Title CVP, Civil Practice Law & Rules

§ 4501. Self-incrimination. A competent witness shall not be excused from answering a relevant question, on the ground only that the answer may tend to establish that he owes a debt or is otherwise subject to a civil suit. This section does not require a witness to give an answe…

§ 4502. Spouse. (a) Incompetency where issue adultery. A husband or wife is not competent to testify against the other in an action founded upon adultery, except to prove the marriage, disprove the adultery, or disprove a defense after evidence has been introduced tending to pro…

§ 4503. Attorney. (a) 1. Confidential communication privileged. Unless the client waives the privilege, an attorney or his or her employee, or any person who obtains without the knowledge of the client evidence of a confidential communication made between the attorney or his or …

§ 4504. Physician, dentist, podiatrist, chiropractor and nurse. (a) Confidential information privileged. Unless the patient waives the privilege, a person authorized to practice medicine, registered professional nursing, licensed practical nursing, dentistry, podiatry or chiropr…

§ 4505. Confidential communication to clergy privileged. Unless the person confessing or confiding waives the privilege, a clergyman, or other minister of any religion or duly accredited Christian Science practitioner, shall not be allowed disclose a confession or confidence mad…

§ 4506. Eavesdropping evidence; admissibility; motion to suppress in certain cases. 1. The contents of any overheard or recorded communication, conversation or discussion, or evidence derived therefrom, which has been obtained by conduct constituting the crime of eavesdropping, …

§ 4507. Psychologist. The confidential relations and communications between a psychologist registered under the provisions of article one hundred fifty-three of the education law and his client are placed on the same basis as those provided by law between attorney and client, an…

§ 4508. Social worker. (a) Confidential information privileged. A person licensed as a licensed master social worker or a licensed clinical social worker under the provisions of article one hundred fifty-four of the education law shall not be required to disclose a communication…

§ 4509. Library records. Library records, which contain names or other personally identifying details regarding the users of public, free association, school, college and university libraries and library systems of this state, including but not limited to records related to the …

§ 4510. Rape crisis counselor or domestic violence advocate. (a) Definitions. When used in this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings: 1. "Rape crisis program" means any office, institution or center which has been approved pursuant to subdivision fiftee…

Rule 4511. Judicial notice of law. (a) When judicial notice shall be taken without request. Every court shall take judicial notice without request of the common law, constitutions and public statutes of the United States and of every state, territory and jurisdiction of the Unit…

§ 4512. Competency of interested witness or spouse. Except as otherwise expressly prescribed, a person shall not be excluded or excused from being a witness, by reason of his interest in the event or because he is a party or the spouse of a party.

§ 4513. Competency of person convicted of crime. A person who has been convicted of a crime is a competent witness; but the conviction may be proved, for the purpose of affecting the weight of his testimony, either by cross-examination, upon which he shall be required to answer …

Rule 4514. Impeachment of witness by prior inconsistent statement. In addition to impeachment in the manner permitted by common law, any party may introduce proof that any witness has made a prior statement inconsistent with his testimony if the statement was made in a writing s…

Rule 4515. Form of expert opinion. Unless the court orders otherwise, questions calling for the opinion of an expert witness need not be hypothetical in form, and the witness may state his opinion and reasons without first specifying the data upon which it is based. Upon cross-e…

Rule 4516. Proof of age of child. Whenever it becomes necessary to determine the age of a child, he may be produced and exhibited to enable the court or jury to determine his age by a personal inspection.

Rule 4517. Prior testimony in a civil action. (a) Impeachment of witnesses; parties; unavailable witness. In a civil action, at the trial or upon the hearing of a motion or an interlocutory proceeding, all or any part of the testimony of a witness that was taken at a prior trial…

Rule 4518. Business records. (a) Generally. Any writing or record, whether in the form of an entry in a book or otherwise, made as a memorandum or record of any act, transaction, occurrence or event, shall be admissible in evidence in proof of that act, transaction, occurrence o…

§ 4519. Personal transaction or communication between witness and decedent or person with a mental illness. Upon the trial of an action or the hearing upon the merits of a special proceeding, a party or a person interested in the event, or a person from, through or under whom su…

§ 4519-a. Possession of opioid antagonists; receipt into evidence. 1. Possession of an opioid antagonist may not be received in evidence in any trial, hearing or proceeding pursuant to subdivision one of section two hundred thirty-one and paragraph three of subdivision b of sect…

Rule 4520. Certificate or affidavit of public officer. Where a public officer is required or authorized, by special provision of law, to make a certificate or an affidavit to a fact ascertained, or an act performed, by him in the course of his official duty, and to file or depos…

Rule 4521. Lack of record. A statement signed by an officer or a deputy of an officer having legal custody of specified official records of the United States or of any state, territory or jurisdiction of the United States, or of any court thereof, or kept in any public office th…

Rule 4522. Ancient filed maps, surveys and records affecting real property. All maps, surveys and official records affecting real property, which have been on file in the state in the office of the register of any county, any county clerk, any court of record or any department o…

Rule 4523. Search by title insurance or abstract company. A search affecting real property, when made and certified to by a title insurance, abstract or searching company, organized under the laws of this state, may be used in place of, and with the same legal effect as, an offi…

Rule 4524. Conveyance of real property without the state. A record of a conveyance of real property situated within another state, territory or jurisdiction of the United States, recorded therein pursuant to its laws, is prima facie evidence of conveyance and of due execution.

