ALBANY (AP) - A newly elected New York County Surrogate's Court judge has been suspended with pay before she even takes the bench.

The Court of Appeals, without comment, ordered Nora Anderson suspended as of Jan. 1, the start of her term.

The state Commission on Judicial Conduct last week recommended suspending the 56-year-old trusts-and-estates lawyer until campaign finance charges against her are resolved. She was elected in November.

A Manhattan grand jury charged Anderson last month with falsifying business records, offering a false instrument for filing and violating campaign contribution limits.

Anderson and a campaign donor pleaded not guilty. Her lawyer says the case is about an alleged loan violation that even election-law experts disagree about.