District (which covers the New York suburban counties of Orange , Dutchess , Westchester , Rockland and Putnam ), in which County and Family Court judges have been designated as acting Supreme Court justices, serving part-time on that court. However, this practice also strains the resources of the courts that "lend" justices to

1265-623: The New York trial courts are published selectively in the Miscellaneous Reports . A judge of the New York Supreme Court is titled a justice . The number of justices of the Supreme Court in each New York Supreme Court judicial district (including justices assigned to the Appellate Division) is set forth by the New York State Constitution. Once a decade, the state Legislature may increase

1320-697: The Suffolk County Commercial Division from 2002-2023, Justice Carolyn E. Demarest served in the Brooklyn, Kings County Commercial Division from its inception in 2002 through 2016, Justice Deborah Karalunas presided in the Onondaga County (Syracuse) Commercial Division from its inception in 2007 for over 15 years, Justice Eileen Bransten served in the Manhattan Commercial Division from 2008 to 2018, Justice Timothy S. Driscoll has served in

1375-401: The Supreme Court, New York County is divided into 2 Trial Assignment parts, 10 conference and trial parts, 1 youth part, 1 narcotics/felony waiver part, 1 integrated domestic violence part, and 16 trial parts which include 1 Judicial Diversion part, 1 Mental Health part, 1 Veteran's Court part, and 1 JHO part. In New York City, all major civil cases are heard in civil terms. The court system

1430-576: The Supreme Court, appointed by the Chief Administrative Judge with the approval of presiding justice of the appropriate appellate division. The court sits in three-judge panels, with two justices constituting a quorum and being necessary for a decision. Decisions by the Appellate Term must be followed by courts whose appeals lie to it. In New York City, all felony cases are heard in criminal terms. The Criminal Term of

1485-399: The Supreme Court. Supreme Court justices are elected to 14-year terms. Justices are nominated by judicial district nominating conventions, with judicial delegates themselves elected from assembly districts. Some (political party) county committees play a significant role in their judicial district conventions, for example restricting nomination to those candidates that receive approval from

1540-409: The clients in the form of dividend distributions, reduced future premiums or paid up additions to the policy value. This is a competitive advantage to such companies—the idea of owning a piece of the company could be more attractive to some potential clients than the idea of being a source of profits for investors. In the typical stock company, profits go to shareholders. In contrast, a mutual manages

1595-501: The co-operative movement are usually known as credit unions or cooperative banks rather than mutuals. Various types of financial institutions around the world are mutuals, and examples include: Some mutual financial institutions offer services very similar to (if not the same as) those of a commercial bank . In some markets, mutuals offer very competitive interest rates and fee tariffs on savings and deposit accounts , mortgages and loans . The members who save and borrow with

1650-400: The company in the best interests of the customers. Furthermore, a mutual company is able to focus on a longer horizon than a typical company. Some mutual insurance companies make this claim explicitly. In more general terms, mutual organizations are able to minimize the principal–agent problem by removing one stakeholder, the investor-owner, in favor of one of the other stakeholders, usually

1705-706: The company was swamped with workers' compensation insurance claims. James J. Wrynn , the Superintendent of Insurance of the State of New York was appointed liquidator. As the largest marine insurance firm in the United States for many years, Atlantic Mutual became involved in some of the most famous shipwrecks in American history. The Atlantic Mutual Insurance Co. has been led by a number of prominent New Yorkers as well as leading American business people. Among them are: Mutual organization A mutual organization , also mutual society or simply mutual ,

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1760-547: The custody and protection of infants and the mentally incapacitated. Upon the organization of the Supreme Court in New York the Legislature transferred so much of the law as formed a part of the king's prerogative to it. The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court are responsible for oversight of the related programs. With respect to criminal cases, the Criminal Branch of Supreme Court tries felony cases in

1815-446: The customer, who becomes both user and joint owner of the business. However, the mutual form of ownership also has disadvantages. One example is that mutual companies have no shares to sell and hence no access to equity markets . At one time, most major U.S. life insurers were mutual companies. For many years, the tax status of such organizations was open to dispute, as they were technically nonprofit organizations. Eventually, it

