Commercial Division Blog: Current Developments in the Commercial Divisions of the New York State Courts

On November 27, 2023, Justice Joel M. Cohen denied a motion brought by a plaintiff seeking an award of costs expended in interpreter fees at the depositions of two defendants. The decision in Winnie Tsui, et al. v. Katherine Chou, et al., Index No. 652840/2013, rejected the plaintiffs’ argument that they discovered during two depositions that the parties spoke English sufficiently to answer questions and, thus, no interpreters were necessary after having gone to the trouble and expense of arranging for interpreters. Plaintiffs argued that the defendants were able to answer questions in English and were therefore shown not to require an interpreter. The Court, however, relied on an affidavit from the defendants’ daughter attesting that both defendants were born in China and, although conversational in English, do not have a high level of fluency. The Court explained: Read More