ALBANY – New York state will face a negligence trial before a Court of Claims judge to decide whether the state was negligent in the way its agents inspected a Lake George pleasure craft before it capsized, resulting in the deaths of 20 passengers.

Court of Claims Judge James. H. Ferreira in Albany concluded that “there are questions of fact in this record as to whether the inspectors who examined the Ethan Allen prior to October 2, 2005, exercised any discretion.”