ARTICLE 19

DISCHARGE OR EXTINGUISHMENT OF ENCUMBRANCES, CLAIMS AND INTERESTS
Section 1901. Release of rents reserved by leases in perpetuity.
1911. Action to extinguish inchoate right of dower.
1921. Discharge of mortgage.
1921-a. Partial release from lien of mortgaged premises.
1931. Discharge of record of ancient mortgages presumed paid.
1932. Discharge of record of ancient mortgage where time of
maturity is dependent on contingent event related to
use of premises.
1933. When county clerk or register to discharge mortgage of
record.
1941. When special proceeding to quiet title may be
maintained.
1942. Petition in special proceeding to quiet title.
1943. Order for publication of notice to persons interested.
1944. Hearing and final order upon non-appearance of adverse
claimants.
1945. Hearing and final order upon appearance of adverse
claimants.
1946. Notice of pendency to be filed and recorded.
1951. Extinguishment of non-substantial restrictions on the
use of land.
1953. Effect of certain special limitations and conditions
subsequent.
1954. Action to limit existing possibilities of reverter and
rights of entry restricting the use of land.
1955. Modification or extinguishment of certain restrictions
on the use of land held for charitable purposes.

S 1901. Release of rents reserved by leases in perpetuity. 1. Any
person interested in lands held under a lease in perpetuity, upon which
no rent has been paid for at least twenty years, may present his
petition to the courts mentioned in this section asking that it be
declared that the rents and reversion have been released to the owner of
the fee. Such petition shall be verified, shall describe the lease and
allege that the rents and reversion have been released, and shall state
such facts as the petitioner can ascertain relative to the execution of
a release and the identity of the persons who would otherwise be the
present owners of the rents and reversion and the last known owner
thereof.
2. Such petition may be presented to the supreme court or to the
county court of the county where the lands are situated. The court may
thereupon order all persons interested to show cause at a certain time
and place why the rents and reversion should not be declared to have
been released. A description of the lease and lands affected thereby
and the name of the last known owner of the rents and reversion shall be
specified in such order, and the order shall be published in such
newspaper or newspapers and for such time as the court shall direct. The
court may also direct the order to be personally served upon such
persons as it shall designate.
3. The court may issue commissions to take the testimony of witnesses
and may refer the petition to a referee to take and report proofs of the
facts stated in the petition. Upon being satisfied that the matters
alleged in the petition are true, the court may make an order declaring
that the rents and reversion have been released to the owner of the fee.
The nonpayment of rent under any such lease for twenty years shall be
presumptive evidence of such a release.
4. The entry of such order in the office of the clerk of the county
where such lands are situated shall have the same effect as a release of
such rents and reversion to such owner then duly executed and recorded.
The county clerk shall note on the margin of the record of the original
lease a minute of the entry of such order.

S 1911. Action to extinguish inchoate right of dower. 1. An owner of
land subject to an inchoate right of dower may maintain an action in the
supreme court against the possessor of such right to have the right
extinguished. In such action the court shall find the present cash value
of the inchoate right of dower according to the law applicable to
annuities and survivorships. It shall also determine whether the payment
to the defendant of the sum found, in lieu of her right, would be unduly
prejudicial to her. If the court determines that such payment would not
be unduly prejudicial, the court, upon proof of payment of such sum to
the defendant or upon payment into court for her credit, shall make an
order declaring the inchoate right of dower extinguished.
2. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to affect section 967
or article 17 of this chapter, or section two hundred and forty-eight of
the surrogate`s court act.

S 1921. Discharge of mortgage. 1. After payment of authorized
principal, interest and any other amounts due thereunder or otherwise
owed by law has actually been made, and in the case of a credit line
mortgage as defined in section two hundred eighty-one of the real
property law on written request, a mortgagee of real property situate in
this state, unless otherwise requested in writing by the mortgagor or
the assignee of such mortgage, must execute and acknowledge before a
proper officer, in like manner as to entitle a conveyance to be
recorded, a satisfaction of mortgage, and thereupon within forty-five
days arrange to have the satisfaction of mortgage: (a) presented for
recording to the recording officer of the county where the mortgage is
recorded, or (b) if so requested by the mortgagor or the mortgagor`s
designee, to the mortgagor or the mortgagor`s designee. The mortgagee
shall within forty-five days deliver the note and the mortgage and where
a title is registered under article twelve of the real property law, the
registration copy of the mortgage and any registration certificates in
the mortgagee`s possession to the mortgagor or the mortgagor`s designee
making such payment and request if required as aforesaid. Delivery of a
satisfaction of mortgage in accordance with the terms of section two
hundred seventy-five of the real property law shall be deemed to satisfy
the requirements of this section regarding the satisfaction of mortgage.
