Provides that a surrogate court clerk or chief clerk shall refuse to accept for filing papers filed in a proceeding only under certain circumstances or as designated in statute, administrative rule or order of the court; provides such reasons; requires the payment of any applicable statutory fees, or an order of the court waiving payment of such fees, before accepting a paper for filing; makes related provisions.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
887--A
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the surrogate's court procedure act, in relation to
court filing
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 2611 of the surrogate's court procedure act is
2 amended by adding a new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
3 4. (a) In accordance with paragraph (c) of rule 2102 of the civil
4 practice law and rules, a surrogate court clerk or chief clerk shall
5 refuse to accept for filing papers filed in a proceeding only under the
6 following circumstances or as designated in statute, administrative rule
7 or order of the court;
8 (i) the paper does not have a file number;
9 (ii) the petition, decree or order sought to be filed with the court
10 contains the words "et al" or otherwise does not contain a full caption;
11 (iii) the paper sought to be filed with the clerk is filed in the
12 wrong court;
13 (iv) the paper is not signed in accordance with section 130-1.1-a of
14 the rules of the chief administrator; or
15 (v) the paper sought to be filed is in a proceeding subject to elec-
16 tronic filing pursuant to the rules of the chief administrator but is
17 not being filed electronically, and either
18 (A) is not being filed by an unrepresented litigant; or
19 (B) does not include the notice required by paragraph 1 of subdivision
20 d of section 202.5-b of such rules.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02136-02-5
S. 887--A 2
1 (b) The chief clerk shall require the payment of any applicable statu-
2 tory fees, or an order of the court waiving payment of such fees, before
3 accepting a paper for filing.
4 (c) A clerk or chief clerk of the court shall signify a refusal to
5 accept a paper by use of a stamp on the paper indicating the date of the
6 refusal and shall explain in writing on the paper the reason for the
7 refusal.
8 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
