New Court of Appeals Rule

New Rule Effective December 10, 2025

The New York Court of Appeals' new rule, effective December 10, 2025, reorganizes rules for amicus curiae briefs and adds a provision restricting them from using opinions of individual lawmakers outside of the official legislative record to argue legislative intent. Amici can address statutory language, canons of construction, and publicly available contemporaneous legislative history.  The Rule is part of amendments to Rule 500.23 of the Court's Rules of Practice and applies only to statutory construction cases and aims to provide clear guidance on permissible arguments concerning legislative intent. 

Proposed amici may address the statutory language itself, canons of statutory construction, and publicly available contemporaneous legislative history (i.e. bill jackets, sponsor memos part of the official record).  Proposed amici are explicitly prohibited from presenting the views of individual lawmakers that exist outside of the publicly available contemporaneous legislative history to argue legislative intent.