Vito J. Titone

Vito Joseph Titone^[3] (July 5, 1929 – July 6, 2005) was an American judge who served as an Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1985 to 1998.^[1][4]

Vito J. Titone
Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals
In office May 28, 1985[1] – September 1, 1998[2]
Appointed by	Mario Cuomo
Preceded by	Lawrence H. Cooke
Succeeded by	Albert Rosenblatt
Personal details
Born	(1929-07-05)July 5, 1929 Brooklyn, New York City, New York
Died	July 6, 2005(2005-07-06) (aged 76) Staten Island, New York City, New York
Political party	Democratic

Titone was known as a liberal lion of the state's highest court.^[5] One of his most notable decisions was the majority opinion in Braschi v. Stahl, which recognized for the first time that a gay couple could be considered a family under the law.^[6]

Born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Queens, Titone received his law degree from St. John's University School of Law, where he was a classmate and close friend with future Governor Mario Cuomo, who later appointed Titone to the Court of Appeals.^[7][8] He died on July 6, 2005, in Staten Island, New York City, New York at age 76.^[5]