Uniform Rules § 207.29

Note of issue; pretrial conference · as in force on May 31, 2026

(a) The court may establish such calendars of cases as it deems necessary or desirable for proper case management and may schedule calls of such calendars at such times and in such manner as it deems appropriate.

(b) The court may direct that a trial or hearing date shall not be fixed until after a party shall file in duplicate a note of issue with a certificate of readiness in a form prescribed by the court together with an affidavit of service of said note of issue and certificate of readiness upon all parties who have appeared. The note of issue filed shall contain a statement of the estimated trial time each party will require.

(c) A pretrial conference may be directed by the court, either before or after a trial date is fixed, at which the parties shall attend. At such conference, a schedule of dates for the completion of examinations, disclosure matters, bills of particulars and other pretrial matters may be directed. The court may direct parties to submit for inspection documents and exhibits, may require counsel to stipulate as to facts and issues, and may direct severance or consolidation of issues.

Official sourcehttps://www.nycourts.gov/rules/part-207-uniform-rules-surrogates-court

In plain English

This rule lets the Surrogate's Court manage calendars, require a note of issue, and hold pretrial conferences.

(a) The court may set up calendars of cases as needed for case management and schedule calendar calls as it sees fit.
(b) The court may direct that no trial or hearing date be fixed until a party files, in duplicate, a note of issue with a certificate of readiness (in the court's form) and an affidavit of service on all parties who have appeared. ★ The note of issue must state each party's estimated trial time.
(c) The court may direct a pretrial conference, before or after a trial date is fixed, which the parties shall attend. There it may set deadlines for examinations, disclosure, bills of particulars and other pretrial matters, direct documents and exhibits to be submitted for inspection, require counsel to stipulate to facts and issues, and direct severance or consolidation of issues.

Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.

In print

This provision appears in Volume 1 — The Surrogate's Court in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Surrogate's Court: Court Rules & the EPTL; Volume 5 — Your Career: Surrogate's Court in Plain English.