"The Robing Room: NY State Judges

Hon. Thomas Raffaele	See Rating Details
Civil Court
Queens County	See Comments

Attorney Average Rating: 7.6 - 6 rating(s) Non-Attorney Average Rating: - 0 rating(s)	Please send me alerts on this judge E-mail Address:

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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. Thomas Raffaele

Comments

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY9816
Rating:9.1

Comments:
Does what he is paid to do, which in Queens Supreme Court is a refreshing and surprising change of pace.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY7697
Rating:5.8

Comments:
Justice Raffaele is a very nice man, evenhanded and quite fair. He will let you try your case and allow the attorneys to advocate for their clients. His biggest problem is his court attorney. She also is a nice lady, has impeccable handwriting, but is often wrong on the law. Most of my appeals as appellant and respondent involve decisions of his court attorney. As a fact finder, this part is accurate in assessing witnesses. In addressing legal issues, one word: duck.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY4127
Rating:6.5

Comments:
a pleasure to appear in his courtroom

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY1333
Rating:10.0

Comments:
I work for one of the debt collection attorneys, and have always found this judge to be fair, honest, and intelligent, and his court attorney treated me with respect, with fairness, and had an excellent grasp of the law. We always got a fair shake, win or lose, and we appreciate that.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY1332
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
I appeared routinely in front of Judge, now Justice Raffaele, and couldnt disagree more with the previous comment, obviously written by the same person (Note use of term "Raffaele's Brain" in both posts). Judge Raffaele is a pleasure to appear in front of, and his former court attorney, who, for whatever reason, did not join him in Supreme Court, guided him with years of experience, sage advice, and not only a profound knowledge of the law, but a compassion for the litigants and their plights. The prior posts sound like they were written by a jealous colleague, and they most likely were.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY1311
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
To his benefit, his court attorney apparently did not make the trip with him up to Supreme Court - another example of what a contemptible man he is. The judges almost always take their court attorneys with them to Supreme, yet "Raffaele's Brain" is now the court attorney for a new Civil Queens Judge, Richard Latin.

Latin seems like a good guy. I hope he isn't corrupted by Raffaele's cast-off.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY1294
Rating:4.1

Comments:
A very nice and calm man. He is not the problem. His court attorney is a scourge and one of the rudest and nastiest people you will ever encounter in the court system. He is condescending and on a huge power trip. His disdain for his own judge is evident throughout the proceedings. He clearly thinks of himself as "Raffaele's Brain", as he positions himself in the jury box or witness stand during bench trials and then gives the judge signals as if he is a third base coach during a baseball game. Sadly, Raffaele often seems content to follow them.

Civil Litigation - Private

Comment #: NY849
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
This judge bends over backwards to reach a just outcome and to be sympathetic to the plight of the little guy. He also goes out of his way to consider all your arguments instead of just brushing you off. His court attorney is sharp and gets you out of there fast by conferencing cases quickly, which is what you want when you are dashing from part to part.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY848
Rating:9.9

Comments:
I've appeared in front of this judge numerous times. He is extremely fair and always listens to what you have to say. His law secretary goes out of his way to be helpful to the attorneys and knows the law extremely well - one of the top law guys I've met in Queens. I've lost a few times in front of this judge, and I'm not upset because I got a full chance to be heard and a fair shake each and every time.

Criminal Defense Lawyer

Comment #: NY117
Rating:Not Rated
Comments:
Your biggest battle will be with the judge's law secretary.