1. Litigation - Preliminaries
1.1 What type of legal system does your jurisdiction have? Are there any rules that govern civil procedure in your jurisdiction?
New York is a common law jurisdiction. State court civil procedure is governed by the Civil Practice Law & Rules ("CPLR"), supplemented by rules for specific courts and judges.
1.2 How is the civil court system in your jurisdiction structured? What are the various levels of appeal and are there any specialist courts?
New York's civil court system has three basic tiers. Each of the state's 62 counties has a trial court of general jurisdiction, called the Supreme Court, with state-wide jurisdiction in law and equity that handles cases with damages over $25,000. There are courts of inferior jurisdiction that handle civil cases with damages less than $25,000. The Appellate Division, divided into four geographic departments, hears appeals from the Supreme Courts. An appeals court of inferior jurisdiction, the Appellate Term, hears appeals from courts below the Supreme Court. The state's highest court is the Court of Appeals, which hears appeals from the Appellate Division and, in some instances, directly from the Supreme Courts.
There are special courts for: (i) family matters; (ii) landlord-tenant/housing matters; (iii) estate administration and probate of wills; and (iv) actions against the State of New York for monetary damages. The Supreme Court in several counties has a Commercial Division for business cases in which the amount in dispute exceeds a monetary threshold that varies across jurisdictions, from $50,000 up to $500,000.
1.3 What are the main stages in civil proceedings in your jurisdiction? What is their underlying timeframe (please include a brief description of any expedited trial procedures)?
Pleadings: Summons and Complaint, Answer, and Reply to Counterclaim, which are statements of the parties' claims and defences "sufficiently particular to give notice of the transactions [or] occurrences ... intended to be proved and the material elements of each cause of action or defence". CPLR 3013.
Discovery: The parties exchange information and can obtain information from third parties under court supervision. Information is sought through, among other devices, written questions, witness examinations, document requests and subpoenas. Discovery can take several years in a large, complex case.
Motion practice: The parties can seek judicial relief, including dispositive motions and discovery-related motions.
Trial: The parties have a right to a jury trial in most cases, but can waive it.
Appeals: The parties can appeal trial court orders/judgments immediately as of right to the Appellate Division. Appeals to the Court of Appeals are on request, except if the Appellate Division was divided or the case concerns the New York or U.S. constitution.
Enforcement of judgments: Judgments are enforceable state-wide and are governed by CPLR Articles 51-54. Enforcement of foreign judgments can also be obtained in appropriate circumstances.
New York courts do not impose uniform time frames on litigation; time frames depend on complexity and the court's scheduling determinations.
A suit on a promissory note or other instrument for payment of money only (or upon a judgment) can be brought by motion for summary judgment instead of a complaint. CPLR 3213. This procedure saves time and costs because it eliminates discovery and trial.
New York's Commercial Division has an Accelerated Adjudication Procedure that requires all pre-trial procedures to be completed within nine months after a Request for Judicial Intervention, with limits on discovery; certain defences are deemed waived. 22 N.Y.C.R.R. ' 202.70(g) (Rule 9).
1.4 What is your jurisdiction's local judiciary's approach to exclusive jurisdiction clauses?
Under General Obligations Law ' 5-1402, New York courts will enforce an exclusive New York jurisdiction clause agreed by a non-New York person or company if the contract has a New York choice of law clause and concerns a transaction worth at least $1 million. New York courts will generally enforce exclusive jurisdiction clauses in contracts freely negotiated by the parties, unless the clause is "unreasonable, unjust, in contravention of public policy, invalid due to fraud or overreaching, or it is shown that a trial in the selected forum would be so gravely difficult that the challenging party would, for all practical purposes, be deprived of its day in court". KMK Safety Consulting, LLC v. Jeffrey M. Brown Assocs., Inc., 72 A.D.3d 650, 651 (2d Dep't 2010).
1.5 What are the costs of civil court proceedings in your jurisdiction? Who bears these costs? Are there any rules on costs budgeting?
Certain de minimis costs are awarded to the prevailing party. However, a prevailing party may not recover its attorney's fees absent an "unmistakably clear" contractual agreement or certain limited circumstances provided by statute or court rule. U.S. Underwriters Ins. Co. v. City Club Hotel, LLC, 3 N.Y.3d 592, 597 (2004); Sage Sys., Inc. v. Liss, 39 N.Y.3d 27 (2022). There are no rules on budgeting of costs in New York.
