Penal Law § 210.40

Making an apparently sworn false statement in the first degree · as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 210.40 Making an apparently sworn false statement in the first degree.

A person is guilty of making an apparently sworn false statement in the first degree when he commits the crime of making an apparently sworn false statement in the second degree, and when (a) the written instrument involved is one for which an oath is required by law, and (b) the false statement contained therein is made with intent to mislead a public servant in the performance of his official functions, and (c) such false statement is material to the action, proceeding or matter involved.

Making an apparently sworn false statement in the first degree is a class E felony.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/210.40

In plain English

First-degree apparently sworn false statement requires second-degree apparently sworn false statement plus all of these conditions:

(a) the law requires an oath for the written instrument;
(b) the false statement is made to mislead a public servant performing official duties; and
(c) the false statement is material to the action, proceeding, or matter. ★

The offense is a class E felony.

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 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.