2. Upon the failure or refusal of any such mortgagee to comply with
the foregoing provisions of this section any person having an interest
in the mortgage or the debt or obligation secured thereby or in the
mortgaged premises may apply to the supreme court or a justice thereof,
or to the county court or a judge thereof, in or of any county in which
the mortgaged premises or any part thereof are situated in whole or in
part, upon a petition, for an order to show cause why an order should
not be made by such court canceling and discharging the mortgage of
record, and directing the register or clerk of any county in whose
office the same may have been recorded to mark the same upon his records
as canceled and discharged, and further ordering and directing that the
debt or other obligation secured by the mortgage be canceled, upon
condition that in the event such mortgage is not paid, the sums tendered
pursuant to the foregoing provisions of this section be paid to the
officer specified by law to hold court funds and moneys deposited in
court in the county wherein the mortgaged premises are situated in whole
or in part. Said petition must be verified in like manner as a verified
pleading in an action in the supreme court and it must set forth the
grounds of the application.
3. In any case where an actual tender, as provided in subdivision one
of this section, cannot with due diligence be made within this state,
any person having an interest in the mortgage or the debt or obligation
secured thereby, or in the mortgaged premises, may apply to the supreme
court or a justice thereof, or to the county court or a judge thereof,
in or of any county in which the mortgaged premises, or any part thereof
are situated in whole or in part, upon petition setting forth the
grounds of the application and verified as aforesaid, for an order to
show cause why an order should not be made by said court canceling and
discharging the mortgage of record, and directing the register or clerk
of any county in whose office the same may have been recorded to mark
the same upon his records as canceled and discharged and further
ordering and directing that the debt or other obligation secured by the
mortgage be canceled, upon condition that the principal sum of the
mortgage or any unpaid balance thereof, with interest up to the date
when said order shall be entered and the aforesaid fees allowed by law,
be paid to the officer specified by law to hold court funds and moneys
deposited in court in the county wherein the mortgaged premises are
situated in whole or in part.
4. In the case of a mortgage secured by property improved by a
one-to-six family, owner occupied, residential structure or residential
condo- minium unit, if the mortgagee fails within ninety days to deliver
the satisfaction of mortgage and/or fails within ninety days to deliver
the note and the mortgage and any other documents as required by
subdivision one of this section and if the mortgage is not otherwise
satisfied the mortgagee shall be liable to such person in the amount of
five hundred dollars or the economic loss to such person, whichever is
greater. If the mortgagee has delivered such satisfaction of mortgage in
a timely manner and has certified that the note and/or mortgage are not
in its possession as of such date, the mortgagee shall not be liable
under this section if the mortgagee agrees to defend and hold harmless
the mortgagor by reason of the inability or failure of the mortgagee to
furnish the note or mortgage within the time period prescribed in this
subdivision; provided that in connection with mortgage loans purchased
prior to July twenty-seven, nineteen hundred ninety-one by the state of
New York mortgage agency pursuant to section two thousand four hundred
five or two thousand four hundred-five-b of the public authorities law,
the state of New York mortgage agency, its successors or assigns shall
not be liable under this section if it does not defend and hold harmless
the mortgagor by reason of the inability or failure of the state of New
York mortgage agency, its successors or assigns to furnish the note or
mortgage within the time period prescribed in this subdivision. Damages
imposed by this subdivision shall be in addition to the other costs and
fees allowed in this section.
5. (a) In the case of a mortgage secured by property improved by a
one-to-six family, owner occupied, residential structure or residential
condominium unit, if within ninety days of receipt of payment, and
request if required, the mortgagee fails to deliver to the mortgagor or
the mortgagor`s designee the satisfaction of mortgage, the note and the
mortgage and any other documents as required by subdivision one of this
section, any attorney-at-law may execute, acknowledge and upon payment
of an additional filing fee of fifty dollars cause to be filed with the
recording officer of the county where the mortgage is recorded, an
affidavit which complies with this section. Unless the mortgagee shall
file a verified objection to such affidavit within thirty-five days of
being filed, as of the date thirty-five days subsequent to its filing,
such affidavit shall be recorded and satisfy the lien of such mortgage
on the mortgaged premises.
