NY State Senate Bill 2025-S8625

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Dec 19, 2025	referred to rules

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Civil Practice Law and Rules
Laws Affected:: Amd §5501, CPLR

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the appellate division gives the highest degree of deference to the jury's fact finding, including its assessment of damages.

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8625

SPONSOR: MYRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to setting
the level of deference given by the appellate division to the jury's
fact finding

 
PURPOSE:

To amend the civil practice law and rules in relation to the level of
deference by the appellate division to the jury's fact finding.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends subdivision (c) of section 5501 of the civil practice
law and rules Section 2 sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Article I, § 2 of the New York Constitution preserves the right to trial
by jury in cases where it existed at common law and historically, deter-
mining the amount of damages has been a core function of the civil jury.
Respect for this core function is present in our federal courts and most
state systems: federally, the Seventh Amendment to the United States
Constitution prevents appellate courts from re-examining facts found by
a jury, and consequently, those courts review damages reductions only
for abuse of discretion. Many other states, including New Jersey, Mary-
land, Nebraska, Washington, Pennsylvania, and Michigan follow a similar
standard, only disturbing a jury award when it is so unreasonable as to
"shock the conscience" or is otherwise "grossly excessive" or "inade-
quate."

New York used to follow this standard as well. But in 1986, the state
departed from the approach taken by most states and the federal courts,
and instead codified a lower, more subjective "deviates materially"
standard that has allowed for jury verdicts to be replaced routinely by
New York appellate courts. This bill aims to correct this incongruity
and return New York to the standard observed throughout the rest of the
country and which New York itself observed for generations.

This bill does not eliminate appellate review or insulate outrageous
verdicts. Under the bill's proposed standard, appellate courts still act
as a safeguard and defendants may still appeal. This bill simply
restores a core function back to the jury, allowing those closest to the
facts of the case to determine damages when their fellow New Yorkers
suffer injury.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all actions
filed on or after such date.

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8625
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             December 19, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MYRIE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to setting
   the level of deference given by the appellate division to  the  jury's
   fact finding

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision (c) of section 5501 of the civil  practice  law
 and  rules, as amended by chapter 474 of the laws of 1997, is amended to
 read as follows:
   (c) Appellate division. The appellate division shall review  questions
 of  law and questions of fact on an appeal from a judgment or order of a
 court of original instance and on an appeal from an order of the supreme
 court, a county court or an appellate term determining an appeal.    The
 notice  of appeal from an order directing summary judgment, or directing
 judgment on a motion addressed to the  pleadings,  shall  be  deemed  to
 specify  a  judgment upon said order entered after service of the notice
 of appeal and before entry of the order of the appellate court upon such
 appeal, without however affecting the taxation of costs upon the appeal.
 In reviewing a money judgment in an action in which an itemized  verdict
 is  required  by rule forty-one hundred eleven of this chapter [in which
 it is contended that the award is excessive or inadequate and that a new
 trial should have been granted unless a  stipulation  is  entered  to  a
 different award, the appellate division shall determine that an award is
 excessive  or  inadequate  if  it deviates materially from what would be
 reasonable compensation], WHERE IT IS CONTENDED THAT THE AWARD IS EXCES-
 SIVE OR INADEQUATE AND THAT A NEW TRIAL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED  UNLESS
 A  STIPULATION  IS  ENTERED TO A DIFFERENT AWARD, THE APPELLATE DIVISION
 SHALL GIVE THE HIGHEST DEGREE OF DEFERENCE TO THE JURY'S  FACTUAL  FIND-
 INGS,  INCLUDING ITS ASSESSMENT OF DAMAGES. AN AWARD SHALL NOT BE DEEMED
 EXCESSIVE OR INADEQUATE UNLESS THE MOVING PARTY  ESTABLISHES,  BY  CLEAR
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14193-02-5

 S. 8625                             2
 
 AND  CONVINCING  EVIDENCE,  THAT THE VERDICT IS SO EXTRAORDINARY THAT IT
 SHOCKS THE CONSCIENCE OF THE COURT AND COULD NOT HAVE  BEEN  REACHED  BY
 ANY  REASONABLE  JURY. IN MAKING THIS DETERMINATION, THE APPELLATE DIVI-
 SION  SHALL  CONSIDER  THE  EVIDENCE  IN THE LIGHT MOST FAVORABLE TO THE
 PREVAILING PARTY AND SHALL NOT SUBSTITUTE ITS JUDGMENT FOR THAT  OF  THE
 JURY ON QUESTIONS OF CREDIBILITY, WEIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE, OR THE QUANTI-
 FICATION OF DAMAGES.
   §  2.  This act shall take effect immediately and apply to all actions
 filed on or after such effective date.

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Senate Bill S8625

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Actions

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

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Sponsored By

Zellnor Myrie

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Actions

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8625 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments