Relates to permitting amendment of a claim or notice of intention to file a claim to correct jurisdictional pleading defects

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why the sponsor says this is needed

This proposal addresses circumstances where a claim is timely served and filed but requires an amendment to avoid the dismissal of a potentially meritorious case for purely procedural reasons. The need for a provision to allow for amending a timely served notice or served and filed claim is demonstrated by Constable v. State of New York, 172 A.D. 3d 681 (Second.Dept. 2019), where the claim was dismissed because the notice of intention and claim failed to adequately describe the location of the alleged accident. As noted in the decision, the State's motion seeking dismissal was filed six months after the last deposition was conducted, but no legal authority required the State to move for dismissal within a specified time. In another case, Hyatt v. State of New York, 63 Misc.3d 1205(A) (U), the claimant's action was dismissed because he had incor- rectly described the location of the automobile accident in his other- wise timely notice of intention and claim. The claimant had relied on incorrect information provided in the report issued by the New York State Police which had investigated the accident. The claimant's subse- quent attorneys discovered the mistake, and the claimant sought permis- sion to serve an amended notice of intention to file a claim and moved to serve and file a late claim. The Court of Claims noted that there was no provision in the CCA for service of an amended notice of intentionòto file a claim. Instead, the Court weighed the factors set forth in CCA § 10(6) and denied the application to file a late claim. The decision was affirmed by the Second Department (180 A.D.3d 764). The more stringent requirements for filing a late claim under CCA § 10(6) are not available even to a claim- ant who has timely served or filed initially unless an application is made within the prescribed statute of limitations. This measure would ensure that a claimant who has timely served and filed a claim is not precluded from correcting the good faith error or omission solely because the statute of limitations has run. This measure is intended to provide a remedy in the interest of justice to a claimant who timely serves a notice of intention or serves and files .a claim which contains a particularity defect that caused no prejudice to the State. While the Governor vetoed other legislation in 2024 (Veto 40, UCS-66), this new bill addresses the concerns that the Governor raised in her veto message that the other bill would allow claimants to amend their notice of intention or claim without restrictions on time or reasons "in ways that are inconsistent with the limited jurisdiction of the Court of Claims." Specifically, this new bill establishes detailed procedures on how and when claimants can amend their claim in addition to 'factors for the Court of Claims to consider when evaluating motions for leave to amend. By detailing these procedures, the new bill creates guardrails for late amendments, which will allow for additional information to advance both parties' ability to litigate claims more thoroughly without limiting the State's ability to defend itself adequately on monetary tort claims.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.