NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8408
SPONSOR: Dais TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the surrogate's court procedure act, in relation to
allowing certain methods for service of process
2.
SOURCE OF BILL:
This bill is being introduced at the request of the Unified Court
System, on the recommendation of the Chief Administrative Judge's Surro-
gate's Court Advisory Committee.
3.
PURPOSE OF BILL:
This bill would simplify and modernize service of process requirements
for Surrogate's Court proceedings.
4.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of this bill amends SCPA § 307 to allow service of process
upon New York State residents by registered or certified mail without
the necessity of obtaining a court order, and to allow the court to
order service of process by electronic means.
Section 2 of this bill amends SCPA § 308 to update the time within which
process must be served, allowing for 10 days where service is made by
personal delivery, 20 days where service is made by other than personal
delivery within the United States, and 30 days in all other cases and
where the Office of the Attorney General is a party.
Section 3 of this bill amends SCPA § 309 to update the provisions for
when service of process may be deemed complete.
Section 4 of this bill provides the effective date, which is immediate.
5.
JUSTIFICATION:
This bill would amend sections 307, 308 and 309 of the Surrogate's Court
Procedure Act (SCPA) in relation to service of process in Surrogate's
Court proceedings. Currently, those sections require personal service of
process, but the experiences of courts, legal practitioners, and self-
represented litigants during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that
alternative means of process are just as effective as, and at times
superior to, personal service. Accordingly, this measure is proposed to
simplify and modernize service requirements.
During the pandemic, the courts, practitioners and self-represented
litigants had to find ways to operate in an environment where personal
delivery of citations and other documents was impossible. Consequently,
other means of service of process had to be permitted in order for the
courts to function, which allowed these new modes of service to be test-
ed.
For example, SCPA § 307 has long prohibited service of process upon New
York residents by means other than personal delivery without a court
order. However, during the pandemic most Surrogate's Courts permitted
service upon New York domiciliaries by special mail service (Federal
Express, UPS, etc.), with no increase in demands for traverse hearings
due to lack of proper service, nor was there an increase in applications
to vacate defaults on that basis.
Additionally, some Surrogate's Courts utilized their discretion and
permitted service upon respondents by c-mail pursuant to SCPA § 307(3).
However, the statute does not explicitly mention the possibility of such
service. Given that law firms and most of society communicate electron-
ically, such a statutorily endorsed option is long overdue and the
proposal contains a specific provision for service by electronic means.
Finally, because the New York State Attorney General may be served by
mail at any office, the bill provides that the time for the Attorney
General's Office to be given notice of a proceeding is extended to 30
days unless otherwise modified by court order. This legislation is
supported by the Surrogate's Court Judges Association and the Surro-
gate's Court Chief Clerk Association, and has been endorsed by the
Trusts and Estate Section of the New York State Bar Association.
6.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This bill was introduced and passed the Senate in 2024 (S.9783).
7.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
8.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill would take effect immediately.
