Rolando Acosta is an American lawyer who was the presiding justice of the New York Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, First Judicial Department, from 2017 to 2023.
When he turned 14, Acosta moved to New York City and attended DeWitt Clinton High School.
However, under the advisement of his then girlfriend, author Vasthi Reyes-Acosta, he chose to attend Columbia Law School and graduated in 1982.
[1] Before becoming a judge, Acosta worked with the Legal Aid Society, where he was the attorney in charge of the civil trial office between 1994 and 1995, as well as the director of government and community relations.
[5] On May 22, 2017, Governor Andrew Cuomo promoted Acosta to fill the First Department's presiding justice role.