Margaret Walsh

Margaret Walsh was elected to the New York State Supreme Court in 2018, having served as a family court judge for fourteen years.   

She has retired from the bench and recently stepped down as the senior Co-Chair of the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics, a panel of twenty- seven judges that decides matters of judicial ethics for New York State's judges. Throughout her judicial career, she served as a member, appointed by the Chief Judge of New York State, of many court system committees and commissions. She has most recently served as a member of the New York State Permanent Judicial Commission on Justice for Children, the New York State Commission on Parental Legal Representation, the Richard C. Failla LGBTQ Commission of the New York Courts, and the Gender Fairness Committee of the Third Judicial District.  

Margaret Walsh, past Vice President of the National Association of Women Judges’ New York Chapter and past Vice President of the New York State Family Court Judges’ Association, served as the judicial lead in New York State's System Improvement Program, a federal government project that sought to redesign state courts' child welfare practices relative to alcohol and drug addiction cases. She was the lead judge in Albany County for the New York State Child Welfare Court Improvement Project and a member of the Statewide Multidisciplinary Child Welfare Collaborative, the steering committee that provided guidance to local Court Improvement Projects. In these roles Judge Walsh ascertained and advanced the implementation of practices that reduce the time children spend in foster care. 

Judge Walsh formed and chaired the Court/Community Partnership to ensure communication among courts, schools, police, and other agencies regarding children and youth who are the subject of family court proceedings. Practices developed through this Committee's work promote better outcomes for court-involved youth, people who come to the court having experienced extreme adverse childhood events.

Albany Law School presented Judge Walsh with its prestigious Kate Stoneman Day Award. She also received the Capital District Women’s Bar Association’s Hon. Judith S. Kaye Distinguished Attorney Member Award, and her high school inducted her into their alumni Hall of Fame.  On the occasion of her retirement in March, 2023, public officials (the Mayor of Albany, the Albany County Executive, her New York State Senator, and two New York State Assembly members) issued proclamations or citations. Most recently, her judicial career was celebrated with an award from the Albany Children’s Center. 

• NAWJ