Hofstra Law alumna Judith A. Livingston ’79, a senior partner at Kramer, Dillof, Livingston & Moore, is profiled in the May 18, 2015, CNNMoney story “She’s the queen of million-dollar verdicts.”
The article notes that with 31 jury verdicts that top $1 million, Livingston is one of the top female litigators in the United States. She’s also a member of the prestigious Inner Circle of Advocates, an organization of the best 100 plaintiff trial lawyers in America. She was the first woman invited into the organization and its youngest member.
Livingston speaks candidly in the article about her path to a career as a trial attorney, which included discovering her passion for trial law while pursuing her J.D. at Hofstra Law, and the challenges she faces as a plaintiff’s attorney specializing in malpractice and personal injury.
The article also notes that early in Livingston’s career those challenges were even greater because of her gender. “There was a time when Judy was first trying cases when clients wouldn’t want her because she was a woman,” New York Supreme Court Justice Douglas McKeon said to writer Parija Kavilanz. “She had to overcome that inherent unfairness. She’s a pioneer who’s become a role model.”
Livingston told Kavilanz she wants to see more women in the courtroom. Recalling a recent conversation with two young female trial lawyers, she said, “I told them that women who pursue trial law for the right reasons can become very dangerous advocates for those who have been wronged.”