(b) The affidavit shall state that:
(i) The affiant is an attorney-at-law and that the affidavit is made
on behalf of and at the request of the mortgagor or any person who has
acquired title to the mortgaged premises;
(ii) The mortgagor made a proper request of the mortgagee for the
execution of the satisfaction of mortgage pursuant to subdivision one of
this section;
(iii) The mortgagor has received a payoff statement for the loan
secured by the mortgage, and shall annex as evidence a copy of the
payoff statement;
(iv) The affiant has ascertained that the mortgagee received payment
of the loan in accordance with the payoff statement, and shall annex as
evidence, copies of the check negotiated by the mortgagee or documentary
evidence of such payment;
(v) The affiant, at least thirty days after the mortgagee received
payment, has given the mortgagee written notice together with a copy of
the proposed affidavit, delivered by certified or registered mail,
return receipt requested, to the attention of the person or department
set forth in the payoff statement, of the affiant`s intention to execute
and record an affidavit in accordance with this section; and
(vi) The mortgagee has not responded in writing to such notification
or all requests by the mortgagee for payment have been complied with at
least fifteen days prior to the date of the affidavit.
(c) Such affidavit shall identify the mortgagor and the mortgagee,
state the date of the mortgage, the liber and page of the land records
where the mortgage is recorded and give similar information with respect
to any recorded assignment of the mortgage.
(d) The affiant shall attach to the affidavit photostatic copies of
the documentary evidence that payment has been received by the
mortgagee, including mortgagee`s endorsement of any check, and a
photostatic copy of the payoff statement and certify each to be a copy
of the original document.
(e) Within five days of the filing of such affidavit the register or
clerk of every county in whose office said mortgage has been recorded
shall give the mortgagee written notice, delivered by certified or
registered mail, return receipt requested, to the attention of the
person or department set forth in the payoff statement, as annexed to
the affidavit filed hereunder, of the filing of such affidavit, which
notice shall include the following notice in capital letters:
"THIS NOTICE IS MADE UNDER SECTION 1921 OF THE REAL PROPERTY ACTIONS AND
PROCEEDINGS LAW. FAILURE TO FILE WITH THIS OFFICE WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF
THIS NOTICE A VERIFIED OBJECTION TO THE DISCHARGE OF THE MORTGAGE
DESCRIBED IN THIS NOTICE WILL RESULT IN SUCH MORTGAGE BEING CANCELED AND
DISCHARGED OF RECORD."
Unless the register or clerk of such county shall receive from the
mortgagee, within thirty-five days of the date of filing of such
affidavit, a verified objection by the mortgagee to the discharge of
said mortgage, the register or clerk shall record the affidavit and
supporting documents and mark the mortgage described in the affidavit
canceled and discharged of record and such recorded affidavit shall have
the same force and effect as a duly executed satisfaction of mortgage
recorded in accordance with section three hundred twenty-one of the real
property law. If the register or clerk of such county shall receive from
the mortgagee, within thirty-five days of the date of filing of such
affidavit, a verified objection by the mortgagee to the discharge of
said mortgage, the register or clerk shall return the original affidavit
and the verified objection to the attorney filing such affidavit without
marking the mortgage described in the affidavit canceled or discharged
of record. The clerk or register of such county shall additionally
transmit a copy of the affidavit and the verified objection to its
applicable appellate division of the supreme court, committee on
professional standards, for such further proceedings as determined
appropriate by such committee.
(f) The county clerk or register shall index the affidavit in the same
manner as a satisfaction of mortgage and shall record such instrument
upon payment of the same fees as for a satisfaction of mortgage.
(g) (i) Any attorney who prepares an affidavit and negligently causes
the affidavit to contain false information shall be liable to the
mortgagee for any monetary damages and subject to other applicable
sanctions under law.
(ii) Any person who supplies false information for the affidavit shall
be liable to the mortgagee for any monetary damages and subject to other
applicable sanctions under law.
