On March 20, 2020, Governor Cuomo issued Executive Order No. 202.8, titled “Continuing Temporary Suspension and Modification of Laws Relating to the Disaster Emergency.”
This Order affects various New York laws, including the Civil Practice Law and Rules, the Vehicle and Traffic Law, and the Business Corporation Law.
It imposes the following changes to various laws with respect to the operation of “statutes of limitation”, which are the deadlines by which one must commence an action or proceeding. Specifically, it provides, inter alia:
In accordance with the directive of the Chief Judge of the State to limit court operations to essential matters during the pendency of the COVID-19 health crisis, any specific time limit for the commencement, filing, or service of any legal action, notice, motion, or other process or proceeding, as prescribed by the procedural laws of the state, including but not limited to the criminal procedure law, the family court act, the civil practice law and rules, the court of claims act, the surrogate’s court procedure act, and the uniform court acts, or by any other statute, local law, ordinance, order, rule, or regulation, or part thereof, is hereby tolled from the date of this executive order until April 19, 2020[.]
The Executive Order also, among other things, requires employers to reduce their in-person workforce by 100% by March 22 at 8 p.m. (except for any “essential business or entity providing essential services or functions”), and halts enforcement of evictions and foreclosures for 90 days.