Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks announced the appointment of Hon. Marguerite A. Grays as Administrative Judge for Civil Matters in the Eleventh Judicial District. The appointment was made with the approval of Chief Judge Janet DiFiore after consultation with Presiding Justice Alan D.Scheinkman of the Appellate Division, Second Department.
As Administrative Judge, Judge Grays will oversee the day-to-day operations of Queens County’s Supreme Court-Civil Term. She succeeds Hon. George J. Silver who, in addition to his duties as Deputy Chief Administrative Judge for the New York City Courts, had been serving for the past year as the Court’s Interim Administrative Judge.
“Judge Grays is an outstanding judge who, working with Judge Silver over the past months to navigate the many challenges posed by the COVID-19 crisis, has exercised effective leadership of Queens County’s Supreme Court-Civil Term,” Judge Marks said. “Her administrative skills, combined with her sound judgment, strong work ethic, and other fine qualities, will serve her well in this important post. I look forward to our working together as we strive, in these difficult times, to meet Queens County’s evolving civil justice needs.”
Judge Grays began her tenure on the New York City Civil Court bench, to which she was elected in 2000, serving Queens County. She was elected to the State Supreme Court, Queens County, in 2002, re-elected in 2026, and since 2005 has served as presiding justice of the Court’s Commercial Division.
Since 2015, she has served as the Eleventh Judicial District’s Deputy Administrative Judge for Civil Matters, helping oversee the implementation of case management reforms that have advanced the delivery of civil justice in Queens County.
Prior to becoming a judge, she was employed by the United Court System, first as a law assistant in New York City Civil Court, Queens County, and later as a principal law clerk in State Supreme Court, Queens County. Previously, she worked as a staff attorney for Queens Legal Services Corporation.
Among her professional and civic activities, Judge Grays is president of the New York Chapter of the National Association of Women Judges and chair of the Queens County Supreme Court-Civil Term’s Judicial Committee on Women in the Courts. She is past president of the Association of Black Women Attorneys and was the first African American to serve as president of the Queens County Women’s Bar Association.
Judge Grays is a graduate of the Hofstra University School of Law.
“I am grateful to Judge Silver for his stewardship as Queens County’s Administrative Judge for Civil Matters over the past year, an assignment he generously assumed along with the demands placed upon him as Deputy Chief Administrative Judge,” Judge Marks said.
Judge Gray’s appointment is effective immediately.