(h) A banking or other organization having the original or copies
thereof, shall furnish, within sixty days of receiving a written
request, a copy of the front and reverse sides of a check issued to
satisfy the mortgage obligation by such banking or other organization,
needed for completion of an affidavit in accordance with this subdivi-
sion.
6. Eight days` notice of the application for either of the orders
provided for in subdivisions two and three of this section shall be
given to the then mortgagee of record and also, if the petition show
that there is a mortgage not of record, to such mortgagee. Such notice
shall be given in such manner as the court or the judge or justice
thereof to whom the petition is presented may direct, and said court or
judge or justice may require such longer notice to be given as may seem
proper. If sufficient cause be shown the court or judge or justice
thereof may issue such order to show cause returnable in less than eight
days.
7. Upon the return day of such order to show cause, the court, upon
proof of due service thereof and on proof of the identity of the
mortgagee and of the person presenting the petition, shall inquire in
such manner as it may deem advisable, into the truth of the facts set
forth in the petition, and in case it shall appear that said principal
sum or any unpaid balance thereof and interest and the said fees allowed
by law have been duly paid or tendered but not accepted and said
satisfaction of mortgage has been duly presented for execution, or that
such tender and presentation could not have been made within this state
with due diligence, then, in the event such mortgage is not paid, the
court shall make an order directing the sums so tendered, or in a case
where such tender could not have been made as aforesaid, directing the
principal sum or any unpaid balance thereof, with interest thereon to
the date of entry of said order together with all other amounts due
thereunder pursuant to subdivision three of this section and the
aforesaid fees allowed by law, to be paid to the officer specified by
law to hold court funds and moneys deposited in court in the county
wherein the application herein is made, and directing and ordering that
upon such payment the debt or other obligation secured by the mortgage
be canceled and further directing the register or clerk of any and every
county in whose office said mortgage shall have been recorded to mark
said mortgage canceled and discharged of record upon the production and
delivery to such register or clerk of a certified copy of the order and
the receipt of such officer, showing that the amount required by said
order has been deposited with him, which certified copy of said order
and which receipt shall be recorded, filed and indexed by any such
register or clerk in the same manner as a certificate of discharge of a
mortgage. Said receipt need not be acknowledged to entitle it to be
recorded. The court in its discretion, when granting any such order
after application therefor pursuant to subdivision two of this section,
may award costs and reasonable attorney`s fees to the person making the
application, in the absence of the showing of a valid reason for the
failure or refusal to execute the satisfaction of mortgage and deliver
the same, the note and mortgage and any other documents required under
subdivision one of this section. The money deposited shall be payable to
the mortgagee, his personal representative or assigns, upon an order of
the supreme court or county court, directing the payment thereof to him
upon such evidence as to his right to receive the same as shall be
satisfactory to the court.
8. Wherever any register or clerk shall record any order and receipt
as hereinbefore specified, he shall mark the record of said mortgage as
follows: "Canceled and discharged by order of the
.......................... Court, County of ...................... ,
dated .................. and filed ...................... , " and
thereupon the lien of such mortgage shall be deemed to be discharged and
the debt secured thereby shall be deemed to be canceled. Said register
or clerk shall be permitted to charge for recording and filing said
order and receipt, the same fees to which he is now entitled for
recording and filing a certificate of satisfaction of a mortgage.
9. When used in this section:
(a) "Mortgagee" means (i) the current holder of the mortgage of record
or the current holder of the mortgage, or (ii) any person to whom
payments are required to be made or (iii) their personal
representatives, agents, successors, or assigns.
(b) "Attorney-at-law" means any person admitted to practice law in
this state and in good standing.
(c) "Payoff statement" means a statement setting forth the unpaid
balance of the mortgage, including principal, interest and other charges
pursuant to the loan documents, together with a per diem rate for
interest accruing after the date to which the unpaid balance has been
calculated. The payoff statement furnished by a banking organization or
corporate mortgagee shall include a name of an individual employed by
such banking organization or corporate mortgagee or department of such
banking organization or corporate mortgagee to whom inquiry concerning
the payoff statements are to be addressed in addition to the address of
the banking organization or corporation for use in connection with the
affidavit under subdivision five of this section.
(d) "Banking organization" shall have the same meaning as provided in
subdivision eleven of section two of the banking law and shall include
any institution chartered or licensed by the United States or any state.
