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New York Research In-Depth

INTRODUCTION

This research guide is designed to facilitate research in New York law. It explains the process of making laws and regulations in the state of New York. It also identifies and describes major publications of New York law, including statutory law, administrative law, case law and secondary materials on the state level and the local-government level, and explains how to use them. Multiple sources of the same information, print or electronic, and useful contact information are also included. All items are located in the Edward Bennett Williams Library unless otherwise indicated.

The leading research guide for New York state law is William H. Manz's Gibson's New York Legal Research Guide (3d ed. 2004) [KFN5074 .G54 2004].

CONSTITUTION

New York's first Constitution was drafted soon after New York's Fourth Provincial Congress declared New York independent of Great Britain in 1776. It was adopted on April 20, 1777. New York's present constitution is the Constitution of 1894 as amended. It consists of twenty articles numbered using Roman numerals.

Article XIX of the Constitution provides for two methods of amending the Constitution: a proposal by the legislature or a proposal by a constitutional convention. Both methods require approval by the voters. Proposed amendments (Legislative Method) carry bill numbers and can be located using bill-locating tools (see below). Amendments that have received first or second approval in the legislature (Legislative Method) and proposed amendments (Constitutional Convention Method) are printed in publications where session laws are printed (see below). The Historical Society of the Courts of the State of New York keeps a list of "Votes Cast For and Against Proposed Constitutional Conventions and Also Proposed Constitutional Amendments" (1821-1987).

For a section-by-section legislative intent analysis of the Constitution, consult Peter J. Galie, The New York State Constitution: A Reference Guide. (1991) [ KFN5680 1777 .A6 G35 1991]. This reference guide also includes an essay on "The Constitutional History of New York" and a bibliographical essay of the Constitution and its various amendments.

STATUTORY LAW/CODE

A. Legislation

1. Legislative Process

The legislative power of the state is vested in the Senate and Assembly, according to Article III, § 1 of the State Constitution. The rest of Article III specifies the size of the Senate and the Assembly, the election of legislators, and the general legislative process. Specific procedural rules are to be determined by the Senate and the Assembly, according to Article III, §9. Such rules are adopted by Senate and Assembly resolution at the beginning of each two-year legislative term.

The legislative term consists of two legislative sessions. The legislative sessions are usually referenced by number, e.g., 228th Session (2005). Article IV, §7 stipulates that every bill that passes both the Senate and the Assembly has to be approved and signed by the Governor before it becomes a law. The Governor also has the power to convene the legislature, or the Senate only, on extraordinary occasions. (Article IV, §3).

Bill Drafting

Many government agencies and advisory committees, such as the Law Revision Commission, the Legislative Bill Drafting Commission (LBDC), the Advisory Committee on Civil Practice and the Advisory Committee on Criminal Law and Procedure are involved in assisting legislators with bill drafting. Several of the bar associations also play a role in shaping legislation.

Introduction of Bills

Bills may be introduced in either house (called "one-house bills") or introduced jointly by a sponsor from each house (called "uni-bills"). Uni-bills are usually given serious consideration. The executive budget is also submitted in bill form by the governor according to Article VII of the New York Constitution. Each bill's sponsor is required by the rules of each house to file an "introducer's memorandum" (also known as "sponsor's memorandum," or "legislative memorandum") laying the intent of the proposed legislation.

Before being introduced, a bill is deposited with the Revision Clerk in each house who works closely with the Legislative Bill Drafting Commission (LBDC) in proofreading it, assigning a bill number and an official date of introduction. The text of the bill is usually available online on the New York State Legislature Web site within twenty-four hours of introduction, sometimes even as quickly as within three hours.

Different types of bills:

• Bills that are introduced in the first session of a legislature, but do not pass during the first session, are automatically reintroduced in the second session as the same bill with the same bill number. They are called "carryover bills." Bills which do not pass during a legislative term die and do not carry over to the next legislature.
• Legislation desired by the executive branch is introduced by a legislator or by a standing committee, such as the Rules Committee as "departmental bills" which usually carry the name of the department following the name of the sponsor(s) in the bill caption. The purpose of a "departmental bill" usually appears in the governor's annual message to the legislature.
• "Governor's bill," or "program bills," or "governor's program bills" are bills drafted and introduced to implement the legislative program set forth in the governor's annual message, also known as the State of the State message. The annual message is available on the Governor's Web site.
• "Private bills," as opposed to "public bills" which have general application, are introduced for the benefit of an individual or a small group of individuals.
• A "special bill" is "[a] law which in terms and in effect applies to one or more, but not all, counties, counties other than those wholly included within a city, cities, towns or villages," see article IX, § 3(d)(4) of the Constitution.
• All budget and appropriation bills are referred to the Senate Committee on Finance and the Assembly Committee on Ways and Means. Once they are passed by both houses, they become law. They do not have to go back to the governor for approval because they were originally submitted by the governor.
• Most resolutions, except concurrent and joint resolutions, do not require approval by both houses and by the governor. Single house resolutions require only approval in one house. Proposed amendments to the New York Constitution, proposed amendments to the US Constitution, and ratification by the New York legislature of a proposed amendment to the US Constitution take the form of concurrent resolutions. They are assigned bill numbers and the text is available like other bills. Other resolutions can be obtained through the resolutions' sponsors. Their summaries can be found in the Senate and Assembly journals.

