Pattern Jury Instructions in Legal Practice

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The Honorable Deborah H. Karalunas obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University in 1978 and graduated cum laude from Syracuse University College of Law in 1982. Following law school, Karalunas clerked for United States District Court Judge Howard G. Munson in the Northern District of New York. In 1983, Karalunas joined the law firm of Bond, Schoeneck & King in Syracuse, New York, where she later became a partner. In 2002, Karalunas was elected to serve as a Supreme Court Justice in the 5th Judicial District. She presides over a wide range of civil cases, including commercial, personal injury, medical malpractice, intellectual property, constitutional, and environmental matters. In 2007, Karalunas was appointed Presiding Justice of the Supreme Court, Commercial Division, Onondaga County. She also serves as Chair of the 5th Judicial District Women in the Courts Committee.

The Hon. David Demarest (Ret.) was a justice of the St. Lawrence County Supreme Court in the Fourth Judicial District of NY. He was elected to the Supreme Court in 1994 and retained in subsequent elections. He retired in 2015. He received a BS from St. Lawrence University in 1970 and his JD from Albany Law School. After law school, he entered into solo practice, where he remained until he became a principal law clerk with the NYS Unified Court System. He serves as the Chair of the Pattern Jury Instructions Committee of the Association of Justices of the Supreme Court of the State of New York. He is also the Principal of Demarest Mediation Services.