1.6 Are there any particular rules about funding litigation in your jurisdiction? Are claimants and defendants permitted to enter into contingency fee arrangements and conditional fee arrangements?
There are no statutes or regulations in New York directly applicable to third-party litigation funding. On January 3, 2024, a bill titled New York Consumer Litigation Funding Act (Senate Bill S4146A), aimed at regulating consumer litigation funding, failed to pass in the State Assembly. The bill was returned to the Senate, and amended in May of 2024. On May 29, 2024, the bill passed the Senate, but the State Assembly referred the bill to the Judiciary Committee.
New York's Rules of Professional Conduct prohibit a lawyer from providing financial assistance to a client, with certain limited exceptions. A lawyer may: (1) advance court costs and expenses in contingency fee matters; (2) pay court costs and expenses when representing an indigent or pro bono client; and (3) pay court costs and expenses in contingency fee matters. 22 N.Y.C.R.R. ' 1200.0 (Rule 1.8(e)). New York's champerty statute, Judiciary Law ' 489, prohibits certain types of claim assignments unless consideration of at least $500,000 is paid. Justinian Capital SPC v. WestLB AG, 28 N.Y.3d 160 (2016). The doctrine is intended to "prevent opportunistic parties from profiting from litigation claims that otherwise would not have been brought'not preventing the assignment of legitimate claims to a party holding a beneficial interest in those claims to enforce its own rights". IKB International S.A. v Stanley, 225 A.D.3d 542, 544 (1stDep't 2024). No court in New York has found the traditional third-party litigation funding model to constitute champerty as of January 2025. There are no rules aimed specifically at litigation funding.
Contingent fees are generally permissible, but New York's Rules of Professional Conduct prohibit attorneys from collecting "an excessive or illegal fee or expense". 22 N.Y.C.R.R. ' 1200.0 (Rule 1.5(a)). The rules set forth a number of factors to be considered in determining whether a fee is excessive. Id.
1.7 Are there any constraints to assigning a claim or cause of action in your jurisdiction? Is it permissible for a non-party to litigation proceedings to finance those proceedings?
Claims are generally assignable, and non-party litigation funding is permitted. New York's champerty statute prohibits certain assignments where the only purpose is litigation if the assignment has less than a $500,000 purchase price. N.Y. Judiciary Law ' 489 (2015); see generally Justinian Capital, 28 N.Y.3d 160.
1.8 Can a party obtain security for/a guarantee over its legal costs?
No, it cannot.
2. Before Commencing Proceedings
2.1 Is there any particular formality with which you must comply before you initiate proceedings?
In most cases, a summons and complaint must be served on all defendants in the manner required by the CPLR. There are several exceptions. In tort actions against state and local governments, the plaintiff must serve the government with a notice of claim within 90 days of the date that the claim arises; in wrongful death cases, the notice must be served within 90 days of the appointment of a representative of the decedent's estate. N.Y. Gen. Mun. L. ' 50-e. In medical malpractice cases, a plaintiff's attorney must attach a certificate of merit to the complaint declaring that the attorney has consulted with a physician and concluded there is a reasonable basis for the action. CPLR 3012-A. A pre-suit notice of claim may be required by contract.
2.2 What limitation periods apply to different classes of claim for the bringing of proceedings before your civil courts? How are they calculated? Are time limits treated as a substantive or procedural law issue?
Generally, limitations periods are provided by Article 2 of the CPLR and vary between four months and 20 years.
Actions that must be commenced within 20 years: Actions on a bond; actions on a money judgment; actions by the state to recover real property; actions by a grantee of the state to recover real property; and actions or proceedings to enforce an order or judgment awarding support, alimony or maintenance. CPLR 211.
Actions that must be commenced within 10 years: Actions to recover real property; actions to recover premises after an annulment of letters patent; actions to redeem real property from a mortgage; and actions to recover under an affidavit of support of a non-citizen. CPLR 212.
Criminal actions: Generally, a crime victim has seven years from the commission of the crime to bring a civil action for damages against a defendant convicted of that crime. CPLR 213-b(1).
Actions that must be commenced within six years: Causes of action that existed at common law for which no limitations period is specifically prescribed by...