Committee Action

After a bill has been proofread, assigned a bill number and introduced, it is referred to the appropriate standing committee of the house where it is introduced for study. The committee will usually hold public hearings on bills to gather different opinions. After consideration, the committee may amend the bill, report it to the full house, or reject it. Unlike Congress's standing committees, New York State legislative standing committees do NOT issue written reports as a bill advances out of committee.

Names of the members of Assembly committees are available at the Assembly Web site: Committees, Commissions and Task Forces. Names of members of Senate committees are available at the New York State Legislature Web site: Senate Committees.

Consideration by the Full House

Each bill has to be in printed form on the members' desks for three legislative days before it can be voted on unless the Governor sends a "Message of Necessity" and the houses accept it. A bill must pass in both houses before it is sent to the governor for consideration. A bill can be amended either in committee or during this time by the full house. When a bill is amended, a letter of the alphabet will be added to the bill number to show the number of amendments the bill has gone through. For example, Senate bill S205 becomes S205-A after one amendment, S205-B after the second amendment. The Senate can amend a bill sent from the Assembly after its passage in the Assembly. When that happens, the bill will be given a new bill number by the Assembly and has to be sent to the Senate after its passage in the Assembly. The same text has to pass both houses (the New York Legislature does not employ the Congressional conference system to negotiate and resolve bill differences). Sometimes both houses pass similar bills, but cannot reconcile the differences between them within a reasonable period of time. When that happens, the Senate Majority Leader and Assembly Speaker will each appoint five members to serve on a conference committee to negotiate and iron out the differences. Generally, a majority of the elected membership of each house is required to pass a bill. Bills that would appropriate funds for local or private purposes and some special bills require two-thirds vote. Consideration of tax and appropriations bills requires a quorum of at least three-fifths of the elected membership.

After a bill passes both houses, the presiding officer of each house will certify the passage. The house of origin will engross the bill - affixing certifications of passage from each house and enclosing the bill in a folder known as a "bill jacket" which includes opinions from interested parties that are collected by the governor's counsel's office and the governor's approval memoranda or if the bill is vetoed, a veto memorandum.

Action by the Governor

The house of origin transmits the engrossed bill to the governor's office. The governor has ten days to act on a bill that is passed by the legislature before the last ten days of its session. These are called "ten-day" bills. The governor has thirty days to act on bills passed by the legislature during the last ten days of its session. These are called "thirty-day" bills. He may consult opinions from interested parties collected by the Governor's Counsel's Office before deciding whether to sign the bill, to veto it, or take no action. The governor may issue a message outlining his rationale and place it in the bill jacket (the governor is required to explain why he vetoes a bill in a veto memorandum unless the bill is "pocket vetoed"). A vetoed bill can still become law if two-thirds of the members of each house vote to override the Governor's veto. "Ten-day" bills automatically become law if the governor does not take any action during the ten-day period. "Thirty-day" bills are "pocket vetoed" and do not become law if the governor does not sign them within the thirty-day limit. Bills that become law (bearing the governor's signature or just certifications of passage) are assigned a chapter number in the office of the legislative secretary to the governor. These enacted laws are called "chapter laws" and are numbered chronologically.

Further Information

• How a Bill Becomes a Law in New York State (New York State Senate)
• How a Bill Becomes a Law in New York State (The Business Council of New York State, Inc)
  
  

2. Session Laws

Session laws are annual volumes of "chapter laws" printed in chronological order (by chapter number). They include all types of legislations: public, private, temporary and permanent. Subsequent amendments or repeals are not consolidated.

