Litigants in New York City can now resolve disputes valued at up to $10,000 in Small Claims Court—double the previous jurisdictional limit in that venue—under new legislation approved by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

The new law is intended to allow more litigants to avoid hiring an attorney to resolve minor disputes by placing more cases in Small Claims Court, rather than in New York City Civil Court.

The legislation was proposed by the state Office of Court Administration as a program bill, which is a measure pitched by a statewide official, in this case Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks, and sponsored by members of the state Legislature.