Bill Text: NY S06676 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Standardizes the language across the relevant court acts to allow tenants statewide to sue in the county where the real property at issue is located in matters relating to a tenancy or lease; requires the Office of Court Administration to develop necessary forms, procedures and deliver a report.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-02-27 - referred to judiciary [S06676 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S06676-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6676

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                       May 4, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sen. HOYLMAN-SIGAL -- read twice and ordered printed, and
          when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary

        AN ACT to amend the uniform city court act and the uniform justice court
          act, in relation to obtaining jurisdiction over certain defendants

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Subdivision (a) of section 1803 of the uniform city court
     2  act, as amended by chapter 485 of the laws of 2021, is amended  to  read
     3  as follows:
     4    (a)  Small  claims shall be commenced upon the payment by the claimant
     5  of a filing fee of fifteen dollars for claims in the amount of one thou-
     6  sand dollars or less and twenty dollars for claims in the amount of more
     7  than one thousand dollars, without the service of a summons and,  except
     8  by special order of the court, without the service of any pleading other
     9  than  a statement of his or her cause of action by the claimant or some-
    10  one in his or her behalf to the clerk, who shall reduce the  same  to  a
    11  concise, written form and record it in a docket kept especially for such
    12  purpose.  Such procedure shall provide for the sending of notice of such
    13  claim by ordinary first  class  mail  and  certified  mail  with  return
    14  receipt  requested  to  the  party  complained against (1) at his or her
    15  residence, if he or she resides within the county, and his or her  resi-
    16  dence  is known to the claimant, or (2) at his or her office or place of
    17  regular employment within the county if he or she does not reside there-
    18  in or his or her residence within the county is not known to the  claim-
    19  ant,  or  (3)  where  the  claimant is or was a tenant or lessee of real
    20  property owned by the defendant and the claim relates to such tenancy or
    21  lease and the notice of claim cannot be sent under paragraph one or  two
    22  of this subdivision, at any place in the [county or an adjoining county]
    23  state  where claimant may mail or otherwise deliver rent.  If, after the
    24  expiration of twenty-one days, such ordinary first class mailing has not
    25  been returned as undeliverable, the party complained  against  shall  be

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11154-01-3
        S. 6676                             2

     1  presumed  to  have  received  notice  of  such  claim. Such notice shall
     2  include a clear description of the procedure for filing a  counterclaim,
     3  pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section.
     4    Such  procedure  shall  further  provide for an early hearing upon and
     5  determination of such claim. No filing fee, however, shall  be  demanded
     6  or  received on small claims of employees who shall comply with [§ 1912]
     7  section nineteen hundred twelve of this act which is hereby made  appli-
     8  cable, except that necessary mailing costs shall be paid.
     9    § 2. Subdivision (a) of section 1803 of the uniform justice court act,
    10  as  amended  by  chapter  485 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as
    11  follows:
    12    (a) Small claims shall be commenced upon the payment by  the  claimant
    13  of  a filing fee of ten dollars for claims in the amount of one thousand
    14  dollars or less and fifteen dollars for claims in  the  amount  of  more
    15  than  one thousand dollars, without the service of a summons and, except
    16  by special order of the court, without the service of any pleading other
    17  than a statement of his or her cause of action by the claimant or  some-
    18  one  in  his  or her behalf to the clerk, who shall reduce the same to a
    19  concise, written form and record it in a filing system maintained  espe-
    20  cially for such purpose. Such procedure shall provide for the sending of
    21  notice  of  such  claim  by ordinary first class mail and certified mail
    22  with return receipt requested to the party complained against (1) at his
    23  or her residence, if he or she resides within the county and his or  her
    24  residence is known to the claimant, (2) at his or her office or place of
    25  regular  employment within the municipality if he or she does not reside
    26  within the county or his or her residence within the county is not known
    27  to the claimant, or (3) where claimant is or was a tenant or  lessee  of
    28  real  property  owned  by  the  defendant  and the claim relates to such
    29  tenancy or lease and the notice of claim cannot be sent under  paragraph
    30  one  or  two  of  this  subdivision,  at  any place in the [county or an
    31  adjoining county] state where claimant may  mail  or  otherwise  deliver
    32  rent.  If,  after the expiration of twenty-one days, such ordinary first
    33  class  mailing  has  not  been  returned  as  undeliverable,  the  party
    34  complained  against  shall  be  presumed to have received notice of such
    35  claim. Such notice shall include a clear description  of  the  procedure
    36  for filing a counterclaim, pursuant to subdivision (c) of this section.
    37    Such  procedure  shall  further  provide for an early hearing upon and
    38  determination of such claim. No filing fee, however, shall  be  demanded
    39  or  received  on small claims of employees who shall comply with section
    40  nineteen hundred twelve of this act which  is  hereby  made  applicable,
    41  except that necessary mailing costs shall be paid.
    42    § 3. The office of court administration shall develop necessary forms,
    43  procedures, court personnel guidance and public information materials to
    44  implement the provisions of this act on or before its effective date and
    45  shall  provide  a report to the chairs of the senate judiciary committee
    46  and the assembly judiciary committee detailing the measures implemented.
    47    § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    48  have become a law.