3. Code/Statutes (Subject Compilation)

Consolidated Laws

Currently in force laws of a public, general, and permanent nature are compiled into subject areas to provide easier access. In New York state, the subject compiled code is called the Consolidated Laws of New York. The Consolidated Laws of New York were first enacted in 1909. Each Consolidated Law has its distinct chapter number. The number of Consolidated Laws has expanded from sixty-one in 1909 to ninety-one today. Unlike the federal government and other state governments, New York state DOES NOT publish a current official version of its code. A free web version of the laws - New York State Consolidated Laws - is available on the State Assembly Web site, but it is not certified as containing the official text of the Consolidated Laws. There are two annotated versions of the Consolidated Laws by commercial publishers - McKinney's Consolidated Laws of New York Annotated and New York Consolidated Laws Service.

Some laws such as court acts, the New York City Charter and Administrative Code, and other special laws, are not part of the Consolidated Laws. They are called the Unconsolidated Laws.

4. Finding The Law That Covers Your Legal Issue

Finding the Sections:

Now that you know how bills are enacted and how laws are published and compiled, the first place to find the current law is the Consolidated Laws of New York. The electronic versions (Lexis, Westlaw and the Web) are convenient to use if you have the citation. The electronic versions are usually more up-to-date, minimizing the need to update what you have already obtained. If all you have is a legal issue and you want to find which sections of the New York Consolidated Laws deal with it, Westlaw and the print versions are more user-friendly because of the subject index and the popular name table which allow you to look up a legal concept by keyword and by popular name, respectively.

Updating Your Sections:

Even the electronic versions (Lexis, Westlaw, Web) of the Consolidated Laws are not current up-to-the-minute. Depending on the purpose of your research, you may need to check newly enacted chapter laws and pending legislation to determine if your sections will be affected and when. Both Lexis and Westlaw tell you how current their Consolidated Laws databases are (which current chapter laws have been incorporated).

If you use the print versions of the Consolidated Laws, here is what you must do:

McKinney's Consolidated Laws of New York Annotated [KFN5030 1939 .A3]:

1. Find the section in the main volumes (using the citation you have or have found by checking an subject index or popular name table).
2. Check the annual pocket part inside the back cover of the main volume. The cover of the pocket part usually tells you how current it is: "Current through the Laws of 2004 Chapter 258 of the 227th Session." If you cannot find your section in the pocket part, that means your section has not been changed between the time of the publication of the main volume and the time of the publication of the pocket part.
3. Check the "table of laws affected" in the latest annual McKinney's Session Laws of New York [KFN5025 .A2 M2] if it covers chapter laws not covered by the pocket part.
4. Check the "table of laws affected" in ALL (not cumulative) of the monthly issues of McKinney's Session Law News of New York [KFN5025 .A2 M21] published since the annual McKinney's Session Laws of New York [KFN5025 .A2 M2]
   

New York Consolidated Laws Service [KFN5030 1976 .A23]:

1. Find the section in the main volumes (using the citation you have or have found by checking an subject index or popular name table).
2. Check the cumulative supplement either inside the back cover of the main volume or shelved next to it. The cover of the cumulative supplement usually tells you how current it is: "Contains all changes in the law enacted through and including chapter 671 of the 2004 session of the Legislature." If you cannot find your section in the pocket part, that means your section has not been changed between the time of the publication of the main volume and the time of the publication of the pocket part.
3. Check the "table of laws affected" in the latest annual New York Consolidated Laws Service Session Laws [KFN5030 1976 .A23] if it covers chapter laws not covered by the pocket part.
4. Check the "table of laws affected" in ALL (not cumulative) of the monthly issues of Advance Legislative Services for the New York Consolidated Laws Service [KFN5030 1976 .A23] published since the annual New York Consolidated Laws Service Session Laws [KFN5030 1976 .A23]

B. Legislative History

"Legislative history" refers to the documents created by the legislature in the course of the legislative process. They are usually consulted to find the legislative intent behind a statute. The following publications contribute to the understanding of how New York courts use legislative history:

• Robert Allan Carter, Legislative Intent in New York State: Materials, Cases and Annotated Bibliography (2001) [KFN5680 1894.A6 C37 2001]
• Book 1 (Statutes) of McKinney's Consolidated Laws of New York Annotated [KFN5030 1939 .A3]: a treatise on statutory construction
• also available on Westlaw: NY-ST-ANN (annotated)
• The "Statutes" topic in New York Jurisprudence, 2d [KFN5065 .N42 1979]

Relatively little explanatory material is available for New York legislation. The following are the types of legislative history materials available for New York laws:

• Bills
• Introducer's memoranda, also known as "sponsor's memoranda," or "legislative memoranda"
• Governor's memoranda: the governor is required to explain why he vetoes a bill in a veto memorandum unless the bill is "pocket vetoed"; he is not required to write an approval memorandum giving reasons for approving the bill; since the memorandum is written after the bill has passed both houses, it does not really reflect legislative intent.
• Bill jackets include opinions from interested parties that are collected by the governor's counsel's office and the governor's approval memoranda or if the bill is vetoed, a veto memorandum.
• approval jackets
• veto jackets (should be consulted if the bill that the Governor vetoed in a previous year was reintroduced and subsequently approved)
• recall jackets (recalling or withdrawing bills from the governor's office was declared unconstitutional in 1993)
• Transcripts of legislative floor debates and hearings: all hearings are transcribed, but only a limited number of copies are produced and sent to the chairperson of the committee holding the hearing, to selected legislative officers, to the Legislative Library and the New York State Library. "Debates are generally not a useful tool in determining legislative intent. They reflect only the stated views of the legislators who participate, but do not serve as an indication of the combined opinions of their colleagues...And, unlike an opinion written by an adjudicating body, legislative debates, often extemporaneous, constitute arguments made by those attempting to persuade, and not formal declaratory pronouncements explaining a determination." (Board of Education of City School District of City of New York v. City of New York, 87 Misc. 2d 179, 185 (1976))
• Governor's annual message

ADMINISTRATIVE LAW

1. Executive Branch

New York's executive branch of government, headed by the Governor, includes sixteen principal departments, and numerous independent agencies, commissions, and task forces. The State Web site provides a list of administrative departments and agencies.

Governor and Lieutenant-Governor

The executive power of the state is vested in the governor, who shall hold office for four years, according to Article IV, § 1 of the State Constitution. The governor and lieutenant-governor shall be chosen jointly at the general election held every four years.

Powers and duties of the governor:

• Convenes the legislature and submits proposed budget for the following fiscal year to the legislature;
• Communicates by message to the legislature at every session the condition of the state;
• Considers, approves or vetoes, each bill passed by the legislature;
• Serves as commander-in-chief of the military and naval forces of the State.

In case of the removal of the governor from office or of his or her death or resignation, the lieutenant-governor becomes governor for the remainder of the term.

The Web site of the Office of the Governor includes important documents such as the annual budget address and the State of the State address, both delivered in January of each year.

2. Regulations

The rulemaking process of executive departments and administrative agencies is governed by the State Administrative Procedure Act (SAPA), rules of the Secretary of State, and procedures and guidelines found in Rule Making in New York by the New York State Department. The departments of Health, Education, Insurance, Environmental Conservation, Labor, Banking, Agriculture and Markets, and the divisions of Housing and Community Renewal and the Workers' Compensation Board are required by Section 202-d of SAPA to submit a regulatory agenda briefly describing the subject matter being considered for rulemaking and information on the contact person at the agency. A proposed rule is first reviewed by the Governor's Office of Regulatory Reform (GORR). Then, the agency will file the proposed rule with the Secretary of State and other required reviewing entities. A Notice of Proposed Rule Making is published in the State Register. (The Office of Court Administration and the Judiciary are exempt from SAPA requirements requiring proposal review notices in the State Register.) Comments will be received and considered. Changes to the proposed rules might be made. The final rule is filed with the Secretary of State (required by the Constitution) and a Notice of Adoption is required by the SAPA to be published in the State Register. Eventually, the rule is published in the Official Compilations of Codes, Rules and Regulations [KFN5030 1960 .A2] (current, loose-leaf, bi-weekly filing). A 1938 amendment to the New York Constitution requires speedy publication of final regulations.

Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations (NYCRR)

The NYCRR is the New York equivalent of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). It contains the full text of New York's current regulations. Rules become legally effective when a certified copy of the rule is filed with the Secretary of State and the notice of adoption is published in the State Register. If there is any inconsistency between the official NYCRR and such codes, rules and regulations as filed with the Secretary of State, the latter should prevail.

The NYCRR consists of eighty-three loose-leaf volumes containing codes, rules, regulations and official forms, and a two-volume loose-leaf index. There are twenty-two titles in the NYCRR. The first twenty titles are named after the twenty executive departments. Title 21 contains the regulations of authorities, boards and commissions. Title 22 contains court rules. Each Title is subdivided as follows: Title > Subtitles (if any) > Chapters > Subchapters (if any) > Parts > Sections.

The time delay between the date a rule becomes effective and the date when it is published in the NYCRR is about four months. Since the State Register includes very few full-text versions of new regulations, a researcher will have to contact the agency who promulgated the new regulations directly to get the full text if it has not been included in NYCRR. The name, address and telephone number of the agency responsible for the regulation are available in the notice of proposed rulemaking.

