Kings County Supreme Court, Civil Branch: The Practitioner's Guide to 360 Adams Street

360 Adams Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201. One of the highest-volume civil courthouses in New York State. Managing thousands of active civil files and conducting complex litigation across multiple specialized parts, this courthouse demands preparation, procedural precision, and intimate knowledge of each judge's calendar practices.

The Discovery Engine. Budget Your Time Accordingly.

How Matters Are Resolved: Most CCP appearances are resolved via consent. Stipulations and discovery schedules are negotiated in the hallways before court conferences. Judges in CCP focus on discovery completion and calendar management rather than judicial rulings.

Consent Orders: Must be submitted by 3:00 PM two days prior to the scheduled conference. Late submissions are rejected without exception. Electronic filing reduces processing delays.

Non-cooperative Adversaries: In-person advocacy is required when opposing counsel refuses to stipulate. Articulate discovery disputes clearly and request specific rulings on document production timelines, interrogatory responses, and deposition schedules.

Latest Booking for CCP: 9:30 AM morning of the appearance. Do not request later bookings. Room 282 calendar calls are rigid and do not accommodate attorney preferences or conflicts.

Full procedural walkthrough: See our Kings County Central Compliance Part guide for what to bring, how matters are sequenced, and how to negotiate stipulations effectively.

Discovery motions: Kings County centralizes discovery motion scheduling, and those motions run on their own calendar with their own rhythm. See our Kings County discovery motion calendar guide (CDMP Part 25) for how the calendar is called, when argument is held, and what a covering attorney needs on file.

The Point of No Return for Discovery in Brooklyn.

The 6-Week Rule: Discovery completion deadlines are strictly enforced. Failure to complete all depositions, document production, and interrogatory responses by the NI-FCP date results in sanctions and preclusion motions.

No Automatic Extensions: "Good Cause" is required for any modification to discovery deadlines. Judicial discretion is narrow. Prepare all discovery before the NI-FCP conference, not after.

The NINA-C Trap: Notice of Intent Not to Arbitrate (NINA) with Certification of Compliance must be filed and submitted with the NI-FCP papers. Failure to comply results in administrative dismissal. Courts do not grant relief for technical violations at this stage.

The Final Gateway Before Trial.

Calendar Call: Failure to answer when your case is called results in immediate removal from the trial calendar. Judges in JCP do not tolerate late arrivals or excuses. Be present and alert at all times.

Settlement Authority Required: At least one attorney with full settlement authority must be present. Phone settlement authority is not acceptable. Decision-makers must be in the courtroom.

Marked Off Cases: Cases marked off for settlement may be restored to the trial calendar if settlement efforts fail. Understand the timing and procedural requirements for restoration requests before leaving the courtroom.

Medical Malpractice (MMESP and MMTRP)

MMESP (Medical Malpractice Experienced Special Part):

• Hon. Genine D. Edwards, Part 80
• Hon. Ellen M. Spodek, Part 63
• Hon. Consuelo Mallafre Melendez, Part 4/15

Labor Law and Construction (Part 91):

• Hon. Devin P. Cohen, LL1 and LLMSP

City Parts:

• Hon. Lisa Lewis
• Hon. Inga O'Neale

These justices manage large calendars and enforce strict procedural requirements. Familiarize yourself with each judge's practices before your appearance.

Kings County centralizes a great deal of practice in the compliance and final conference parts, which is why so much of this guide is written around them. The individual IAS parts are a different matter. Two of them publish rules specific enough that a covering attorney who has not read them will appear on the wrong day, in the wrong building, or on a motion the assigned justice is not actually hearing.

Hon. Richard J. Montelione, Part 99

Part 99 sits at 360 Adams Street, with chambers in Room 776 at (718) 500-4012 and the courtroom at (347) 296-1650. The Principal Law Clerk is Elliot Steinfeld and the Associate Law Clerk is Hillary Brown. The Part 99 clerk is Karen Uniacke.

Part 99 motions are not taken on submission. Since June 1, 2022, the part has required an in-person appearance on every motion. Counsel who assume a Brooklyn motion can be submitted and forgotten will be marked absent on a motion that is being argued without them.