1870-445: The delegates. The process was challenged in litigation which ultimately resulted in a U.S. Supreme Court decision in N.Y. State Board of Elections v. Lopez Torres (2008), in which the justices unanimously upheld the constitutionality of New York's judicial election system. Under state law, New York Supreme Court justices have a mandatory retirement age : a justice's term ends, even if his or her 14-year term has not yet expired, at

1925-556: The end of the calendar year in which the justice reaches the age of 70. However, an elected Supreme Court Justice may apply for a "certification" from the Office of Court Administration (OCA) to continue in office, without having to be re-elected, for three two-year periods, until final retirement at the end of the year in which the Justice turns 76. A judge applying for certification to continue to serve must pass cognitive tests , but OCA

1980-543: The exception of certain monetary claims against the State of New York itself. In practice, the Supreme Court hears civil actions involving claims above a certain monetary amount (for example, $ 50,000 in New York City) that puts the claim beyond the jurisdiction of lower courts. Civil actions about lesser sums are heard by courts of limited jurisdiction, such as the New York City Civil Court , or

2035-639: The five counties of New York City, whereas they are primarily heard by the County Court elsewhere. Misdemeanor cases, and arraignments in almost all cases, are handled by lower courts: the New York City Criminal Court ; the District Court in Nassau County and the five western towns of Suffolk County ; city courts; and justice courts. In 1993, Administrative Judge Stanley S. Ostrau established pilot Commercial Parts in

2090-615: The high net worth market." After a downgrade by A.M. Best in 2006, the company also sold its "high net worth personal lines business to Ace Group " in 2007. In 2010, New York state insurance regulators revoked Atlantic Mutual's insurance licenses and placed it into rehabilitation because it had a negative capital and surplus of $ 25.1 million. On April 27, 2011, the Supreme Court of the State of New York , County of New York , declared that Atlantic Mutual and Centennial Insurance Company were insolvent, and placed them in liquidation after

2145-413: The inferior courts within their designated counties or judicial districts, and are intended to ease the workload on the Appellate Division and provide a less expensive forum closer to the people. Appellate terms are located in the 1st and 2nd Judicial Departments only, representing Downstate New York . These hear appeals from the New York City Civil Court , New York City Criminal Court , City Courts in

2200-536: The money which established the permanent foundation of the New York Historical Society . William H. H. Moore served as president from 1895 to 1897, when he was succeeded by Anton A. Raven . In 1915, after sixty-three years with the company, Anton A. Raven retired as president and was succeeded by Cornelius Eldert , formerly vice president. Eldert served as president until his death in 1930. Following Eldert's death in 1930, Walter Wood Parsons

2255-453: The mutual to sustain or grow the organization, though some mutuals operate a dividend scheme similar to a cooperative. The primary form of financial business set up as a mutual company in the United States has been mutual insurance . Some insurance companies are set up as stock companies and then mutualized, their ownership passing to their policy owners. In mutual insurance companies, what would have been profits are instead rebated to

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2310-434: The mutual ultimately own the business. Mutualization or mutualisation is the process by which a joint stock company changes legal form to a mutual organization or a cooperative , so that the majority of the stock is owned by employees or customers. Demutualization or demutualisation is the reverse process, whereby a mutual may convert itself to a joint-stock company. This process became increasingly common in

2365-496: The new president of the Atlantic Mutual and Centennial Insurance Companies. York retired as chairman of the board in 1969. Atlantic Mutual built the existing building at 45 Wall Street in 1959, which served as the company's headquarters until the mid-1970s. Vacant and deteriorating for more than 20 years, it was sold in 1996 and converted to apartments. Atlantic Mutual was involved in a significant tax law case which reached

2420-420: The number of justices in any judicial district, but Article VI of the state Constitution sets a population-based cap on the number of justices in each district, based on census data. As a result of the population-based cap, some areas have overloaded courts. New York City has a cap of 171 justices (and only some of the New York Supreme Court justices in New York City serve in trial parts, with others assigned to

