In 1989, Judge Donnelly was assigned to the Major Offense Career Criminal Program, a specialized bureau that focused on repeat offenders and violent felons, according to the office of Senator Chuck Schumer, who recommended her for the federal court. She served in a number of management positions, including as chief of the Family Violence and Child Abuse Bureau and as senior trial counsel.

Image Judge Ann M. Donnelly

Andrew M. Lankler, a partner at Baker Botts LLP, who served in the office from 1990 to 1996, said, “She’s an extremely intelligent, deliberative and conscientious person uniquely unswayed by anything other than justice.”

Daniel J. Horwitz, a partner at McLaughlin & Stern LLP, who worked in the district attorney’s office from 1991 to 2000, described her in a message as “tenacious, exceedingly bright but eminently fair with an even temperament.”

He added, “She’s exactly the type of judge you want to appear in front of.”

Ms. Fairstein noted that Judge Donnelly was steadfast in the face of high-profile cases that gained widespread attention. She was a lead in the prosecution of L. Dennis Kozlowski, the Tyco chief executive who was convicted in 2005 for looting nearly $100 million from the company, for which he served six and a half years in prison.

She remained the calm center of the spinning wheel of the trial, which lasted for months, Ms. Fairstein recalled.

“She will not be perturbed by the storm around her,” she said, adding that Judge Donnelly has “a firm moral compass.”

Mr. Arnone said in an email that “she had nothing but a great reputation for being a fair and diligent prosecutor.”