NYC Courts To Accept New Lawsuits, State Judge Says
NEW YORK, NY — New York state courts in New York City will begin accepting new lawsuits in non-essential matters next week, the chief administrative judge for the state's unified court system announced this week.
Litigious New Yorkers will be able to file lawsuits electronically beginning Monday, May 25, Judge Lawrence Marks wrote in a memo published Wednesday. The new rule is being implemented in courts in New York State counties that do not meet Gov. Andrew Cuomo's benchmarks to reopen physically.
"This expanded use of [NYS Courts Electronic Filing] will permit a significant broadening of civil litigation in a manner that continues to ensure the highest measure of health and safety to judges, court personnel and the public," Marks wrote in the memo.
State courts in 13 upstate counties in New York's Finger Lakes, Mohawk Valley and Southern Tier regions resumed in-person activities this week after the regions were cleared to begin reopening by Cuomo's administration. Regions must meet certain benchmarks that measure coronavirus hospitalizations, death rates, available beds, testing and tracing capacity in order to begin reopening in phases. New York's North Country and Central New York regions will be the next to reopen their courts.
"The reopening of these five regions is a very significant turn in the State’s emergence from the COVID-19 pandemic, and our court system is pleased to be able to begin our return to fuller service. But make no mistake, this is most decidedly not a return to business as usual," Chief Judge of New York Janet DiFiore said in a recent address.
New York courts closed on March 22 in accordance with state stay-at-home orders enacted by Gov. Cuomo to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Certain essential functions of the court system were conducted remotely — including matters such as mental health applications, child protective orders, tenant harassment, criminal cases and in-progress jury trials — following the closure.
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This article originally appeared on the New York City Patch
