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.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6997
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 10, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SIMONE -- read once and referred 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
A. 6997 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.