The motion calendar runs on the first and third Wednesday of each month, and there are two calls. The morning calendar is called at 9:30 a.m. with a second and final call at 10:00 a.m. The afternoon calendar is called at 2:30 p.m. with a second and final call at 3:00 p.m. The second call is final, not a courtesy, so a covering attorney who is running late in the building needs to reach the courtroom before it.

Consumer debt matters are the exception and do not require an appearance. That carve-out is narrow. It does not extend to the rest of the Part 99 calendar.

Adjournments are handled by stipulation signed by all counsel. The stipulation must state the original return date, every prior adjournment, any future appearances already scheduled, and the reason for the request. It is uploaded to NYSCEF and e-mailed to the Principal Law Clerk. First requests are ordinarily granted, which makes the paperwork the real obstacle rather than the court's willingness.

Three further practices are worth knowing before an appearance. An order to show cause containing a temporary restraining order is generally not heard ex parte absent good cause. The court does not entertain oral argument beyond what is contained in the papers, so the appearance is about answering the calendar and addressing questions from the bench rather than delivering a prepared argument. And at trial, the part begins at 9:30 a.m. sharp, breaks at 1:00 p.m., and resumes at 2:15 p.m. sharp, speaking objections are not permitted, and any enlarged exhibit must also exist in a 14 by 8½ inch version for the record.

Hon. Rupert V. Barry, Part 13

Part 13 is not at 360 Adams Street. It sits at 320 Jay Street, Room 4.38, with chambers at (347) 296-1289 and the courtroom at (347) 296-1058. Sending a covering attorney to the main civil courthouse is the most common way to miss this calendar. The Principal Court Attorney is Celeste Felix, the Associate Law Clerk is Shateisha Foy, and the Part Clerk is Robert Dellevas.

Motions are heard on Wednesdays, with a first call at 9:30 a.m. and a second call at 10:30 a.m. Counsel who will arrive after 10:30 a.m. are directed to contact the Part Clerk. All appearances are in person and every motion is orally argued, so this is not a part where papers stand on their own.

A motion scheduled for the Central Compliance Part or the Final Conference Part is not heard by Justice Barry. It is heard by the judge assigned to the discovery part. Check e-courts to learn which part your motion is actually in before you dispatch anyone, because a Part 13 index number does not guarantee a Part 13 appearance.

The first adjournment on consent is taken by executed stipulation filed no less than two business days before the return date, with courtesy copies to both the Principal Court Attorney and the Associate Law Clerk. Any adjournment other than the first must be made in person and on the record. That rule turns a routine second adjournment into an appearance, which is precisely the kind of appearance a per diem attorney should be covering.

Motion papers go to the Motion Support Office at 360 Adams Street, Room 227, not to chambers. Summary judgment motions must be made within 60 days of the filing of the Note of Issue. Inquiries go by e-mail to both clerks with a subject line reading "INQUIRY" followed by the index number and the caption, and the part responds within three business days.

Motion Support (Room 227): File all motion papers through the Motion Support office. Deadlines are strictly enforced. Electronic filing is preferred and reduces processing delays.

Ex-Parte Clerk: 6-Hour Notice Rule: All Temporary Restraining Orders (TRO) and Orders to Show Cause (OSC) require six hours' written notice to the ex-parte clerk. Failure to provide notice results in rejection of the application.

Proposed Discovery Rules (Effective January 28, 2019):

• Preliminary Conference (PC) scheduled 45 days after RJI filing
• Compliance Conference (CC) no later than 6 months after PC
• Discovery not completed before Notice of Issue (NOI) deadline is deemed waived

Flat-rate EBT coverage in Brooklyn for half-day and full-day depositions, with interpreter add-ons when required. Rates quoted on confirmation.

Reporting: Written transcript delivered within 24 hours of deposition conclusion. Rush transcripts available at standard rates. PDF delivery to all counsel of record within business day.

Flat-rate per diem coverage for CCP and Compliance Conferences, Preliminary Conferences, Status Conferences, motion argument, JCP and Trial calendar calls, EBTs, and interpreter add-ons. Rates quoted on confirmation.