N.Y. Insurance Law 2704 – Rights of action
§ 2704. Rights of action. (a) Notwithstanding any law or agreement among the parties to an insurance policy to the contrary, any action arising from an occurrence during the period between January first, nineteen hundred twenty-nine and December thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five brought by a Holocaust victim seeking proceeds of an insurance policy issued to or covering the life or property of a Holocaust victim prior to December thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five, shall not be dismissed for failure to comply with any statute of limitations or laches or other similar provision of any applicable law relating to the timeliness of the filing of claims that might prevent a claim from being heard on its merits, or any notice requirements imposed by any insurance policy provided the action is commenced within ten years from the effective date of this article.
Terms Used In N.Y. Insurance Law 2704
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Hearsay: Statements by a witness who did not see or hear the incident in question but heard about it from someone else. Hearsay is usually not admissible as evidence in court.
- Holocaust victim: shall mean any person, claimant, or the estate, heir, legatee, descendant, survivor, beneficiary, or other such successor-in-interest of such person, who lost his or her life or property as a result of discriminatory laws, policies, or actions targeted against discrete groups of persons based on race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or national origin, whether or not such person was actually a member of any of the foregoing enumerated groups or because such person assisted or allegedly assisted any of the foregoing groups, between January first, nineteen hundred twenty-nine and December thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five in areas under Nazi influence as defined in subsection (f) of this section. See N.Y. Insurance Law 2701
- Insurance policy: shall mean any policy of insurance substantially similar to any kind of insurance that was authorized at any time in New York between and including the years nineteen hundred twenty-nine and nineteen hundred forty-five or authorized by the jurisdiction in which the policy was sold at the time it was sold including but not limited to any form of life, accident and health, annuities, property, casualty, education or dowry insurance. See N.Y. Insurance Law 2701
- Proceeds: shall mean the face or other pay-out value of an insurance policy or annuity plus reasonable interest to date of payment as shall be prescribed by regulations promulgated by the superintendent. See N.Y. Insurance Law 2701
- Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
- Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
(b) With respect to any action arising from an occurrence during the period between January first, nineteen hundred twenty-nine and December thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five brought by a Holocaust victim seeking proceeds of an insurance policy issued to or covering the life or property of a Holocaust victim prior to December thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five no such action shall be stayed or dismissed pursuant to rule three hundred twenty-seven of the civil practice law and rules.
(c) In recognition of the significant period of time that has passed and in order to effect the goals of substantial justice, the rules regarding the admissibility of evidence, including but not limited to rule forty-five hundred eighteen and § 4519 of the civil practice law and rules, and principles of law or other rules relating to the admission of hearsay evidence shall be relaxed at the discretion of the trial judge in any action or proceeding authorized by this section.