Published by West, the NYRCC includes annotations housed under an orange tab at the back of each binder. Annotations include "summaries of court cases and administrative opinions, orders, or decisions that, in the opinion of the publisher's staff of lawyer-editors, interpret, construe, apply or otherwise address the rules and regulations published in this binder."

New York State Register (State Register)

The weekly State Register replaced the State Bulletin in April 1979. Article 6-A (§§ 145-149) of the Executive Law governs the publication, contents and indexing of the State Register. The State Register publishes the following:

• notices concerning rulemaking activities, such as notices of proposed rulemaking, notices of adoption
• summaries of proposed regulations
• text of new court rules
• executive orders of the governor
• various financial notices
• lists of abandoned property
• notices of securities offerings
• advertisements for bidders/contractors
• miscellaneous notices

A "quarterly index" is published to show the status of every rule-making action in the calendar year. Unlike the Federal Register, the State Register contains the text of very few proposed regulations. Only proposed regulations that contain fewer than 2,000 words are required (in the discretion of the agency) to be published in the State Register.

Section 202-d of SAPA requires the departments of Health, Education, Insurance, Environmental Conservation, Labor, Banking, Agriculture and Markets, and the divisions of Housing and Community Renewal and the Workers' Compensation Board to submit "regulatory agenda" consisting of a brief description of the subject matters being considered for rulemaking and information on the contact person at the agency to the Secretary of State for publication in the first issue of the State Register every January and the last issue of the State Register every June.

How to Track the Status of Proposed Regulations?

• Lexis (Legal > States Legal - U.S. > New York > Agency & Administrative Materials > NY - New York Register) (1997 issue 48 - ): To find proposed regulations affecting 12 NYCRR part 82, type: 12 nycrr /5 part /5 82
• Westlaw: NY-REG-NET (current): To find proposed regulations affecting 12 NYCRR part 82, type: 12 nycrr /5 part /5 82. The database includes
  • NY-REGTRK: tracking information for proposed and recently adopted administrative rules and regulations, including a summary of the regulation and status information; and
  • NY-REGTXT: full text of proposed and recently adopted rules and regulations.
• Individual agency Web sites (proposed rules)
• State Register's "Action Pending Index": available in each issue, it lists all proposed rules currently being considered for adoption by agency name and then by I.D. number of the proposed rules.
• State Register's "Rule Making Activities" section

How to Find the Intent of the Regulations?

Notices of Proposed Rule Making and Notices of Adoption published in the State Register are the only sources for the intent of the regulations. Use the "Historical Note" following the text of the rule in the NYCRR to find the date on which the adopted rule was filed with the Department of State. The Notice of Adoption should have appeared in the State Register within a few weeks after the date of filing. From the Notice of Adoption, you can find the brief summary of the purpose of the rule, contact information for obtaining the text of rule, as well as the filing and effective date. From the Notice of Proposed Rule Making, you can find again the brief summary of the purpose of the rule, a summary of the substance of proposed rule, and contact information for obtaining the text of the proposed rule and any required statements and analyses.

3. Administrative Decisions, Opinions and Rulings

Like their rulemaking power, the "judiciary-like" power of administrative agencies is derived from statutes that govern the agencies. Administrative decisions, opinions and rulings are not necessarily easy to find because many agencies publish their decisions and opinions selectively; titles of the agency publications and even the name and responsibilities of the agencies frequently change. Since administrative decisions, opinions and rulings are public records, researchers can request them from the agencies under the Freedom of Information Law, N.Y. Pub.Off. Law §87 (2000).

4. Executive Orders

Executive orders are orders issued by the Governor to direct or instruct the actions of executive agencies or government officials, e.g. Governor Pataki's Executive Order No. 131 establishes the New York State Commission on Education Reform, and Executive Order No, 119 declares a disaster in Clinton and Essex Counties and contiguous counties and areas.

Executive orders issued since 1960 are published in the State Register and cumulated in 9 NYCRR Chapter 1 (Part 1: Nelson A. Rockefeller, Part 2: Malcolm A. Wilson, Part 3. Hugh L. Carey, Part 4. Mario M. Cuomo, Part 5: George E. Pataki).

Executive orders issued before 1960 are included in compilations of the public papers of the governors.

CASES / OPINIONS

1. Courts

As shown in the two charts, the New York judicial system has three levels:

• Court of Appeals - New York's court of last resort
• Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court - principal intermediate appellate court
• Trial Courts

The structure of the courts and the appeal procedures have not changed since the last judiciary amendment of 1962. Although there have been proposed changes to simplify the court system in 1986 and again in 2002, changes are still not yet on the horizon. The proposed court reorganization in 2002 is quite extensive and requires an amendment of the New York Constitution.

