2023 New York Laws › CVP - Civil Practice Law and Rules › Article 21-A - Filing of Papers in the Courts by Facsimile Transmission and by Electronic Means › 2111 - Filing of Papers in the Trial Courts by Facsimile Transmission and by Electronic Means.

§ 2111. Filing of papers in the trial courts by facsimile transmission
and by electronic means. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
the  chief  administrator  of  the  courts,  with  the  approval  of the
administrative board of the courts, may promulgate rules  authorizing  a
program in the use of facsimile transmission only in the court of claims
and  electronic  means in the supreme court, the civil court of the city
of New York, surrogate's courts and the court of  claims  for:  (i)  the
commencement  of  civil actions and proceedings, and (ii) the filing and
service of papers in pending actions and proceedings. Provided, however,
the chief administrator shall consult with the county clerk of a  county
outside the city of New York before the use of electronic means is to be
authorized  in  the  supreme court of such county, afford him or her the
opportunity to submit comments with respect thereto, consider  any  such
comments and obtain the agreement thereto of such county clerk.
(b)  1.  Except  as  otherwise  provided  in  paragraph  two  of  this
subdivision, participation in this program shall be strictly  voluntary,
and  will  take  place only upon consent of all parties in the action or
special  proceeding;  except  that  a  party's  failure  to  consent  to
participation  shall not bar any other party to the action or proceeding
from filing and serving papers by facsimile transmission  or  electronic
means upon the court or any other party to such action or proceeding who
has  consented to participation. Commencement of an action by electronic
means or by facsimile transmission shall not require the consent of  any
other  party.  No  party  shall be compelled, directly or indirectly, to
participate in e-filing. All parties shall be notified clearly, in plain
language, about their options to participate in e-filing. Where a  party
is  not  represented  by  counsel,  the clerk shall explain such party's
options for electronic filing in plain language,  including  the  option
for  expedited processing, and shall inquire whether he or she wishes to
participate, provided however the unrepresented litigant may participate
in the program only upon his or her request, which shall  be  documented
in  the  case  file, after said party has been presented with sufficient
information in plain language concerning the program.
2. In the rules  promulgated  pursuant  to  subdivision  (a)  of  this
section,  the  chief  administrator  may  eliminate  the  requirement of
consent to participation in this program in:
(A) one or more classes of cases  (excluding  matrimonial  actions  as
defined  by  the civil practice law and rules, election law proceedings,
proceedings brought pursuant to article seventy or seventy-eight of this
chapter,  proceedings  brought  pursuant  to  the  mental  hygiene  law,
residential  foreclosure  actions  involving a home loan as such term is
defined in section thirteen hundred four of the  real  property  actions
and   proceedings   law  and  proceedings  related  to  consumer  credit
transactions as defined in subdivision (f) of section one  hundred  five
of this chapter, except that the chief administrator, in accordance with
this  paragraph, may eliminate the requirement of consent to participate
in this program insofar as  it  applies  to  the  initial  filing  by  a
represented party of papers required for the commencement of residential
foreclosure  actions  involving  a  home loan as such term is defined in
section  thirteen  hundred  four  of  the  real  property  actions   and
proceedings  law and the initial filing by a represented party of papers
required for the commencement of proceedings related to consumer  credit
transactions  as  defined in subdivision (f) of section one hundred five
of this chapter) in supreme court in such counties as he  or  she  shall
specify, and
(B) one or more classes of cases in surrogate's court in such counties
as he or she shall specify, and
(C)  actions  in  the civil court of the city of New York brought by a
provider  of  health  care  services  specified  in  paragraph  one   of
subsection (a) of section five thousand one hundred two of the insurance
law  against  an  insurer  for  failure  to  comply  with  the rules and
regulations  promulgated  by  the  superintendent  of financial services
pursuant to subsection (b) of section five thousand one hundred eight of
such law.
