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Information From the New York Courts
on Operations During the Coronavirus Crisis
Court System’s Coronavirus Hotline: 833-503-0447
Please call the number above if you test positive for COVID-19 and have visited any courthouse or court facility in the prior fourteen days.
If you have specific questions about your juror service, a case already in court, or you need to start a court case, you can call the number above.
FOR GENERAL, NON-COVID RELATED NOTICES FROM THE COURTS, PLEASE CLICK HERE
Wednesday, May 27: NY State Bar Association To Provide Pro Bono Attorneys for Small Estate Cases Involving Covid-19 Cases
Wednesday, May 20:
Memo From Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks: Resumption of Filing New Matters
Thursday, May 14:
NY State Courts to Resume In-Person Courthouse Operations on May 18
Emergency Individual Practices of Southern District Judge Denise Cote in Light of Covid-19
Tuesday, May 12: Kings Surrogate Court: Updated Procedures To Include Adjournments Through JUNE
Monday, May 11:
Thursday, April 30: Memo from Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks: Further steps being taken to increase access to judicial services
NEW YORK STATE COURT OF APPEALS
FIRST DEPARTMENT, APPELLATE DIVISION
SECOND DEPARTMENT, APPELLATE DIVISION
THIRD DEPARTMENT, APPELLATE DIVISION
U.S. DISTRICT COURT, SOUTHERN DISTRICT
U.S. DISTRICT COURT, EASTERN DISTRICT
• Coronavirus: Revised Courthouse Procedures
• Remote Conference Part Calendars
NEW YORK CITY SURROGATE’S COURTS
SURROGATE’S COURT: NEW YORK COUNTY
SURROGATE’S COURT: BRONX COUNTY
SURROGATE’S COURT: KINGS COUNTY
• Notice of Administrative Adjournments (Updated March 27)
SURROGATE’S COURT: QUEENS COUNTY
SURROGATE’S COURT: RICHMOND COUNTY
Tuesday, April 28:
Chief Judge Janet DiFiore today approved a program to allow temporary authorization for law school graduates to engage in the limited practice of law under supervision of a qualified attorney, a step intended to alleviate hardships faced by bar applicants living under coronavirus restrictions. The Court of Appeals also announced new developments regarding registration for the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) scheduled to be administered on September 9 and 10. The official announcement appears below:
***
As previously announced, the New York bar examination is presently scheduled for September 9-10, 2020. New York historically hosts, by far, more test-takers than any other UBE jurisdiction, and efforts are ongoing to safely accommodate as many test-takers as possible in September.
However, as the current epicenter of the pandemic in the United States, New York is facing unprecedented constraints. The Court of Appeals is communicating closely with public health officials to ensure that all prudent precautions are observed, and that the health of all participants is appropriately safeguarded. Prevailing guidance indicates that, in September, New York will be affected by ongoing travel restrictions, limitations on large gatherings, and social distancing mandates – constraints that prevent us from maximizing space in our larger testing venues across the state. Seating capacity for the September examination is likely to be limited.
As a result, the application period for the September exam, opening on May 5, will proceed on a rolling basis. Given the significant public health concerns and consequent restrictions that we face, candidates are encouraged to consider taking the Uniform Bar Examination at a later date or in other jurisdictions that may be better positioned to accommodate test-takers. While we understand the considerable stress and uncertainty caused by these limitations, the health and safety of all participants must remain our top priority. Further updates concerning registration for the September exam will be communicated by the Board of Law Examiners in advance of the application period.
To alleviate the hardship on bar applicants, on April 28 the Chief Judge approved a comprehensive and streamlined program designed to provide temporary authorization for qualified law graduates to engage in the limited practice of law. Practice orders promulgated by the Appellate Division departments will allow all covered candidates employed in New York to work under the supervision of a qualified attorney in good standing who has been admitted to practice law in New York for at least three years. Temporary authorization will be available to all first-time takers of the bar examination, including both J.D. and LL.M. candidates, irrespective of their graduation year. The temporary authorization program is intended to carry qualified candidates through their swearing-in date, so long as those candidates pass their first bar examination no later than 2021 and promptly seek admission to the bar following the release of exam results. This program will supplement existing practice order programs that authorize specified candidates to engage in the supervised practice of law, which will be unaffected by this temporary measure. Formal authorization and implementation of the program will follow in the near future.
Our goal is to conduct a safe administration of the bar examination as soon as possible and to facilitate candidates’ swift admission to the bar thereafter. In the interim, the temporary authorization program should provide some assurance and stability for law students and recent law graduates eager to join the workforce. The Court is confident that New York employers will continue to exercise patience and flexibility as bar candidates navigate the obstacles presented by this crisis.
Monday, April 27:
Queens Civil Court: Please be advised that Queens Civil Court has daily Skype conferences on No Fault matters at 2pm, and Part 15 subrogation conferences every Tuesday and Thursday at 12pm. Any attorneys interested in participating in a Skype conference should email the Supervising Judge’s chambers at submissionJCF@nycourts.gov. Further, any settlements, stipulations, discontinuances or dismissals should also be emailed to submissionJCF@nycourts.gov.
Friday, April 24:
New York State Court of Appeals: The Court has announced that it will consider submitted appeals, but hear no oral arguments during it’s April-May session. During its June session, the court will hear oral arguments by video conference. Click HERE for the Notice to the Bar
Thursday, April 23:
Appellate Division, Second Department: Court Resumes Regular Appeal Decision Release Schedule Beginning Wednesday, April 29.
