Rowan D. Wilson

Rowan D. Wilson (born September 3, 1960) is an American judge who has served as the chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals since 2023.

He is the first African American to serve as chief judge.

Wilson was born in Pomona, California, and grew up in Berkeley, California.

He studied at Harvard College, and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1984.

After serving a two-year term as law clerk to James R. Browning, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, he joined Cravath, Swaine & Moore as an associate in 1986.

In 1992, he became the first African-American partner at Cravath.

He remained a litigation partner until 2017, with a practice that included antitrust, intellectual property, securities fraud, and civil rights litigation.

During his time at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Wilson eventually headed the firm’s pro bono practice and representing the law firm as a trustee at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

Wilson was also the chair of the Neighborhood Defender Services of Harlem, providing legal representation to indigent residents of New York.

He was nominated as an associate judge of the New York Court of Appeals by Governor Andrew Cuomo on January 15, 2017, and confirmed by the New York State Senate on February 6, 2017.

On March 24, 2023, Wilson was selected as a finalist under consideration for appointment to the New York Court of Appeals, this time for the position of chief judge following the retirement of Chief Judge Janet DiFiore and the subsequent rejection of Justice Hector LaSalle's nomination to that seat by the New York State Senate.

On April 10, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul announced Wilson's nomination for Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals.

On April 18, the New York State Senate confirmed Wilson as Chief Judge by a vote of 40–19.