Peter Tom is an Associate Justice on the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department is headquartered in Manhattan.-Jurisdiction:The Appellate Division holds jurisdiction over the Counties of New York and the Bronx...

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Legal career

In 1976, he worked as a Law Clerk for the New York City Civil Court

New York City Civil Court

The New York City Civil Court is a court hearing civil cases within New York City. By volume, it is the largest civil jurisdiction court in the United States, and handles about 25% of the total filings of the entire New York state court system.-Jurisdiction:...

, working on both criminal and civil assignments. He was appointed as a judge on the Housing Court from 1985 to 1988 and a Civil Court from 1988 to 1990. He was a New York Supreme Court Justice

New York Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in thestate court system of New York, United States. There is a supreme court in each of New York State's 62 counties, although some smaller counties share judges with neighboring counties...

, from 1990 to 1994. He was designated a Justice for the Appellate Division, First Judicial Department by Governor Mario Cuomo

Mario Cuomo

Mario Matthew Cuomo served as the 52nd Governor of New York from 1983 to 1994, and is the father of Andrew Cuomo, the current governor of New York.-Early life:...

in 1994 and served as Acting Presiding Justice in 2007 and 2009. He was the first Asian American elected to the New York State Supreme Court from New York County and the first Asian American to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.