KYJKnow Your Judge v0.6.2by SwansLake
Judge directoryDonald Leo

Active Trial judge

Donald Leo

Kings County Supreme Court

New York · Kings

Identity verifiedOfficial profile locatedOfficial sources collectedPresentation intelligence
01

Overview

Identity and service

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

Judicial role
Supreme Court Justice
Service status
Active
Court level
Trial
Jurisdiction
State
02

Background

Biography and career

Gender
Male
Race
Asian
Political affiliation
Democratic (via appointer); Democratic (via appointer)

Education

  • Brooklyn Law SchoolJD, 1991
  • New York UniversityArt History, Political Science, 1988

Professional career

  • Deputy Bureau Chief, District Court & Rackets Bureaus, ?-present
  • Assistant District Attorney, District Court & Rackets Bureaus, NY, ?-present
  • Cross-Designated Assistant US Attorney, Eastern District Stike Force, ?-present
  • Assistant District Attorney, Kings County District Attorney's Office, New York, NY, 1971-1975
  • Bureau Chief, Suffolk County District Attorney's Office, District Court Bureau, NY, 1975-1985
  • Supervising Justice, NY, 2001-2003

Judicial service

  • Judge, Suffolk County Family Court, NY, 1986-1987
  • Acting Justice, New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, NY, 1988-1995
  • Judge, New York County Court, Suffolk County, NY, 1988-1995
  • Justice, New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, NY, 1996-2009
  • Presiding Justice, Guardianship Part, NY, 1997-2000
  • Presiding Justice, Integrated DV Court, NY, 2002-2003
  • Administrative Law Judge, Suffolk County District Court, NY, 2003-2011
  • Presiding Judge, Model Guardianship Part, NY, 2005-present
  • Acting Justice, New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, NY, 2010-2015
  • Justice, New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, NY, 2016-2017

Source: CourtListener / Free Law Project public biographical data. Demographic and political labels are incomplete, source-attributed, and are not used to infer judicial behavior. “Via appointer” describes CourtListener’s attribution method, not verified personal party membership.

03

Before you appear

Preparation checklist

  1. 01

    Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.

  2. 02

    Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.

  3. 03

    Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

Scope note

Statewide and courtwide guidance is labeled by scope and is not evidence of a personal preference. Division, judge-specific, or case-specific orders may control.

04

Presentation rules

What the public sources say

StatewideExplicit
Court Proceeding

Leave required

New York statewide rules require permission before photographing, filming, videotaping, audiotaping, broadcasting, or telecasting in court facilities, including courtrooms.

Page
Official rule page
Section
Part 29.1(a); party litigation recording requests and appellate/court-specific permissions are separately addressed
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
Taking photographs, films or videotapes, or audiotaping, broadcasting or telecasting, in a courthouse including any courtroom, office or hallway thereof, at any time or on any occasion, whether or not the court is in session, is forbidden, unless permission of the Chief Administrator of the Courts or a designee of the Chief Administrator is first obtained

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

StatewideExplicit
Hearing Or Trial

Allowed with notice

The official Guide to New York Evidence identifies court control over presentation of evidence as a statewide evidence topic; counsel should expect the assigned judge to control the mode and order of proof.

Page
Official evidence guide page
Section
Article 1, Court's Role table of contents; consult the current rule document and case-specific orders before relying on demonstratives
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
1.07. COURT CONTROL OVER PRESENTATION OF EVIDENCE

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

StatewideExplicit
Trial

Allowed with notice

In New York Supreme Court and County Court civil cases, the court may require indexed trial exhibit binders, notebooks, or electronic equivalents for the court, counsel, and witnesses.

Page
Official rule page
Section
22 NYCRR 202.20-h(b); exhibit format and timing may be changed by the court
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
The court may direct that on the first day of trial or at such other time as the court may set, counsel shall submit an indexed binder or notebook, or the electronic equivalent, of trial exhibits for the court's use.

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

StatewideExplicit
Trial

Allowed with notice

Civil trial counsel in New York Supreme Court and County Court must confer before trial and attempt to agree on exhibits to be offered without objection, unless the court directs otherwise.

Page
Official rule page
Section
22 NYCRR 202.34; contested exhibits are handled separately and court orders control
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
Counsel for the parties shall consult prior to trial and shall in good faith attempt to agree upon the exhibits that will be offered into evidence without objection.

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

StatewideExplicit
Commercial Division Trial

Encouraged

For Commercial Division matters, New York rules encourage Virtual Evidence Courtrooms for managing and presenting trial evidence after authorization by request or court direction.

Page
Official rule page
Section
Commercial Division Rule 25-a; applies when the case is in the Commercial Division and the VEC is authorized
Effective
November 10, 2025
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
Virtual Evidence Courtrooms (VECs) may be used to facilitate real-time access to trial exhibits and other relevant documents.

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

StatewideExplicit
Criminal Hearing

Allowed with notice

For New York criminal proceedings, virtual and hybrid appearances are governed by Part 200 consent, objection, public-access, and calendar-update requirements.

Page
Official rule page
Section
22 NYCRR 200.9-a; evidentiary hearings, pleas, sentencings, arraignments, and other proceedings have separate consent and objection rules
Last checked
July 26, 2026
Verification
Automated checks passed
Read supporting source excerpt
For all hybrid proceedings, all electronic appearances shall be projected in the physical courtroom in which the in-person portion of the proceeding is taking place in such a manner as to provide a reasonable opportunity for members of the public to view and hear the participants appearing electronically.

The requirement is stated in an official statewide source and is attached as applicable guidance, not as a personal preference.

05

Courtroom technology

Published equipment guidance

No technology specification indexed

Technology availability is separate from procedural permission and evidentiary admissibility.

06

Published opinion footprint

Decisions and citations

Opinion data is not yet indexed for this profile

This does not mean the judge has no published opinions or no caseload. KYJ will only show opinion counts after transparent, source-linked CourtListener matching is available.

07

Sources

Public documents behind this profile

08

Change history

How this profile entered KYJ

Current profile indexed

Identity imported from New York State Unified Court System Judicial Directory. 6 presentation-related claims migrated with source provenance.