(e) "Note" shall include any written evidence of indebtedness.

S 1921-a. Partial release from lien of mortgaged premises. 1.
Whenever the owner of mortgaged property situate in this state shall be
entitled, pursuant to the terms of the mortgage encumbering such
property, to obtain the release of a portion thereof from the lien of
such mortgage, then, upon (1) delivery by such owner to the mortgagee of
a partial release from lien of mortgaged premises, in a form entitled to
be recorded, describing the portion of the mortgaged premises so
entitled to be released, together with the fees allowed by law for the
taking of the acknowledgment of a deed, (2) proof that all requirements
set forth in such mortgage as conditions precedent to the execution and
delivery by the mortgagee of such partial release have been satisfied,
and (3) payment, or tender of payment, to the mortgagee of all sums
required under the terms of the mortgage to be paid to obtain such
partial release, such mortgagee must execute and acknowledge before a
proper officer, in like manner as to entitle a conveyance to be
recorded, the partial release theretofore delivered to such mortgagee or
such other partial release from lien of mortgaged premises as may be
required to be executed under the terms of the mortgage, which release
shall be in recordable form.
2. Upon the failure or refusal of any such mortgagee to comply with
the foregoing provisions of this section, any owner of the mortgaged
premises may apply to the supreme court or a justice thereof, or to the
county court or a judge thereof, in or of any county in which the
mortgaged premises or any part thereof are situated in whole or in part,
upon a petition, for an order to show cause why an order should not be
made by such court releasing of record from the lien of said mortgage
the parcel or parcels of land described in said release, and directing
the register or clerk of any county in whose office the same may have
been recorded to mark the same upon his records as released as to the
parcel or parcels described in such order, and further ordering and
directing that the debt or other obligation secured by the mortgage be
reduced in the amount tendered or paid, upon condition that in the event
such mortgage or part thereof is not paid, the sums tendered pursuant to
the foregoing provisions of this section be paid to the officer
specified by law to hold court funds and moneys deposited in court in
the county wherein the mortgaged premises are situated in whole or in
part for the purpose of paying said sum over to the mortgagee. Said
petition must be verified in like manner as a verified pleading in an
action in the supreme court and it must set forth the grounds of the
application.
3. In any case where an actual tender, as provided in subdivision one
of this section, cannot, with due diligence, be made, any owner of the
mortgaged premises may apply to the supreme court or a justice thereof,
or to the county court or a judge thereof, in or of any county in which
the mortgaged premises, or any part thereof are situated in whole or in
part, upon petition setting forth the grounds of the application and
verified as aforesaid, for an order to show cause why an order should
not be made by said court releasing of record the parcel or parcels
described in said release from the lien of the mortgage, and directing
the register or clerk of every county in which the mortgaged premises
are located to mark the same upon his records as released as to the
parcel or parcels described in such order and further ordering and
directing that the debt or other obligation secured by the mortgage be
reduced, upon condition that the prerequisites for obtaining such
release set forth in subdivision one of this section and the sum of the
mortgage required to be paid pursuant to the terms and conditions of
said mortgage and fees allowed by law or the mortgage, be paid to the
officer specified by law to hold court funds and moneys deposited in
court in the county wherein the mortgaged premises are situated in whole
or in part until such time as said sums may be claimed by the mortgagee.