Wednesday, April 22:
Kings Civil Court: 141 Livingston Street: Operations of the Court During the Pandemic
Thursday, April 16:
First Department, Appellate Division Expands Operations as a Virtual Court
Richmond County Surrogate’s Court: Updated Notice of Operations
Kings County Surrogate’s Court: Updated Procedures
Wednesday, April 15: New York State Bar: Covid-19 Recovery Task Force Appointed To Oversee Pro Bono Network
Tuesday, April 14: Updated Message from Judge DiFiore
Monday, April 13: Virtual Courts Expanded Beyond Essential Matters
Monday, April 13: NYSBA: Gov. Cuomo Announces State Court System and New York State Bar Association Will Assist Unemployed New Yorkers
Effective Monday, April 13: Actions being implemented by the New York County Surrogate’s Court
Tuesday, April 7: NEXT STEPS: Memorandum from Lawrence Marks on Procedures Going Forward for Non-Essential Court Matters, Effective Monday, April 13.
Monday, April 6:
• Court of Appeals Will Not be Hearing Oral Argument During Its April/May Session
• Updated Message from Judge DiFiore |Video
• Greene County: The Greene County Courthouse located at 320 Main Street, Catskill, NY will be CLOSED until further notice to comply with enhanced cleaning protocols. The Greene County Consolidated Courts remain open virtually for essential court proceedings and can be reached at (518) 625-3180.
Friday, April 3: New York State Bar Association Task Force Recommends Rescue Plan For Newspapers Strained By Precipitous Drop In Advertising Dollars
Wednesday, April 1: Virtual Court Operations Start Today in Nassau County: All court operations will be conducted via SKYPE.
Monday, March 30: New York State Court System partners with New York State Bar to launch pro bono network to respond to pandemic
New York State Court of Appeals: Amended rules for registration of in-house counsel. These rules, initially adopted in 2015, primarily affect out-of-state attorneys who are not registered to practice in New York, but work as in-house counsel for New York companies.
Wednesday, March 25: Virtual Arraignments Start in New York City Criminal Court
New York County Criminal Court, 100 Centre Street, NYC
Effective today, March 25, 2020, New York City Criminal Court initiated its second phase of videoconferencing arraignments. Going forward, all parties will participate in court proceedings by videoconferencing using Skype for Business. All arraignments will be virtual, with the Judge, prosecution and defense attorney and defendant all from remote locations.
Non-COVID-19-involved defendants−those who have not tested positive for COVID-19 or are not in a high-risk group−will be brought to the central booking.
COVID-19-involved defendants−those who have tested positive for COVID-19or are in a high-risk group−will be detained pre-arraignment to participate in video arraignments at either Midtown Community Court or Red Hook Community Justice Center.
Virtual Court Operations to Commence in NYC Mid-week: Press Release, March 22
New York State Courts Remain Open for Business, Maintaining All Essential and Emergency Proceedings
NEW YORK−Extraordinary times like these call for extraordinary measures. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the New York State court system is instituting various temporary measures to reduce courtroom density and stem the spread of the Coronavirus. Chief Judge Janet DiFiore and Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks today announced that beginning on Wednesday, March 25, 2020 and Thursday, March 26, 2020, virtual court operations will commence, respectively, in New York City Criminal Court and New York City Family Court.
“As we continue to calibrate court operations to meet the continually challenging and changing operational environment, the New York State court system remains open for business, maintaining essential and emergency operations. In order to help reduce the spread of the virus and to further protect Judges, court staff, attorneys, litigants and the public, by mid-week essential functions of New York City Criminal Court and New York City Family Court will commence virtual operations,” said Chief Judge DiFiore.
New York City Criminal Court
Effective March 25, 2020, New York City Criminal Court will move toward its second phase of videoconferencing arraignments. Under this phase, all parties will participate in court proceedings by videoconferencing using Skype for Business. While the arraignment part will be open to the public, uniformed staff will monitor and may limit access to the arraignment part’s audience space to maintain social distancing in accordance with public health authorities’ guidelines.
All arraignments will be virtual, with the Judge, prosecution and defense attorney and defendant all from remote locations.
Non-COVID-19-involved defendants−those who have not tested positive for COVID-19 or are not in a high-risk group−will be brought to the central booking location in Bronx, Kings, New York and Queens Counties and will participate via video link in those locations. Richmond County defendants will be brought to NYPD holding cells at 26 Central Avenue to participate in video arraignment there.
COVID-19-involved defendants−those who have tested positive for COVID-19 or are in a high-risk group−will be detained pre-arraignment to participate in video arraignments as follows: Midtown Community Court for Bronx and Manhattan arraignments; and Red Hook Community Justice Center for Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island arraignments.
NYC Family Court:
Effective Thursday, March 26, 2020−in order to mitigate and contain the ongoing spread of coronavirus while at the same time continuing to provide critical emergency relief to the children and families the court serves−the New York City Family Court will hear by remote video appearances and/or by telephone the following matters:
• Child-protective intake cases involving removal applications
• Newly-filed juvenile delinquency intake cases involving remand applications
• Emergency family offense petitions
• Writ applications where there is a court order if custody or parenting time
Additionally, due to the suspension of civil statutes of limitation by the Governor’s executive order 202.8, effective immediately, all new Court filings, either e-filed or hard copy, that are not essential matters, will NOT be accepted.
Administrative Order 78/20: No non-essential papers or electronic filings being accepted, effective immediately.
NEW YORK STATE BAR
Pro Bono Unemployment Initiative
Emergency Task Force Launched To Assist Practitioners and Small Law Firms Impacted by Coronavirus
Coronavirus Information Center
BROOKLYN LAW SCHOOL
NEW YORK COUNTY LAWYERS ASSOCIATION
COVID-19 Online Resource Center Launched
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