2475-528: The on-site management of the trial courts, including court caseloads, personnel, and budget administration, and each manage a particular type of court within a county or judicial district. The Administrator is also assisted by the District Executive and support staff. The district administrative offices are responsible for personnel, purchasing, budgets, revenue, computer automation, court interpreters, court security, and case management. Opinions of

2530-611: The only marine insurance firm in New York state. During the 1850s, it made exceedingly high profits. In 1852, the company began keeping a clipping service of newspaper accounts of shipwrecks and sinkings known as Vessel Disasters , a work which became famous as the best source of information on maritime disasters in the North Atlantic. During the Civil War , Atlantic Mutual was the primary insurer of most Union shipping. In 1874, Atlantic Mutual President John Divine Jones provided

2585-424: The organization or society. A mutual is therefore owned by, and run for the benefit of, its members – it has no external shareholders to pay in the form of dividends , and as such does not usually seek to maximize and make large profits or capital gains . Mutuals exist for the members to benefit from the services they provide and often do not pay income tax . Surplus revenue made will usually be re-invested in

2640-457: The ownership interest they formerly had in the form of their interest as mutual policyholders. The Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company has also investigated demutualization, even though its form of ownership is embedded in its name. It is noted that other formerly mutual companies such as Washington Mutual , a former savings and loan association , have been allowed to demutualize and yet retain their names. The approximate British equivalent of

2695-498: The pilot Commercial Parts in 1993 were Justices Ira Gammerman , Myriam Altman, Herman Cahn, and Beatrice Shainswit. Among other long serving Commercial Division Justices, these judges served at least a decade: Justice Cahn continued on as a Commercial Division judge in Manhattan from 1995 until 2008, Justice Charles Ramos served as a Commercial Division judge in Manhattan from 1996-2018, Justice Elizabeth Hazlitt Emerson served in

2750-463: The retirement age to 80 for Supreme Court and Court of Appeals judges was defeated by New York voters in 2013. The New York Supreme Court is the oldest Supreme Court with general original jurisdiction. It was established as the Supreme Court of Judicature by the Province of New York on May 6, 1691. That court was continued by the State of New York after independence was declared in 1776. It became

2805-657: The savings and loan is the building society . Building societies also went through an era of demutualisation in the 1980s and 1990s, leaving only one large national building society and around forty smaller regional and local ones. Significant demutualisation also occurred in Australia and South Africa in the same era. Cooperatives are very similar to mutual companies. They tend to deal in primarily tangible goods and services such as agricultural commodities or utilities rather than intangible products such as financial services . Nevertheless, banking institutions with close ties to

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2860-559: The several counties or judicial districts of the state." The Supreme Court is established in each of New York's 62 counties . A separate branch of the Supreme Court called the Appellate Division serves as the highest intermediate appellate court in New York. Under the New York State Constitution, the New York State Supreme Court has unlimited jurisdiction in both civil and criminal cases, with

2915-423: The state, although typically such moves or reassignments are within the judge's judicial district. To address the imbalance, the New York court system designates other courts' judges (such as those sitting on the lower-level New York City Civil Court , New York City Criminal Court , and New York City Family Court , as well as the statewide New York Court of Claims ) as "acting" Supreme Court justices to serve on

2970-410: Was agreed that federal taxation would be based on their share of business: for instance, in years in which mutual companies represented half of the business, they would be responsible for half of the taxes paid by the industry. Many savings and loan associations were also mutual companies, owned by their depositors. As a form of corporate ownership the mutual has fallen out of favor in the U.S. since

3025-473: Was elected to the presidency in February 1930. In 1934, William D. Winter was elected president to succeed Parsons. In 1946, J. Arthur Bogardus was elected president with Winter, becoming chairman of the board. Upon Franklin B. Tuttle 's elevation to the presidency in February 1951, Bogardus became chairman. Upon Bogardus' retirement in 1953, Tuttle was elevated to board chairman and Miles F. York became

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