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S02849 Summary:

S02849 Actions:

S02849 Floor Votes:

S02849 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          2849
 
                               2009-2010 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                      March 4, 2009
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by Sen. SAMPSON -- (at request of the Office of Court Admin-
          istration) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed  to  be
          committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the judiciary law, in relation to the emergency relo-
          cation of terms of courts; and to repeal  certain  provisions  of  the

          judiciary law relating thereto
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Sections 8, 9, 10, 11 and  12  of  the  judiciary  law  are
     2  REPEALED and a new section 8 is added to read as follows:
     3    §  8.  Emergency  relocations  of  court terms. 1. Notwithstanding any
     4  other provision of law, if an emergency or other exigent circumstance or
     5  the imminent threat thereof prevents the safe and practicable holding of
     6  a term of any court at the location designated by law therefor, then:
     7    a. the governor, after consultation with the chief judge or his or her
     8  designee if practicable, may by executive order appoint another location

     9  for the temporary holding of such term if it is a term of a trial court;
    10  or
    11    b. where the governor has not acted pursuant to paragraph  a  of  this
    12  subdivision, or if it is a term of a court other than a trial court, the
    13  chief  judge  or  his  or  her  designee (or the presiding justice of an
    14  appellate division or his or her designee if it is a term of such appel-
    15  late division or of  an  appellate  term  established  in  the  judicial
    16  department  served  by  such  appellate  division)  may by order appoint
    17  another location for the temporary holding of such  term;  except  that,
    18  where  the  court  is  a  trial  court,  nothing in this paragraph shall
    19  prevent the issuance of a superseding order pursuant to paragraph  a  of

    20  this subdivision.
    21    2.  To the extent practicable, an order pursuant to subdivision one of
    22  this section:
    23    a. shall designate the most proximate location in which such  term  of
    24  court  safely  and  practicably can be held, without limitation based on
    25  the judicial department, judicial district, county, city, town,  village
    26  or other geographical district for which such court was established;
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09169-01-9
        S. 2849                             2
 
     1    b.  shall  be  made  in  conformance  with  state  and  local disaster

     2  preparedness plans governing the continued effective  operation  of  the
     3  civil  and  criminal justice systems pursuant to sections twenty-two and
     4  twenty-three of the executive law; and
     5    c.  for  a  trial  court other than the court of claims, shall be made
     6  after consultation with the chief executive officer of the county, city,
     7  town or village for which such court was established and the chief exec-
     8  utive officer of the corresponding county,  city,  town  or  village  to
     9  which  the  term  of such court temporarily would be relocated, or their
    10  designees.
    11    3. An order pursuant to subdivision  one  of  this  section  shall  be
    12  effective  for  no  more  than  thirty  days and may be reauthorized for

    13  successive periods of no more than thirty days each in like  fashion  as
    14  an  original  order.  As  soon as practicable, such order shall be filed
    15  with the office of court administration and the office of the  clerk  of
    16  each  county affected thereby, and shall be publicized by the best means
    17  practicable and for such duration as such order shall provide.
    18    4. Every term of court subject to an order pursuant to subdivision one
    19  of this section shall, for the  duration  of  such  order,  continue  to
    20  preside for the original judicial department, judicial district, county,
    21  city,  town, village or other geographical district for which such court
    22  was established, and every action and proceeding in such term  shall  be

    23  subject to the same substantive and procedural law as would have applied
    24  had such term not been temporarily relocated.
    25    5.  Notwithstanding any other provision of section thirty-nine of this
    26  article, if an order pursuant to subdivision one of this  section  shall
    27  temporarily  relocate  a term of court outside the county, city, town or
    28  village for which such court was established, then the costs  of  tempo-
    29  rarily  providing facilities suitable and sufficient for the transaction
    30  of business of such court outside such county,  city,  town  or  village
    31  shall be charges upon the office of court administration.
    32    §  2.  Section  211  of  the  judiciary law is amended by adding a new
    33  subdivision 5 to read as follows:

    34    5. Consistent with the provisions of section eight  of  this  chapter,
    35  the  chief  judge  may relocate a term of court if an emergency or other
    36  exigent circumstance or the imminent threat thereof  prevents  the  safe
    37  and  practicable  holding of such term at the location designated by law
    38  therefor.
    39    § 3. The disaster preparedness commission is directed to review and if
    40  necessary amend and continuously maintain the state  disaster  prepared-
    41  ness  plan  established  pursuant to section twenty-two of the executive
    42  law, and each county, city, town and village that has prepared  a  local
    43  disaster preparedness plan pursuant to section twenty-three of the exec-
    44  utive  law is directed to review and if necessary amend and continuously
    45  maintain such local plan to  ensure  state  and  local  preparedness  to

    46  effectuate  relocation orders authorized by section eight of the judici-
    47  ary law as added by section one of this act.
    48    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
          REPEAL NOTE.--Sections 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the  judiciary  law,  as
        repealed  by  section one of this act, provide limited authorization for
        the governor, presiding judges, the mayor of the city of  New  York  and
        county  judges to relocate certain courts under the circumstances stated
        therein.