4. Eight days` notice of the application for either of the orders
provided for in subdivisions two and three of this section shall be
given to the mortgagee. Such notice shall be given in such manner as the
court or the judge or justice thereof to whom the petition is presented
may direct, and said court or judge or justice may require such longer
notice to be given as may seem proper. If sufficient cause be shown the
court or judge or justice thereof may issue such order to show cause
returnable in less than eight days. 5. Upon the return day of such
order to show cause, the court, upon proof of due service thereof and on
proof of the identity of the mortgagee and of the person presenting the
petition, shall inquire, in such manner as it may deem advisable, into
the truth of the facts set forth in the petition, and in case it shall
appear that said sum or sums required to be paid pursuant to the terms
and conditions of the mortgage and the fees allowed by law have been
duly paid or tendered but not accepted, said partial release from lien
of mortgage instrument has been duly presented for execution, or that
such tender and presentation could not have been made with due diligence
and the prerequisites for obtaining such release as set forth in
subdivision one of this section have been met, then, in the event that
portion of the lien of such mortgage required to be released pursuant to
the terms and conditions thereof is not so released, the court shall
make an order directing the sums so tendered, or in a case where such
tender could not have been made as aforesaid, directing the sum or sums
so required and the fees allowed by law, to be paid to the officer
specified by law to hold court funds and moneys deposited in court in
the county wherein the application herein is made, and directing and
ordering that upon such payment the debt or other obligation secured by
the mortgage be reduced and further directing the register or clerk of
every county in which the mortgaged premises are located to mark said
mortgage reduced of record upon the production and delivery to such
register or clerk of a certified copy of the order and the receipt of
such officer showing that the amount required by said order and which
receipt shall be recorded, filed and indexed by any such register or
clerk in the same manner as a certificate of discharge of a release from
lien of mortgaged premises. Said receipt need not be acknowledged to
entitle it to be recorded. The court in its discretion, when granting
any such order after application therefor pursuant to subdivision two of
this section, may award costs and reasonable attorneys` fees to the
person making the application, in the absence of the showing of a valid
reason for the failure or refusal to execute the partial release from
lien of mortgaged premises and deliver the same. The money deposited
shall be payable to the mortgagee, his representatives or assigns, less
any court costs and reasonable attorneys` fees allowed by the court as
herein provided which shall be paid to the owner of the mortgaged
premises who has made application for the order herein referred to upon
an order of the supreme court or county court, directing the payment
thereof to such owner upon such evidence as to his right to receive the
same as shall be satisfactory to the court.
6. Wherever any register or clerk shall record any order and receipt
as hereinbefore specified, he shall mark the record of said mortgage, if
same be recorded, as follows:
"Part of the premises herein described have been released from lien of
this mortgage by order of the__________________court, County of
___________,dated___________and filed____________a description of the
property so released being contained in such order" and thereupon the
lien of such mortgage shall be deemed to be released as to the premises
so described in such order and the debt or obligation secured thereby
shall be deemed to be reduced as provided in such order. Said register
or clerk shall be permitted to charge for recording and filing said
order and receipt, the same fees to which he is entitled for recording
and filing a certificate of release of lien of mortgaged premises. 7.
The word "mortgagee" whenever used in this section shall be construed to
include the persons entitled to enforce or satisfy the mortgage and the
personal representatives, successors and assigns, of such persons.
8. Nothing contained in this section shall limit or abridge any rights
or remedies otherwise available at law or in equity to the owner of the
mortgaged premises or any other person having an interest in such
mortgaged premises.

S 1931. Discharge of record of ancient mortgages presumed paid. 1.
The mortgagor, his heirs or any person having any interest in any lands
described in any mortgage of real estate in this state, which is
recorded in this state, or mentioned in a deed recorded in this state,
and which, from the lapse of time, is presumed to be paid, or in any
moneys into which said lands have been converted under a decree of a
court of competent jurisdiction, and which are held in place of such
lands to answer such mortgage, may present his petition together with an
official search of the recording officer in whose office the mortgage is
recorded, or a search prepared by a person duly licensed and admitted to
practice law in this state or by a title company duly incorporated and
authorized to transact business in this state showing assignments of
record, if any, to the courts mentioned in this article, asking that
such mortgage may be discharged of record.
2. Such petition shall be verified; it shall describe the mortgage,
and when and where recorded, or if such mortgage is not recorded that
the same may be adjudged to have been paid and to be no longer a lien
upon the lands therein described, and shall allege that such mortgage is
paid; that the mortgagee has, or, if there be more than one mortgagee,
that all of them have been dead for more than five years; or if such
mortgage has been assigned by an instrument in writing for that purpose
executed and acknowledged, so as to entitle the same to be recorded, and
such instrument of assignment has been recorded in the office of the
clerk of the county where the mortgaged premises or some portion thereof
is situated, and the assignee or assignees of said mortgage have been
dead for more than five years, such petition shall state such facts, and
no statement respecting the mortgagee or mortgagees or the names and
places of residence of their heirs shall be required; or if such
mortgagee be a corporation or association, that such corporation or
association has ceased to exist and do business as such for more than
five years; the time and place of his or their death, and place of
residence at the time of his or their death; whether or not letters
testamentary or of administration have been taken out, or, if said
mortgagee or mortgagees, or assignee or assignees at the time of his or
their death resided out of this state, whether or not letters
testamentary or of administration have been taken out in the county
where such mortgaged premises are situated; or if a corporation or
association, its last place of business; the names and places of
residence, as far as the same can be ascertained, of the heirs of such
mortgagee or mortgagees, or assignee or assignees; or, if such mortgagee
be a corporation or association, then the names of one or more of the
receivers, if any were appointed, or of the person who has the care of
the closing up of the business of such corporation or association, and
that such mortgage has not been assigned or transferred, and if such
mortgage has been assigned, state to whom and the facts in regard to the
same.
