The City Court of the City of Hudson is continued under this
Charter, and shall be known as the "City Court of Hudson." It shall
be an inferior local court of civil and criminal jurisdiction, and
shall be open for the transaction of business each day in the year,
Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays excepted. The Common Council
shall provide suitable rooms, light, heat, furniture, books, stationery
and equipment for the use of the Court, and shall provide for the
payment therefor and of any other necessary expenses of the Court.
The sessions of the City Court shall be held by the City Judge
or, in the cases provided for herein, by the acting City Judge. No
person shall be eligible to the office of Judge of the City Court
unless he shall be an attorney and counselor at law under the laws
of the State of New York and shall have actually practiced as such
attorney and counselor for at least three years.
[Amended 4-20-2004 by L.L. No. 3-2004]
In case of the absence from the City of the City Judge, or of
his inability to act, or his disqualification to act in a particular
matter, or of a vacancy in the office of City Judge, the Mayor shall
appoint an attorney and counselor having the same qualifications as
the City Judge, to discharge the duties of City Judge, and said acting
City Judge shall possess all of the jurisdiction and exercise all
of the powers and authority with which the City Judge is vested. Before
an acting City Judge is authorized to act as prescribed in this section,
the fact of the absence from the City of the City Judge, his inability
or disqualification to act, or of the vacancy, as the case may be,
must be proved by the certificate of the Mayor, the City Judge or
the City Clerk, filed in the office of the City Clerk. Upon his return,
or his recovery from inability, or the filling of the vacancy, as
the case may be, the City Judge shall file his certificate of the
fact, and thereupon the authority of the acting City Judge shall cease.
The City Judge may be absent 30 days in each year without loss of
salary.
There shall be kept by or under the direction of the City Judge
a docket of the Court, in which shall be entered a complete and accurate
record of all process issued from said Court or by the City Judge
and returnable before either, and all proceedings in every civil or
criminal action or proceeding brought therein or before the City Judge,
and there shall be entered therein the decision or judgment rendered,
together with a statement of the amount of the fees, penalties, fines
or costs paid by any party to the action or proceeding. Such docket
shall be open to public inspection, and shall have the same force
as evidence in the courts of this state as dockets of Town Justices.
A party to an action or proceeding before the City Court or
the City Judge may prosecute or defend the same in person, or by attorney
duly licensed to practice as an attorney and counselor at law, or
by his guardian or committee if an infant or incompetent; but a person
not interested in the subject matter in dispute and who is not an
attorney and counselor at law shall not be permitted to prosecute
or defend in any such action or proceeding, unless the City Judge,
for cause shown, shall first make and enter in his minutes an order
granting leave to do so.
The City Court and City Judge of the City of Hudson shall have
and exercise such civil and criminal jurisdiction as may be granted
by, and be subject to all other provisions of, the Uniform City Court
Act, being Chapter 497 of the Laws of 1964, as amended, supplemented
and in effect, and by such other laws and rules and regulations as
now are or may hereafter be in effect.
Whenever it shall be necessary in the conduct of any trial or
proceeding before the City Court or the City Judge to interpret a
foreign language, the City Judge is authorized to employ a suitable
person as interpreter. The compensation of an interpreter shall be
the same as the compensation of a juror for each day so employed;
and claims for such services shall be presented to and audited by
the Common Council, and paid as other claims against the City.
