S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8728
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               June 2, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. LUNSFORD -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Judiciary
 
 AN  ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to enact-
   ing the "avoiding vexatious overuse of  impleading  to  delay  (AVOID)
   act"
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as  the  "avoiding
 vexatious overuse of impleading to delay (AVOID) act".
   §  2.  Section 1007 of the civil practice law and rules, as amended by
 chapter 216 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
   § 1007. When third-party practice allowed. (A) After  the  service  of
 [his]  A  DEFENDANT'S  answer,  [a]  THE defendant may proceed against a
 person OR LEGAL ENTITY not a party who is  or  may  be  liable  to  that
 defendant  for all or part of the plaintiff's claim against that defend-
 ant, by filing pursuant to section three hundred four of this chapter  a
 third-party  summons  and  complaint  with the clerk of the court in the
 county in which the main action is pending, for which a  separate  index
 number  shall  not  be  issued  but a separate index number fee shall be
 collected. The third-party summons and complaint and all prior pleadings
 served in the action shall be served upon such person  OR  LEGAL  ENTITY
 within  [one  hundred] twenty days of the filing.  A defendant serving a
 third-party complaint shall be styled a third-party  plaintiff  and  the
 person  OR  LEGAL ENTITY so served shall be styled a third-party defend-
 ant. The defendant shall also serve a copy of such third-party complaint
 upon the plaintiff's attorney simultaneously upon issuance  for  service
 of the third-party complaint on the third-party defendant.
   (B)  1.  A  DEFENDANT  SHALL  PROCEED WITH THE FILING AND SERVING OF A
 THIRD-PARTY SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT AGAINST A PERSON OR LEGAL  ENTITY  WHO
 IS OR MAY BE LIABLE TO THAT DEFENDANT FOR ALL OR PART OF THE PLAINTIFF'S
 CLAIM  AGAINST  THAT DEFENDANT WITHIN SIXTY DAYS AFTER SERVING AN ANSWER
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13132-03-5
              

 A. 8728                             2
 
 UPON THE PLAINTIFF IN THE  EVENT  THAT  SUCH  LIABILITY  ARISES  FROM  A
 CONTRACTUAL  RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE DEFENDANT AND SUCH PERSON OR ENTI-
 TY, OR OTHERWISE WITHIN SIXTY DAYS OF BECOMING AWARE THAT SUCH PERSON IS
 OR  MAY  BE  LIABLE  TO  THE  DEFENDANT FOR ALL OR PART OF A PLAINTIFF'S
 CLAIM.
   2. A THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT WHO PROCEEDS WITH THE  FILING  OF  ITS  OWN
 THIRD-PARTY  SUMMONS  AND  COMPLAINT, BECOMING IN EFFECT A SECOND THIRD-
 PARTY PLAINTIFF, SHALL PROCEED WITH  THE  FILING  AND  SERVING  OF  SUCH
 SUMMONS  AND  COMPLAINT  AGAINST  A SECOND THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT, WITHIN
 FORTY-FIVE DAYS AFTER SERVING AN ANSWER.
   3. A SECOND THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT WHO THEN PROCEEDS WITH THE FILING OF
 ITS OWN THIRD-PARTY SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT, BECOMING IN  EFFECT  A  THIRD
 THIRD-PARTY PLAINTIFF, SHALL PROCEED WITH THE FILING AND SERVING OF SUCH
 SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT AGAINST A THIRD THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT WITHIN THIR-
 TY DAYS AFTER SERVING AN ANSWER.
   4.  ANY SUBSEQUENT THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT, WHO PROCEEDS WITH THE FILING
 OF ITS OWN THIRD-PARTY SUMMONS AND  COMPLAINT,  BECOMING  IN  EFFECT  AN
 ADDITIONAL  THIRD-PARTY PLAINTIFF, SHALL PROCEED WITH THE FILING OF SUCH
 SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT AGAINST AN ADDITIONAL THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT WITHIN
 TWENTY DAYS AFTER SERVING AN ANSWER.
   5. THERE SHALL BE NO EXTENSIONS OF THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN  THIS
 SUBDIVISION  LONGER  THAN  THIRTY  DAYS  WITHOUT  AN ORDER OF THE COURT,
 PROVIDED THAT A DEFENDANT OR THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT MAY NOT PROCEED  WITH
 THE FILING AND SERVING A THIRD-PARTY SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT TWELVE MONTHS
 AFTER  HAVING  FILED  AN ANSWER IN THE ACTION WITHOUT WRITTEN CONSENT OF
 BOTH THE PLAINTIFF AND THE COURT.
   (C) NOTWITHSTANDING SUBDIVISION (B) OF THIS SECTION,  A  DEFENDANT  OR
 THIRD-PARTY  DEFENDANT  MAY NOT PROCEED WITH THE FILING OF A THIRD-PARTY
 SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT AFTER THE FILING OF A NOTE  OF  ISSUE.  AN  ACTION
 FILED  IN  VIOLATION  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE SEVERED OR DISMISSED
 WITHOUT PREJUDICE.
   (D) THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN SUBDIVISIONS (B)  AND  (C)  OF  THIS
 SECTION  SHALL NOT APPLY WHEN A DEFENDANT OR THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT SEEKS
 TO FILE AND PROCEED WITH A THIRD-PARTY SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT AGAINST  AN
 EMPLOYER  OF THE PLAINTIFF IN THE EVENT THAT EITHER: 1. THE DEFENDANT OR
 THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT IS SEEKING CONTRIBUTION OR INDEMNIFICATION  FOR  A
 GRAVE  INJURY  AS SUCH TERM IN DEFINED IN SECTION ELEVEN OF THE WORKERS'
 COMPENSATION LAW, OR 2. THE IDENTITY OF SUCH EMPLOYER HAD NOT BEEN KNOWN
 TO THE DEFENDANT OR THIRD-PARTY DEFENDANT OR OTHERWISE IDENTIFIED  UNTIL
 THE SUCH TIME PERIODS HAVE EXPIRED. IN EITHER INSTANCE, THE DEFENDANT OR
 THIRD-PARTY  DEFENDANT  SHALL  PROCEED  WITH THE FILING AND SERVING OF A
 SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT WITHIN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS AFTER THE LATER  OF
 EITHER  EVENT.  AN  ACTION IN VIOLATION OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL NOT BE
 ALLOWED TO PROCEED WITHOUT WRITTEN CONSENT OF BOTH THE PLAINTIFF AND THE
 COURT.
   (E) IN THE EVENT A THIRD-PARTY ACTION  IS  SEVERED  FROM  THE  INITIAL
 ACTION, AND A THIRD-PARTY PLAINTIFF PROCEEDS TO INITIATE A NEW ACTION BY
 THE  FILING  OF  A  SUMMONS  AND COMPLAINT AGAINST A SEVERED THIRD-PARTY
 DEFENDANT, ANY MOTION TO CONSOLIDATE SUCH ACTIONS SHALL NOT  BE  PERMIT-
 TED.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it  shall have become a law and shall apply to cases pending on or after
 such date; provided, however, this act shall not apply to any third-par-
 ty summons and complaint filed and served prior to the effective date of
 this act.