1616 Second Avenue Restaurant, Inc. v. New York State Liquor Authority

*160OPINION OF THE COURT

Chief Judge Wachtler.

The issue on this appeal is whether public statements made by the Chairman of the State Liquor Authority (SLA) concerning charges then pending in an SLA proceeding against a licensee, disqualified the Chairman from participating in the administrative review of that proceeding. We conclude that, because the Chairman’s statements to a legislative oversight committee indicated prejudgment of facts in issue in an adjudicatory proceeding, his failure to disqualify himself from that proceeding deprived the licensee of due process of law under the Federal…