Rule 4525. Copies of statements under article nine of the uniform commercial code. A copy of a statement which is noted or certified by a filing officer pursuant to section 9--523 of the uniform commercial code and which states that the copy is a true copy is prima facie evidenc…

Rule 4526. Marriage certificate. An original certificate of a marriage made by the person by whom it was solemnized within the state, or the original entry thereof made pursuant to law in the office of the clerk of a city or a town within the state, is prima facie evidence of th…

§ 4527. Death or other status of missing person. (a) Presumed death. A written finding of presumed death, made by any person authorized to make such findings by the federal missing persons act is prima facie evidence of the death, and the date, circumstances and place of disappe…

Rule 4528. Weather conditions. Any record of the observations of the weather, taken under the direction of the United States weather bureau, is prima facie evidence of the facts stated.

Rule 4529. Inspection certificate issued by United States department of agriculture. An inspection certificate issued by the authorized agents of the United States department of agriculture on file with the United States secretary of agriculture is prima facie evidence of the fa…

§ 4530. Certificate of population. (a) Prima facie evidence. A certificate of the officer in charge of the census of the United States, attested by the United States secretary of commerce, giving the result of the census is, except as hereinafter provided, prima facie evidence o…

Rule 4531. Affidavit of service or posting notice by person unavailable at trial. An affidavit by a person who served, posted or affixed a notice, showing such service, posting or affixing is prima facie evidence of the service, posting or affixing if the affiant is dead, mental…

Rule 4532. Self-authentication of newspapers and periodicals of general circulation. Extrinsic evidence of authenticity as a condition precedent to admissibility is not required with respect to printed materials purporting to be newspapers or periodicals of general circulation; …

Rule 4532-a. Admissibility of graphic, numerical, symbolic or pictorial representations of medical or diagnostic tests. A graphic, numerical, symbolic or pictorial representation of the results of a medical or diagnostic procedure or test is admissible in evidence provided: (1) …

§ 4532-b. An image, map, location, distance, calculation, or other information taken from a web mapping service, a global satellite imaging site, or an internet mapping tool, is admissible in evidence if such image, map, location, distance, calculation, or other information indi…

Rule 4533. Market reports. A report of a regularly organized stock or commodity market published in a newspaper or periodical of general circulation or in an official publication or trade journal is admissible in evidence to prove the market price or value of any article regular…

Rule 4533-a. Prima facie proof of damages. An itemized bill or invoice, receipted or marked paid, for services or repairs of an amount not in excess of two thousand dollars is admissible in evidence and is prima facie evidence of the reasonable value and necessity of such servic…

Rule 4533-b. Proof of payment by joint tort-feasor. In an action for personal injury, injury to property or for wrongful death, any proof as to payment by or settlement with another joint tort-feasor, or one claimed to be a joint tort-feasor, offered by a defendant in mitigation…

Rule 4534. Standard of measurement used by surveyor. An official certificate of any state, county, city, village or town sealer elected or appointed pursuant to the laws of the state, or the statement under oath of a surveyor, that the chain or measure used by him conformed to t…

Rule 4536. Proof of writing by comparison of handwriting. Comparison of a disputed writing with any writing proved to the satisfaction of the court to be the handwriting of the person claimed to have made the disputed writing shall be permitted.

Rule 4537. Proof of writing subscribed by witness. Unless a writing requires a subscribing witness for its validity, it may be proved as if there was no subscribing witness.

Rule 4538. Acknowledged, proved or certified writing; conveyance of real property without the state. Certification of the acknowledgment or proof of a writing, except a will, in the manner prescribed by law for taking and certifying the acknowledgment or proof of a conveyance of…

Rule 4539. Reproductions of original. (a) If any business, institution, or member of a profession or calling, in the regular course of business or activity has made, kept or recorded any writing, entry, print or representation and in the regular course of business has recorded, …

Rule 4540. Authentication of official record of court or government office in the United States. (a) Copies permitted. An official publication, or a copy attested as correct by an officer or a deputy of an officer having legal custody of an official record of the United States o…

Rule 4540-a. Presumption of authenticity based on a party's production of material authored or otherwise created by the party. Material produced by a party in response to a demand pursuant to article thirty-one of this chapter for material authored or otherwise created by such p…

Rule 4541. Proof of proceedings before justice of the peace. (a) Of the state. A transcript from the docket-book of a justice of the peace of the state, subscribed by him, and authenticated by a certificate signed by the clerk of the county in which the justice resides, with the…

Rule 4542. Proof of foreign records and documents. (a) Foreign record. A foreign official record, or an entry therein, when admissible for any purpose, may be evidenced by an official publication thereof; or a copy thereof, attested by a person authorized to make the attestation…

§ 4543. Proof of facts or writing by methods other than those authorized in this article. Nothing in this article prevents the proof of a fact or a writing by any method authorized by any applicable statute or by the rules of evidence at common law.

§ 4544. Contracts in small print. The portion of any printed contract or agreement involving a consumer transaction or a lease for space to be occupied for residential purposes where the print is not clear and legible or is less than eight points in depth or five and one-half po…

§ 4545. Admissibility of collateral source of payment. (a) Actions for\npersonal injury, injury to property or wrongful death. In any action\nbrought to recover damages for personal injury, injury to property or\nwrongful death, where the plaintiff seeks to recover for the cost …