Provided, however, that if such mortgage has been duly assigned, by
indorsement thereof or otherwise, but not acknowledged so as to entitle
the same to be recorded, then it shall be competent for the court, at
any time within the period aforesaid, upon proof that all the matters
hereinbefore required to be stated in said petition are true, and that
the assignee of such mortgage if living, or his personal representative
if dead, has been paid the amount due thereon, to make an order that
such mortgage be discharged of record.
Provided, further, that in case of a mortgage which was recorded or
adjudged to have been paid and no longer a lien, more than fifty years
prior to the presentation of such petition, if the petitioner is unable
with reasonable diligence to ascertain the facts herein required to be
stated in the petition, other than the fact of payment, the petition may
set forth the best knowledge and information of the petitioner in
respect thereto and what efforts have been made to ascertain such facts,
and if the court shall be satisfied that the petitioner has made
reasonable effort to ascertain such facts, and that the same cannot be
ascertained with reasonable diligence, it may then, in its discretion,
proceed upon said petition as hereinafter provided.
3. Such petition may be presented to the supreme court in the county
in which the mortgaged premises are situated, or to the county court of
such county.
4. The court, upon the presentation of such petition, shall make an
order requiring all persons interested to show cause at a certain time
and place, why such mortgage should not be discharged of record. The
names of the mortgagor, mortgagee and assignee, if any, the date of the
mortgage and where recorded, and the town or city in which the mortgaged
premises are situate, shall be specified in the order. The order shall
be published in such newspaper or newspapers, and for such time as the
court shall direct. The court may also direct the order to be personally
served upon such persons as it shall designate.
5. The court may issue commissions to take the testimony of witnesses
and may refer it to a referee to take and report proofs of the fact
stated in the petition. The certificate of the proper surrogate or
surrogates, whether or not letters testamentary or of administration
have been issued, shall be evidence of the fact; and the certificate of
the clerk of the county or counties in which the mortgaged premises have
been situate, since the date of the said mortgage, shall be evidence of
the assignment of such mortgage, or of a notice of the pendency of an
action to foreclose such mortgage, and of such other matters as may be
therein stated; or if a notice of the pendency of an action to foreclose
such mortgage has been filed, then his certificate that such mortgage
has never been foreclosed. Unless the allegation of payment shall be
denied, and evidence be given tending to rebut the presumption of
payment, arising from lapse of time, such lapse of time shall be
sufficient evidence of payment. Upon being satisfied that the matters
alleged in the petition are true, the court may make an order that the
mortgage be discharged of record.

S 1932. Discharge of record of ancient mortgage where time of maturity
is dependent on contingent event related to use of premises. 1. The lien
of every mortgage or conveyance of real estate in this state given as
security for the payment of money, recorded more than seventy-five years
ago, where the time of maturity thereof is dependent solely upon the
occurrence of a contingent event relating to use of the mortgaged
premises for religious purposes, and where the reason for such use no
longer applies to the mortgaged premises because of changes in the type
of neighborhood in which the premises are situated, may be discharged of
record by judgment of the supreme court in the county where the
mortgaged premises are situated, or of the county court of such county,
in the manner provided in this section.
2. The court, upon presentation of a petition, together with an
official search of the recording officer in whose office the mortgage is
recorded or a search prepared by a person duly licensed and admitted to
practice law in this state or by a title company duly incorporated and
authorized to transact business in this state showing such recordation
and assignments of record, if any, the petition showing such contingent
event relating to the use of the mortgaged premises for religious
purposes and that the reason for such use no longer applies to the
mortgaged premises because of changes in the type of neighborhood in
which the mortgaged premises are situated, and showing that the
petitioner has made reasonable effort to locate the mortgagee or other
person or persons authorized to execute and deliver a satisfaction of
such mortgage or conveyance but has been unable to do so after the
exercise of reasonable diligence, shall make an order requiring all
persons interested to show cause at a certain time and place, why such
mortgage should not be discharged of record. Such order to show cause
and the publication and service thereof shall comply with the
requirements of section 1931 of this chapter, and the proceedings on the
return of such order to show cause shall comply with the requirements of
section 1931 of this chapter except as to the allegation of payment and
evidence to rebut the presumption thereof.