(i) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the chief administrator  shall  not
eliminate the requirement of consent in any county until after he or she
shall have consulted with members of the organized bar including but not
limited  to  city,  state,  county  and  women's  bar associations; with
institutional legal service providers; with not-for-profit legal service
providers; with attorneys assigned pursuant to article eighteen-B of the
county  law;  with  unaffiliated  attorneys  who  regularly  appear   in
proceedings  that are or have been affected by any program of electronic
filing in such county that requires consent or who would be affected  by
a  program of electronic filing in such county should the requirement of
consent be eliminated; with any other persons in the county as deemed to
be appropriate by the chief administrator; and with the county clerk  of
such  county  (where the affected court is the supreme court of a county
outside the city of New York), and
(ii) only after affording them the opportunity to submit comments with
respect thereto,  considering  any  such  comments,  including  but  not
limited  to  comments  related  to  unrepresented  litigants and, in the
instance of any county outside the  city  of  New  York,  obtaining  the
agreement  thereto  of the county clerk thereof. All such comments shall
be posted for public review on  the  office  of  court  administration's
website.
* 2-a.  Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  paragraph  two  of  this
subdivision, the exclusion in such paragraph of residential  foreclosure
actions  involving  a  home  loan  as  such  term  is defined in section
thirteen hundred four of the real property actions and  proceedings  law
from  those  classes  of  cases  in  which  the  chief administrator may
eliminate the requirement of consent to participation in  a  program  in
the  use  of  electronic  means  shall not apply to any county in which,
prior to the effective date of this section, the chief administrator had
eliminated the requirement of consent to participation in such a program
in such foreclosure actions, specifically Erie, Essex, New York, Queens,
Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester counties; and the  exclusion  in  such
paragraph  of  proceedings  related  to  consumer credit transactions as
defined in subdivision (f) of section one hundred five of  this  chapter
from  those  classes  of  cases  in  which  the  chief administrator may
eliminate the requirement of consent to participation in  a  program  in
the  use  of  electronic  means  shall not apply to any county in which,
prior to the effective date of this section, the chief administrator had
eliminated the requirement of consent to participation in such a program
in  such  proceedings   related   to   consumer   credit   transactions,
specifically   Erie,   New  York,  Onondaga,  Rockland  and  Westchester
counties.
* NB Repealed September 1, 2027
3. Where the chief administrator eliminates the requirement of consent
as provided in paragraph two of this subdivision, he or she shall afford
counsel the opportunity to opt out of the program, via presentation of a
prescribed form to be filed with the clerk of the court where the action
is  pending.  Said  form  shall  permit  an  attorney  to  opt  out   of
participation  in  the program under any of the following circumstances,
in which event, he or she will not be compelled to participate:
(A) where the attorney certifies in good faith that he  or  she  lacks
the  computer  hardware and/or connection to the internet and/or scanner
or other device by which documents may be  converted  to  an  electronic
format; or
(B)  where  the  attorney certifies in good faith that he or she lacks
the requisite knowledge  in  the  operation  of  such  computers  and/or
scanners   necessary   to   participate.   For   the  purposes  of  this
subparagraph, the knowledge of any  employee  of  an  attorney,  or  any
employee  of  the attorney's law firm, office or business who is subject
to such attorney's direction, shall be imputed to the attorney.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this subdivision, where a party
is not represented by counsel, the  clerk  shall  explain  such  party's
options  for  electronic  filing  in  plain  language  and shall inquire
whether  he  or  she  wishes  to  participate,  provided   however   the
unrepresented  litigant  may participate in the program only upon his or
her  request  after  said  party  has  been  presented  with  sufficient
information  in  plain  language concerning the program; and a party not
represented by counsel who has chosen  to  participate  in  the  program
shall  be  afforded  the  opportunity  to opt out of the program for any
reason via presentation of a prescribed form to be filed with the  clerk
of the court where the proceeding is pending; and a court may exempt any
attorney  from  being  required  to  participate  in  the  program  upon
application for such exemption, showing good cause therefor.
(c) For purposes of this section, "the filing and service of papers in
pending actions and proceedings" shall include the filing and service of
a notice of appeal pursuant to section  fifty-five  hundred  fifteen  of
this chapter.