The judge who’s going to decide the fate of the outer-borough taxi law is a real hack.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron used to be a cabby himself, driving a yellow taxi to make ends meet while he was an undergrad at Columbia in the late 1960s.

“I loved the freedom, the instant cash, getting to meet people, learning how to drive like a maniac without being caught,” he quipped yesterday.

Engoron made the comments after hearing arguments from the taxi industry urging him to block the city from proceeding with its new outer-borough street-hail plan.

Yellow taxis would still be permitted to service those areas, but their owners don’t like the added competition. They’re arguing that the law should be stricken, since it was passed by state legislators, and that local taxi matters should be determined by the City Council.

Engoron said he’ll rule today on the industry’s request for a temporary restraining order.