Legislative Propossals of the CPLR Committee Last update 05/10/02

Draft Proposals Approved by the Committee

Proposal to amend CPLR 3212. The Committee has proposed to amend CPLR 3212 to allow motions for summary judgment to be made, with court approval, in the absence of an answer. [Pending proposals are subject to revision until approved by the NYSBA Executive Committee.]

Proposal to amend CPLR 3216. The Committee has proposed the amendment of CPLR 3216 as a remedy for neglect to proceed, as an alternative to that current procedual which the Committee believes is ineffective. [Pending proposals are subject to revision until approved by the NYSBA Executive Committee.]

Approved Proposals -- The following proposals have been approved by the Executive Committee of the New York State Bar Association. The Committee is therefore advocating passage of these bills before the legislature with the assistance of the legislative staff of the Association.

Proposal to amend CPLR 2303 to require notice of the service of a subpoena. The Committee has proposed an amendment of CPLR 2303 in order to require the service of a copy of a subpoena upon all counsel who have appear in a pending action. The subpoena shall be served "so that it is received by such parties promptly after service on the witness and before the attendance of the witness or production of books, papers or other things." The proposal was approved by the Executive Committee on November 2, 2001.

Proposal to amend CPLR 8301(a) with respect to the recovery of deposition costs. The Committee has proposed an amendment of CPLR 8301(a)(9) to increase the amount of allowable disbursements from $250 to $2,500 for the taking and making of transcripts of testimony on examinations before trial in any one action. The proposal was approved by the Executive Committee as its June, 2000 meeting.

Proposal to amend CPLR 3101(i) with respect to timing of disclosure. The Committee has proposed an amendment to CPLR 3101(i) which would condition disclosure of video and audio recordings which are made after the commencement of an action upon the holding of a deposition of the person depicted in the recording. The amendment was proposed in response to the Fourth Department's decision in DiNardo vs. Koronowski , 252 A.D.2d 69,684 N.Y.S.2d 736 (4th Dept. 1998) and Rotundi. v. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., ___ A.D.2d ____ (3d Dep't 1/13/00).

Proposal concerning the effectiveness of orders, upon signature or entry by clerk. This proposal enables appeals to be taken before entry of order by the clerk. The Committee believes that the administrative delays surrounding entry, which often occur in the clerk's offices in large metropolitan area, should not be an impediment to the taking of an appeal.

Committee Approves Rule to Require Notice on TROs. The Committee has proposed an amendment in the Uniform Rules to require that a party seeking a temporary restraining order provide notification to the party sought to be restrained except where it can be shown that such notification is not practicable or that such notification would defeat the purpose of the restraint.

Proposal to Amend CPLR 2214 and 2215. This proposal would overhaul the time periods for making motions under the CPLR. Introduced as A3319 WEPRIN, this legislation would amend CPLR 2214, 2215 & S2103, and increases the amount of time for the filing of motions, affidavits, exhibit and memoranda of law unless some other time is provided by the rule of the local judge or justice; calculates such time limits by "business days" excluding weekends and holidays within the time limits. See Sponsor's memorandum.

A Proposal to create a parent child privilege. Click here to see the proposed bill. A modified version of the proposal was introduced in the 1999-2000 Legislative Session as S05504. See Recent Federal Courts of Appeals Case discussing issue and surveying the law, In re Grand Jury (3d Cir. Jan 1997).

Commitee Bills Enacted

2001-2002 Legislative Session

Commencement of Special Proceedings. S00077 SKELOS/ A04196 WEPRIN - Amd SS304, 306-a & 306-b, CPLR. Provides that a special proceeding shall be commenced by the filing of a petition and such petition with notice of petition or order to show cause shall be served within 120 days of the filing of the petition. Supporting Memorandum. Became a law November 21, 2001, with the approval of the Governor. Passed by majority vote, three-fifths being present. Chapter 473 of the Laws of 2001.

1999-2000 Legislative Session

Revised Proposal converning the venue of applications in special proceedings - S06672 SKELOS. In response to the Court of Appeals decision in Matter of Solkav Solartechnik, G.m.b.H. (Besicorp Group Inc), 91 N.Y.2d 482 (1998), the Committee proposed to amend CPLR 7502(a), which amends the rules governing the venue of special proceedings brought in connection with arbitration and, inter alia, requires all applications relating to an arbitration to be presented in the same case even if final judgment has been entered on a prior application. The is a revised legislation which is being submitted after the Governor's veto of the Committee initial proposal on the subject. This bill was enacted effective August 16, 2000, L.2000, c.226.

Time for Service of Notice of Appeal - S03070 SKELOSR/A05936 - Adds 5 days to the period in which a civil appeal must be filed when the judgment or order appealed from and written notice of its entry is served by mail, and adds one business day when such service is by overnight delivery service. Resolves conflict in the appellate divisions on the issue. Read the Supporting Memorandum. This bill was enacted effective June 22, 1999, L.1999, c.94.

Service on Limited Liability Companies - S01206 - CPLR 310 & 311, and new 311-a; Limited Liability Law 305. Also original legislation proposed by the CPLR Committee, the bill clarifies the rules governing service of process on limited liability companies and limited partnerships. Read the Supporting Memorandum. The bill was enacted effective July 27, 1999, L.1999, c. 341.

1997-1998 Legislative Session

Proposed CPLR 4548. Expands protection of settlement negotiations to mirror FRE 408. Bill was approved by the Executive Committee in January 1998. This bill was enacted effective July 14, 1998. L.1998, c.317, and renumbered CPLR 4547.

Proposed CPLR 4547. This bill would make it clear that privileged communications can be sent by e-mail without losing the privilege. The Executive Committee of the Association approved this bill at its January, 1997 meeting. Click here to see a copy of the proposal, together with some comments and debate thereon. This bill was enacted effective July 7, 1998. L.1998, c.156, and was subsequently renumbered CPLR 4548.

Proposal on Production of Documents. The aim of this proposal to amend CPLR 3122 to add subsection (c) is to streamline the process of the production of documents by imposing the requirement that documents be organized to correspond to the categories in the requests. This bill was enacted effective July 14, 1998. L.1998, c.295.

Suggestions from members of the Bar are welcome. Send your comments to scrit@adelphia.net. Please reference the particular bill in your message.

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