Senate Bill S9789

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9789
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               April 6, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the uniform city court act and the uniform justice court
   act, in relation to obtaining jurisdiction over certain defendants
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Subdivision (a) of section 1803 of the uniform  city  court
 act,  as  amended by chapter 485 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read
 as follows:
   (a) Small claims shall be commenced upon the payment by  the  claimant
 of a filing fee of fifteen dollars for claims in the amount of one thou-
 sand dollars or less and twenty dollars for claims in the amount of more
 than  one thousand dollars, without the service of a summons and, except
 by special order of the court, without the service of any pleading other
 than a statement of [his] THE cause of action by the claimant or someone
 [in his] ON THE CLAIMANT'S behalf to the clerk,  who  shall  reduce  the
 same to a concise, written form and record it in a docket kept especial-
 ly  for  such  purpose.  Such procedure shall provide for the sending of
 notice of such claim by ordinary first class  mail  and  certified  mail
 with  return  receipt  requested  to the party complained against (1) at
 [his] THEIR residence, if [he] SUCH PERSON resides  within  the  county,
 and  [his]  THEIR  residence  is  known to the claimant, or (2) at [his]
 THEIR office or place of regular employment within the  county  if  [he]
 SUCH  PERSON does not reside therein or [his] THEIR residence within the
 county is not known to the claimant, or (3) where the claimant is or was
 a tenant or lessee of real property owned by the defendant and the claim
 relates to such tenancy or lease and the notice of claim cannot be  sent
 under  paragraph  one  or  two  of this subdivision, at any place in the
 [county or an adjoining county] STATE where claimant may mail or  other-
 wise  deliver  rent.   If, after the expiration of twenty-one days, such
 ordinary first class mailing has not been returned as undeliverable, the
 party complained against shall be presumed to have  received  notice  of
 such  claim. Such notice shall include a clear description of the proce-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01403-01-5
              

 S. 9789                             2
 
 dure for filing a counterclaim, pursuant  to  subdivision  (c)  of  this
 section.
   Such  procedure  shall  further  provide for an early hearing upon and
 determination of such claim. No filing fee, however, shall  be  demanded
 or  received on small claims of employees who shall comply with [§ 1912]
 SECTION NINETEEN HUNDRED TWELVE of this act which is hereby made  appli-
 cable, except that necessary mailing costs shall be paid.
   § 2. Subdivision (a) of section 1803 of the uniform justice court act,
 as  amended  by  chapter  485 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as
 follows:
   (a) Small claims shall be commenced upon the payment by  the  claimant
 of  a filing fee of ten dollars for claims in the amount of one thousand
 dollars or less and fifteen dollars for claims in  the  amount  of  more
 than  one thousand dollars, without the service of a summons and, except
 by special order of the court, without the service of any pleading other
 than a statement of [his] THE cause of action by the claimant or someone
 [in his] ON THE CLAIMANT'S behalf to the clerk,  who  shall  reduce  the
 same  to  a concise, written form and record it in a filing system main-
 tained especially for such purpose. Such procedure shall provide for the
 sending of notice of such claim by ordinary first class mail and  certi-
 fied  mail with return receipt requested to the party complained against
 (1) at [his] THEIR residence, if [he] SUCH  PERSON  resides  within  the
 county  and [his] THEIR residence is known to the claimant, (2) at [his]
 SUCH PERSON'S office or place of regular employment within  the  munici-
 pality  if  [he]  SUCH PERSON does not reside within the county or [his]
 THEIR residence within the county is not known to the claimant,  or  (3)
 where  claimant  is  or was a tenant or lessee of real property owned by
 the defendant and the claim relates to such tenancy  or  lease  and  the
 notice of claim cannot be sent under paragraph one or two of this subdi-
 vision,  at any place in the [county or an adjoining county] STATE where
 claimant may mail or otherwise deliver rent. If, after the expiration of
 twenty-one days, such ordinary first class mailing has not been returned
 as undeliverable, the party complained against shall be presumed to have
 received notice of  such  claim.  Such  notice  shall  include  a  clear
 description  of  the  procedure  for  filing a counterclaim, pursuant to
 subdivision (c) of this section.
   Such procedure shall further provide for an  early  hearing  upon  and
 determination  of  such claim. No filing fee, however, shall be demanded
 or received on small claims of employees who shall comply  with  section
 nineteen  hundred  twelve  of  this act which is hereby made applicable,
 except that necessary mailing costs shall be paid.
   § 3. The office of court administration shall develop necessary forms,
 procedures, court personnel guidance and public information materials to
 implement the provisions of this act on or before its effective date and
 shall provide a report to the chairs of the senate  judiciary  committee
 and the assembly judiciary committee detailing the measures implemented.
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.