Court of Appeals

"The Court of Appeals, New York State's highest court, is composed of a Chief Judge and six Associate Judges, each appointed to a 14-year term. New York's highest appellate court was established to articulate statewide principles of law in the context of deciding particular lawsuits. The Court thus generally focuses on broad issues of law as distinguished from individual factual disputes. There is no jurisdictional limitation based upon the amount of money at stake in a case or the status or rank of the parties." The Court of Appeals also promulgates rules of court (links to the full text available at the end of its home page).

Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court

"There are four Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court, one in each of the State's four Judicial Departments (geographical divisions). These Courts resolve appeals from judgments or orders of the superior courts of original jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases, and review civil appeals taken from the Appellate Terms and the County Courts acting as appellate courts." New York County and Bronx belong to the First Judicial Department, while Kings, Queens, and Richmond belong to the Second Judicial Department.

Trial Courts

"The trial courts of superior jurisdiction are the Supreme Courts, the Court of Claims, the Family Courts, the Surrogate's Courts and, outside New York City, the County Courts. In New York City, the Supreme Court exercises both civil and criminal jurisdiction. Outside New York City, Supreme Court exercises civil jurisdiction, while County Court generally handles criminal matters.

"The trial courts of limited jurisdiction in New York City are the NYC Civil Court and the NYC Criminal Court. Outside New York City, the trial courts of limited jurisdiction are the City Courts which have criminal jurisdiction over claims of up to $15,000. There are District Courts in Nassau County and parts of Suffolk County. District Courts have criminal jurisdiction over misdemeanors and lesser offenses, and civil jurisdiction over claims of up to $15,000."

2. Court Opinions

Official Reports

• New York Reports includes cases decided in the Court of Appeals of the state of New York from 1847. 1st series (N.Y.Rep.): 1847-1955; 2nd series (N.Y.Rep.2d): 1956-2003; 3rd series (N.Y.Rep.3d) 2003- .
• Appellate Division Reports includes cases decided in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, State of New York from 1896. 1st series (A.D.): 1896-1955; 2d series (A.D.2d): 1956-2003; 3d series (A.D.3d): 2004- .
• Miscellaneous Reports includes cases decided in courts of the State of New York other than the Court of Appeals and the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court from 1893. 1st series (Misc.Rep.): 1893-1955; 2nd series (Misc.Rep.2d): 1956-2003; and 3rd series (Misc.Rep.3d): 2004- .

Unofficial Reports

• West's New York Supplement includes cases argued and determined in the Court of Appeals, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, as well as the Supreme Court and other courts. 1st series (N.Y.S.): 1888-1938, 2nd series (N.Y.S.2d): 1938-current.
• North Eastern Reporter (also known as West's North Eastern Reporter) includes cases argued and determined in the courts of Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, New York (Court of Appeals only), Ohio (1885- ). The original Northeastern Reporter (N.E.) covers 1885-1936. 2nd series (N.E.2d): 1936-current.
• New York Law Journal publishes some unpublished cases. Recent paper issues are available at the Circulation Desk until the microfiche version arrives.

3. Court Rules

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

Article IX of the New York Constitution, the Municipal Home Rule Law, and the Statute of Local Governments provide the framework of powers granted by the state to local governments. Local governments include the governments of counties, cities, towns and villages, but the county is New York state's primary political subdivision. In New York State, there are sixty-two counties. Within many of these counties are cities which have their own local governments. Five of these sixty-two counties - Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens and Richmond - make up of the City of New York and do not have their own county governments.

Many counties have adopted charters establishing the basic form of organization and administration of the counties. Operations of those local governments without charters are governed by the County Law (Chapter 11 of the New York State Consolidated Laws) in combination with local and special laws.

• All Municipality Websites Listed Alphabetically provides access to the official web sites for municipalities - counties, cities, towns, and villages.
• New York State Association of Counties "strive[s] to educate, train and provide research on public policy to Federal, State and Local officials and to the membership on issues important to counties." The web site links to policy and research on such issues.
• New York State Local Government provides links to useful web sites related to local governments in New York State.

Local Laws

A local government must file certified copies of the law locally and with the Secretary of State within twenty days after the law's final adoption and/or approval before the law is effective. Local laws have not been published by the Secretary of State as required by law in recent years. Each municipality (local government) is required to designate a newspaper of notice in which to publish its local laws.

