Forman

POUGHKEEPSIE - Dutchess County Family Court Judge Peter Forman Friday announced that he will seek a second term as Family Court judge this November.

Forman was initially appointed to that post by then-Governor George Pataki in April 1999 to fill a vacancy. The Beacon resident was later elected by in November 1999 to a full 10-year term.

In 2002, Administrative Judge Francis Nicolai appointed Forman as Acting Supreme Court Justice. In addition to his duties as Family Court judge, he became responsible for handling matrimonial cases and Article 78 petitions filed by inmates in local prisons. 

During that same year, Forman formed the first Dutchess County Family Treatment Court, over which he continues to preside.  Family Treatment Court is also known as a “drug court’, working with parents who have substance abuse issues and may have lost, or are in danger of losing, their children to foster care.  In 2005, he opened a similar problem-solving court, Youth Treatment Court, a court for juveniles with substance abuse issues.