Joy F Campanelli

Absolutely terrible court. She makes up her own rules and offers no discussion. At least she is impartial in her orders and is an equal opportunity thrower of wrenches in the Brooklyn judicial system.

Judge Campanelli uses absurd procedural requirements to place motions on the back burner so she does not have to decide them. No word count certification? See you in 6 months! Refile everything. This woman's obsession with word count certifications has reached absurd heights. The worse part of it? She will make you and your adversary come to court, sit there for hours while she drags her feet through the day's calendar, make you conference with her clerks .... who will then unabashedly tell you that, in fact, your motion will not be heard because your adversary did not submit a word count certification. In other words, she knows your motion will not be heard ahead of time, but makes you attend the cattle call anyway. For what? As punishment? For kicks? Who knows. Don't bother asking the robots masquerading as clerks; they act like beaten children; lobotomized robots is perhaps a better description. No flexibility, not even a shred of recognition of the practical difficulties their procedural games are imposing upon people.

Horrible. She has absolutely no understanding of the concept of "judicial discretion" and applies technical rules with no flexibility whatsoever, often at the expense of judicial economy and without any view of the big picture. She will deny motions on absurd technical grounds instead of using discretion to overlook them, forcing attorneys to engage in additional expense and time of refiling, even several times. Such rigidity is a poor quality for someone on the bench.

It was a real pleasure to try a case before Judge Campanelli. After reading some of the reviews below I was concerned to say the least. During a protracted, complex case I was pleased to find Justice Campanelli pleasant, knowledgeable and hardworking. Most importantly she let both sides try their cases without unnecessary interference. I did not find her overly concerned with formality and respect. She clearly values the formality of a the proceedings and respect for the Court but was always appropriate in this manner.

In a 7-week trial over a complex issue of mild traumatic brain injury, Justice Campanelli treated both sides with fairness and integrity. Despite extraordinary pressure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she saw a trial that encompassed testimony from more than 20 witnesses through to conclusion. Even when I disagreed with her rulings, I never doubted her ability to manage her courtroom and her effort to give both sides the opportunity to present their best case. It was an honor to appear before her.