City of New York

The state legislature created the City of New York as a local government in 1897. It is made up of five counties - Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens and Richmond. Although the City of New York is made up of different counties, these counties do not have self-governance powers. A borough is a political subdivision of the City of New York. Each of the five boroughs corresponds to one of its five counties: The Bronx - Bronx County, Brooklyn - Kings County, Manhattan - New York County, Queens - Queens County, Staten Island - Richmond County.

The Home Rule Amendment of 1924 to the Constitution gave the city the power to pass its own local laws. Before then, all local enactments were termed ordinances. The Charter of 1936 replaced the Municipal Assembly with the City Council which was given legislative power by Chapter 2 of the New York City Charter.

For directory information and brief descriptions of responsibilities of each New York City agency, consult The Green Book: Official Directory of the City of New York [ JS1222 .N32] (Georgetown Law Library keeps current edition only).

To access the Web sites of major New York City Agencies, check the drop-down menu on the left-hand column of the New York City Web Site.

Here are a few of the more important New York City Government Web sites:

• New York City Law Department
  • Corporation Counsel - the city's attorney in all civil matters, as well as in the juvenile delinquency proceedings brought in the Family Court and certain code enforcement proceedings in the New York City Criminal Court.
• Office of the Mayor
• Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH)
  • Since 1979 the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) has functioned as a central and independent adjudicative body with the authority to conduct administrative hearings for any agency, board or commission of the city. The Web site includes some recent decisions, usually cases decided in the previous month.
• Office of the Comptroller - the New York City Comptroller, an independently elected official, is the Chief Financial Officer of the City of New York.

BOOKS & PRACTICE MATERIALS

• New York Jurisprudence 2d [KFN5065 .N42 1979, also available electronically] is a multi-volume legal encyclopedia for New York, also available on Westlaw (NYJUR). "The topically organized explanations and summaries of basic legal doctrines, together with the supporting primary law (cases, statutes, and court rules), present a comprehensive statement of New York civil and criminal law, both substantive and procedural."
• David D. Siegel, New York Practice (Practitioner Treatise Series, 4th ed., 2005) [KFN5995 .S65 2005] offers a detailed and comprehensive treatment of basic rules, principles and issues relating to New York practice. The federal chapter summarizes the civil jurisdiction and practice of the federal courts and compares and contrasts it with New York practice in a number of particulars. Updated annually by a pocket part. There is also a student edition (4th ed., 2005) [KFN5995 .S65 2005b] which omits the chapters on federal practice and on arbitration, and the materials on landlord-tenant proceedings and small claims.
• Carmody-Wait 2d Cyclopedia of New York Practice, with Forms [KFN5995 .C342 also available electronically] , also available on Westlaw (CW2D). It is an encyclopedic treatment of civil practice and criminal procedure in New York.
• Bender's Forms for the Civil Practice [KFN5995 .A65 B4 1964], also available on Lexis (Legal > States Legal - U.S. > New York > Treatises & Analytical Materials > All Treatises & Analytical Materials > Bender's Forms for the Civil Practice)
• West's McKinney's Forms [KFN5068 .W4], also available on Westlaw (MCF-ALL)
• New York Forms: Practice-Oriented Forms for New York Legal and Business Transaction [KFN5068 .N4] , also available on Westlaw in many databases by practice area, e.g.New York Forms - Business (NY-BUSLF), New York Forms - Real Property (NY-RPLF)
• New York Lawyer's Deskbook [KFN 5081 .N485 1996]surveys twenty-five areas of legal practice
• General Practice in New York covers thirty areas of legal practice [KFN5995 .N64] (The Georgetown Law Library only owns volumes 20-25)

LAW REVIEWS, BAR JOURNALS, LOCAL NEWSPAPERS

Law Journals with a focus on New York state:

• New York Law Journal [Newspaper Micro] (1888 - present) publishes some unpublished cases. Recent paper issues are available at the Circulation Desk until the microfiche version arrives. New York Law Journal cases and articles are also available on:
  • Lexis (Legal > States Legal - U.S. > New York > Legal News > New York Law Journal) (1989- )
  • Westlaw (NYLJ) (1990- )
• Touro Law Review [K24 .O5, also available electronically] has an annual issue on New York State Constitutional Law .
• Syracuse Law Review [K23 .Y7 also available electronically] publishes an annual survey of New York Law
• St John's Law Review [K23 .A22 also available electronically] publishes an annual survey of New York practice
• New York State Bar Journal [K14 .E9715] (1959-1999), continued by Journal/New York State Bar Association [K10 .O594], "features substantive articles relating to practice of law in New York State on business, criminal, elder, environmental, labor and employment, real property and trusts and estates law, as well as other general topics of interest to attorneys."
• 44th Street Notes is a monthly (except July and August) publication published by the Association of the Bar of the City of New York.
  
