Articles

JUDICIAL PROFILE; HON. DICCIA PINEDA-KIRWAN

By Michael Goldsmith

Newly elected Civil Court Judge Diccia Pineda-Kirwan, a self described “Queens girl,” comes to the judiciary with a wealth of court and real life experience.

Judge Pineda-Kirwan, a very personable lady with a gentle, easy laugh, was born in the Dominican Republic, the second youngest of seven children. Her family eventually immigrated to the United States, and settled in Hollis, Queens.

The future judge graduated with honors from Jamaica High School. She also boasted a Perfect Attendance Award. Judge Pineda-Kirwan actively participated in theater and dance in high school, and received a drama award. “I also got away with not taking gym for four years because of my participation in dance,” recalled the Judge.

In 1975, Judge Pineda-Kirwan’s family returned to the Dominican Republic. However, Judge Pineda-Kirwan chose to remain in the United States to continue her education at Queens College, graduating Cum Laude in 1978, majoring in education and Spanish with a minor in French. The future Civil Court Judge put herself through school working at three jobs, including employment in the College Library, and waiting tables.

Queens College offered Judge Pineda-Kirwan the opportunity to travel. She studied culture and geography in Brazil for a summer, and spent her final semester at the Universidad De Sevilla, in Seville, Spain.

Judge Pineda-Kirwan graduated from Queens College during a severe New York City budget crisis, and as a result, she was unable to find employment as a teacher. Being that she was over- qualified for other jobs, she had to continue to wait tables to support herself. “It was a tough time, but it gave me the opportunity to decide what I wanted to do with the future,” said the Judge.

This was also a period in which Judge Pineda-Kirwan started a family. In 1979, her daughter Shannyn was born. In 1981, Judge Pineda-Kirwan welcomed into the world her son Christopher.

In 1983, with a two year old son and four year old daughter, Judge Pineda-Kirwan entered the inaugural class at the City University of New York Law School at Queens College. While a student, Judge Pineda-Kirwan was the founder of the law school day care center, which started with a babysitter at a public school in Bayside. “Classmates would participate and read to the children. It was a very nurturing environment,” said the Judge. “We did fund raisers and by the time I graduated, the daycare center was fully incorporated,” said the Judge proudly.

After graduation, the young lawyer began her legal career at the Office of the Queens Borough President. Judge Pineda-Kirwan served as assistant counsel under Nicholas Garaufis, who is now a Federal Court Judge. Her responsibilities included litigating cases regarding the homeless, the “Garbage Barge” and the Edgemere Landfill. She also performed legal research, drafted legal memoranda and analyzed contracts submitted to the Board of Estimate. “This was a nice introduction to what I wanted to do with my professional life, which is serving the public interest. I was able to do a lot of environmental research and gained valuable insight into the government and how the City works,” said Judge Pineda-Kirwan.

In February, 1990 Judge Pineda-Kirwan began her career in the judiciary system as a court attorney for the Honorable Orin R. Kitzes, Judge of the Civil Court of the City of New York, Queens County. “Although I was sad leaving Borough President Claire Shulman, I always wanted to work in the court system,” said the Judge.

While with Judge Kitzes, the newly minted court attorney researched and drafted decisions, orders, memoranda and opinions. She also prepared jury charges and provided bench assistance during trials. She also had the opportunity to conduct pre-trial conferences and settlement conferences with attorneys and litigants in Landlord/Tenant Court, Civil Court Trial Part, Small Claims and Special Term.

When Judge Kitzes ascended to the Supreme Court, Judge Pineda-Kirwan was named his Principal Law Clerk. In the Supreme Court, Judge Pineda-Kirwan continued to ably assist Judge Kitzes in cases of a larger monetary magnitude then she had seen previously in the Civil Court. “While Judge Kitzes was still an acting Supreme Court Judge in 1993, he presided over a case which resulted in a $197 million verdict, which at the time, was the highest verdict ever rendered in the State. The verdict came after a two month trial. The trial concerned a personal injury automobile accident case, involving multiple parties and multiple jurisdictional issues. “The case was brilliantly tried by the attorneys from both parties and offered me a wonderful opportunity to observe a well tried case,” said the Judge.

Judge Pineda-Kirwan credits her time with Judge Kitzes as teaching her the daily work activities of a trial part as well as a hands on view of the court.

In June of 1998, the future judge began thinking of a judicial career and wanted other perspectives, so she became principal law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Simeon Golar. With Justice Golar, Judge Pineda-Kirwan’s tasks included researching and drafting opinions, orders, memoranda and decisions. She also handled conferences at every stage of the litigation, and worked on jury charges, verdict sheets and assisted the bench during trials. The cases heard in that part generally included property, negligence, medical malpractice, intentional torts, products liability and matrimonial actions. “It was an honor working with Judge Golar,” said Judge Pineda-Kirwan.

In January, 1999, until December, 2002, Judge Pineda-Kirwan was the principal law clerk to Supreme Court Justice William T. Glover. “Justice Glover needed a law clerk and it gave me the opportunity to gain a different judicial perspective. Judge Glover was a practitioner for forty years, and it differed with my experience, which had solely been within the court system.”

Judge Pineda-Kirwan is excited about her new position on the Civil Court bench. “After being in Supreme Court for nearly ten years, it will be great to be out in front and hearing cases back in Civil Court, where I started,” said Judge Pineda-Kirwan. “The people there are very nice, and many of them I have already worked with.”

“I am looking forward to seeing attorneys I haven’t seen in a while,” said Judge Pineda-Kirwan. “I look forward to my career as a judge. I have been waiting a long time and I haven’t stopped smiling. This a dream come true and I was glad to share my induction with my family.”

As previously mentioned, Judge Pineda-Kirwan’s oldest daughter is Shannyn Kirwan, age 23. She is contemplating Law School but currently has a good job at Standard and Poors. Her son Christopher Kirwan, is 21 years old and is a student at Geneseo. He is also thinking of following in his mother’s footsteps and attending law school. Judge Pineda-Kirwan’s youngest daughter is Lauren Pineda, age 13. She is still trying to decide on which high school she will be attending.

In her limited spare time, Judge Pineda-Kirwan enjoys horseback riding, travel and staying at Bed and Breakfast Inns. “Being that I was born in the mountains, I love outdoor activities including cross country skiing,” said the Judge. She also enjoys reading mystery novels.

Judge Pineda-Kirwan is a member of many professional organizations, including the Latino Lawyer Association of Queens County, The Dominican Bar Association, The Catholic Lawyers Guild, The National Hispanic Bar Association, The Queens Women’s Bar Association, The Queens County Bar Association and The New York State Women’s Bar Association. Judge Pineda-Kirwan is also active in community affairs. She is a member of the Latin American Women’s Council, The Queens Hispanic Coalition, an advisory board member of the Latin American Cultural Center of Queens, a member of the Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Club and the William Jefferson Clinton Democratic Club.

Judge Pineda-Kirwan is also fluent in Spanish and literate in French and Portuguese.