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On behalf of the Hon. Deborah H. Karalunas, Fifth Judicial District Administrative Judge:
Dear Bar Association Leaders:
By Administrative Order AO-394 dated December 28, 2023, Chief Administrative Judge Zayas rescinds and replaces 78 Family Court forms. All of the forms are now effective and will be posted on-line at www.nycourts.gov. Because most of the changes are non-substantive, I do not believe a CLE program is necessary, but I leave that to you to decide. Please provide/post this information to your members. Thank you.
The changes to the forms are summarized below.
- Changing Affidavit Forms to Affirmation Forms
Chapter 559 of the Laws of 2023 provides that, effective January 1, 2024, affidavits submitted in civil cases need not be notarized, thus permitting affirmations to be used. As delineated in the statute, new language regarding perjury has been added to all attorney and non-attorney affirmation forms. While notarized affidavits may still be submitted, affirmations have been substituted for the uniform form affidavits.
The following 51 forms are being replaced to convert them from affidavit forms to affirmation forms, and/or to make other required changes: Forms GF-5b, GF-5c, GF-5d, GF-5e, GF-10a, GF-12a, GF-12d, GF-12f, GF-17b, GF-17c, GF-21, GF-31, GF-36b, GF-45a, Adoption UCS-836, Adopt-1-Ca, Adopt-1e, Adopt 2-e, Adopt8-a, Adopt-8-b, Adopt-9a, Adopt-9b, Adopt-10a, Adopt-10b, Adopt-10c, Adopt-21e, Adopt-23, Adopt-26a, Adopt-27c, 4-7b, 4-7c, 4-17, 4-17a, 4-19, 4-20a, 4-22, 4-25b, 5-17b, 10-11b, 10-13a, PH-7b, PH-7c, Surr-1a, Surr-4, Surr-4a, Surr-5, Surr-5a, TPR-1b, TPR-12, UCCJEA-3 and UCCJEA-14.
- Adding References to Affirmations in Orders and Notice of Motion Forms
Many forms had references to affidavits, and in light of Chapter 559 of the Laws of 2023, those forms have been amended to include affirmations as well.
The following 25 forms are being replaced in order to make this change: Forms GF-12, GF-14, GF-15, GF-17a, GF-18a, GF-21a, GF-36a, GF-37, GF-42, GF-45, GF-46, 3-1, 4-19a, 4-20, 4-25a, 4-SM-2, 5-4, 5-17a, 10-11a, 10-12, 10-13, 10-14, PH-7a, PH-8 and Surr-6.
- Order Directing Forensic Evaluation
Pursuant to Chapter 740 of the Laws of 2022, as modified by Chapter 23 of the Laws of 2023, effective December 23, 2023, amendments to the Domestic Relations Law and Executive Law, applicable in custody and visitation proceedings in Family and Supreme Courts, prohibit courts from appointing forensic evaluators who do not have a certification indicating that they have completed a prescribed training program provided by the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence in conjunction with the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence. See D.R.L. §240(1)(a-3) and Exec. L.§575(3)(o)
As a result, the Order Directing a Forensic Evaluation (General Form GF-12) has been revised to recite compliance with the new training statute, in addition to the existing requirement to comply with the Rules of the Appellate Divisions.
- Income Withholding Orders
Pursuant to a recent directive from the federal Office of Child Support Services (United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families), the expirations dates listed in the income withholding order form and related instructions have been extended to September 30, 2024. Two forms ((Forms 4-9/LDSS 5037 and 4-9b/LDSS5039) have been amended to make this change.
Thank you.
Hon. Deborah H. Karalunas
Administrative Judge for the Fifth Judicial District
Onondaga County Courthouse
401 Montgomery St., Suite 401
Syracuse, NY 13202
Tel: (315) 671-1106
Fax: (315) 671-1184
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