  

Local Newspapers:

• New York Daily News (current; searchable full-text and free abstracts back to October 2001)
• New York Newsday (current; searchable full-text and free abstracts from the past month)
• New York Post (current, searchable full-text and free abstracts back to 2001)
• Village Voice (current, with some back issues)
  • ProQuest Research Library (full-text, July 1991-present) (available to Georgetown University Law Center ommunity only)
• The Villager (May 2003 - present)
• New York Public Library has the New York Times (from 1851), the New York Post (from 1801), the New York Journal of Commerce (from 1828). As for local newspapers, the library holds the Villager and the Village Voice in full. For a description of New York Public Library's New York City Newspaper Collection, check the "New York City Newspapers" page.
• American Newspapers in Columbia University Libraries
  Columbia University Libraries have an excellent collection of newspapers from across the country from 1704 to the present, including New York State and New York City (coverage varies depending on the publication). Access to Columbia University Libraries is restricted, check their access policies before visiting the libraries.

OTHER USEFUL RESOURCES

• Association of the Bar of the City of New York offers two types of resources:
  • Lawyer/Law Student: some of the most useful and relevant information includes Pro Bono Opportunities Guide; Job Seeker Services; Legal Ethics Opinions (1986- ); and CLE Calendar.
  • Public: some of the most useful and relevant information includes Legal Referral Service; Brochures/Books on different legal topics; and How to Complain About Lawyers & Judges in NYC.
• Center for New York City Law provides access to decisions decided by selective New York City agencies. The organization also publishes CityLaw (a bi-monthly publication reporting the most important legislative, administrative and judicial decisions affecting the City of New York), CityRegs (a bi-weekly fax news service, summarizing every current proposed or adopted New York City rule and regulation), and CityLand (a monthly publication reporting decisions from the New York City Land use agencies). The web site only provides very selective full-text of these publications.
• LawHelp.org/NY "helps low and moderate-income New Yorkers find legal help and information." Some of the resources are available in other languages. The entire web site is also available in Spanish.New York CourtHelp provides basic court forms, court facts, a directory of county law libraries and a directory of lawyer referral service.
• Law School Links (Findlaw)
• New York Public Library (Science, Industry and Business Library) provides links to resources on New York State and New York City.
• The New York Red Book published every two years by New York Legal Publishing Corp. in print (over 1,000 pages long) and online provides directory and biographical information (including photos) of New York officials from all three branches of government. It also includes a digest of important legislation recently enacted. Georgetown Law Library does not own this item.
• State and Local Government on the Net: A directory of official New York state, county, and city government websites
• New York State Directory [JK3430 .N52] published annually by Empire State Report provides in Section 1 directory information for all branches of New York State government, including short biographies of top officials. Section 2 lists government officials (state as well as federal if the agency impacts state policies), influential advocacy groups and experts by policy area (twenty-five policy areas in total). Also included in the Directory are appendices listing directory information of U.S. Congress Memebership, county and municipal governments, political parties, lobbyists, political action committees, higher education institutes, public school administrators, and mass media contacts. Georgetown Law Library discontinued this item with the 2001/2002 edition.
• New York State Bar Association offers two types of resources:
  • Resources for Attorney: some of the most useful and relevant information includes NYSBA The Lawyer's Code of Professional Responsibility; and Ethics Opinions.
  • Resources for the General Public: some of the most useful and relevant information includes information on how to find a lawyer, New York Living Will/ Health Care Directive Proxy Form; and New York State Attorney Directory which gives you the current contact of attorneys admitted to the New York State Bar.
• New York State Library is a depository for both New York State and Federal government documents.

OTHER RESEARCH GUIDES

• William H. Manz, Gibson's New York Legal Research Guide (3d ed. 2004) [KFN5074 .G54 2004] - the gold standard
• New York State Constitution Research Aid (Albany Law School)
• New York State - Constitutional Amendments (Zimmerman's Research Guide)
• New York Statutes and Legislative History Sources (NYU Law Library)
• New York Court System (NYU Law Library)
• New York Legal Research Pathfinder (Rutgers School of Law Library)
• Guide to New York Legal Research in the Mendik Libraries (New York Law School)
• New York City Documents (Columbia University)
• Sources of New York City Law and Regulation (NYU Law Library)

 

The author of this guide wants to say special thanks to the authors of the leading research guide for New York state law - William H. Manz's Gibson's New York Legal Research Guide (3d ed. 2004) [KFN5074 .G54 2004].

 

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