Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Change to Commercial Division Rules

The Office of Court Administration has asked for public comment on a proposed amendment to Commercial Division Rule 6 to "to require legal memoranda to include hyperlinks to NYSCEF docket entries when those documents are cited and to allow judges discretion in determining whether to require hyperlinking for cases, statutes, and rules to legal database sites.".

The proposed new rule provides:

In addition, each electronically-submitted memorandum of law or other document that cites to another document previously filed with NYSCEF shall include a hyperlink to the NYSCEF docket entry for the cited document enabling access to the cited document through the hyperlink. Hyperlinks may not provide access to documents filed under seal or otherwise not in the public record. Cited documents filed with NYSCEF that are accessible through bookmarks in the electronically-submitted document need not also be hyperlinked.

The Court may, by individual part rule or in an individual case, require that electronically-submitted memoranda of law include hyperlinks to cited court decisions, statutes, rules, regulations, treatises, and other legal authorities in either Lexis/Nexis or Westlaw databases or in state or federal government websites. If the Court does not require such hyperlinking, parties are nonetheless encouraged to hyperlink such citations unless otherwise directed by the Court.

If a party certifies in good faith that it cannot include hyperlinks as required by this Rule or the Court without undue burden, due to limitations in its office technology or other showing of good cause, the Court may excuse the party from any otherwise applicable hyperlinking requirement.

For purposes of this Rule, a hyperlink means an electronic link between one document and another, and a bookmark means an electronic link permitting navigation among different parts of a single document. Material made accessible by hyperlinking does not thereby become part of the record, and citations to authorities shall appear in standard citation form, even if also hyperlinked.

E-mail comments on this proposal to rulecomments@nycourts.gov by February 24, 2020.