Mayor Eric Adams has announced his intention to nominate Muriel Goode-Trufant as New York City’s next corporation counsel. A seasoned public servant with over 30 years of experience in the New York City Department of Law, Goode-Trufant has served as acting corporation counsel since this summer, positioning her as a strong candidate to lead the department.
“I am excited to announce my intention to nominate Muriel Goode-Trufant as New York City’s next corporation counsel,” Mayor Adams declared. “Muriel’s record speaks for itself — a dedicated public servant with more than 30 years of experience at the Law Department, a recipient of the agency’s highest honor, and a lawyer who has fought for equity and justice. As our next corporation counsel, Muriel is prepared to serve our entire municipal government and use the full power of our legal system to lead our city forward.”
As corporation counsel, Goode-Trufant will oversee the New York City Department of Law, which is responsible for providing legal representation to the Mayor’s Office, the Public Advocate’s Office, the Comptroller’s Office, city agencies, and the City Council in all affirmative and defensive civil litigation.
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“I am humbled and honored by the intention to be nominated by Mayor Adams to serve as the city’s next corporation counsel,” said Muriel Goode-Trufant in response to the announcement. “Through my more than three decades as an attorney at the New York City Law Department, I am keenly aware of the vital role the corporation counsel plays in New York City government.”
Goode-Trufant will take over the position from Judge Sylvia Hinds-Radix, who stepped down at the end of May after leading the Department of Law since January 2022.
About Muriel Goode-Trufant
Muriel Goode-Trufant’s extensive career at the New York City Department of Law began in 1991 as an attorney in the General Litigation Division. Over the years, she has held various roles, including assistant chief of that division, and later became the agency’s Equal Employment Opportunity officer. She rose through the ranks to become chief of the Special Federal Litigation Division and was appointed managing attorney in 2015. Most recently, she served as first assistant corporation counsel in 2023.
Before her tenure with the city, Goode-Trufant was an associate at the Philadelphia law firm Cohen, Shapiro, Polisher, Shiekman and Cohen. Her dedication to legal excellence has earned her numerous accolades, including the Law Department’s highest honor, the Corporation Counsel’s Award for Distinguished Legal Service, awarded in 2011.
Goode-Trufant holds a law degree from Temple University School of Law and a degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
Under the City Charter, her nomination as corporation counsel is subject to confirmation by the City Council, marking the next step in her anticipated leadership role.