3. Any judgment of the court thereon discharging the mortgage of
record shall be made only upon proof of such contingent event relating
to use of the mortgaged premises for religious purposes, and of the
changes in the type of neighborhood in which the mortgaged premises are
situated, showing that the reason for such use no longer applies to the
mortgaged premises, and upon proof of the other matters alleged in the
petition; and any such judgment shall be made without prejudice to the
right, if any, of the mortgagee, his representatives or assigns or other
person or persons to receive or collect the mortgage debt in any action
or proceeding not affecting such mortgaged premises.

S 1933. When county clerk or register to discharge mortgage of record.
The county clerk, upon being furnished with an order discharging a
mortgage of record, as provided in section 1931 or section 1932, and, in
the city of New York, the register, upon being furnished with a
certified copy of such order, and upon payment of the fees allowed by
law for discharging mortgages, shall record the order and discharge the
mortgage of record.

S 1941. When special proceeding to quiet title may be maintained.
Whenever real property shall have been conveyed by a sheriff or referee,
pursuant to a judicial decree, which decree has been lost or destroyed,
and the defendants (other than lienors or incumbrancers) named in the
notice of pendency of the action in which such decree was made, or those
who might claim under them, or either of them, are dead, unknown or
their whereabouts can not after diligent inquiry be ascertained, the
person who has been, or he and those having his estate who have been,
for ten years in actual possession of such property claiming it in fee
under said sheriff`s or referee`s deed, which deed shall have been
recorded at least ten years, may maintain a special proceeding for the
purpose of establishing judicially his or their title to such real
property.

S 1942. Petition in special proceeding to quiet title. 1. A person or
persons, desiring to institute a proceeding under section nineteen
hundred forty-one, must present a petition to the supreme court at a
special term to be held in the judicial district in which the real
property is situated, setting forth the facts proving to the
satisfaction of the court, that the case is one of those specified in
that section, and must describe the property with common certainty, and
state what, if any, liens or incumbrances exist thereon, and the names
of the persons, if any, besides the petitioners, who have been in the
actual possession of the property during the past ten years claiming
title as owners thereof in fee, and how such title was derived, and
shall also annex to said petition a duly certified copy of the sheriff`s
or referee`s deed recorded ten years since under which petitioners claim
title.
2. In case the property described in said sheriff`s or referee`s deed
shall have been subdivided, the owner or owners of the several parcels
thereof may unite in the same petition and proceeding.

S 1943. Order for publication of notice to persons interested. Upon
the presentation of such petition, duly verified, the said court shall
make an order for the publication of a notice requiring all persons
claiming any interest in the real property described in such petition to
appear before the court at a special term thereof, to be held at a time
and place to be therein specified, not less than three months nor more
than six months thereafter, and show cause, if any they have, why they
should not be forever barred from maintaining any action or proceeding
for the recovery of the real property, which shall be substantially
described as set forth in said petition, and which notice shall also
contain a reference to the time and place of record of the sheriff`s or
referee`s deed referred to in the petition. Said publication shall be
made once a week for three months successively prior to the return day
named in said notice in two newspapers designated in the order as most
likely to give notice to any claimant of the property.

S 1944. Hearing and final order upon non-appearance of adverse
claimants. Upon the return day named in said notice the court shall
proceed summarily to inquire into the truth of the matters set forth in
the petition, and may appoint a referee for that purpose, and if there
shall be no appearance by any person claiming any adverse interest to
the petitioners in the real property described in the petition, the
court may make a final order declaring that the title of the petitioner
to such real property has been judicially established, which final
order, together with the petition and order for and proof of publication
of the notice, and the proofs taken before the court or referee shall be
filed in the office of the clerk of the county in which the real
property is situated, and such final order shall be evidence of the
facts so declared to be established thereby in all courts and places,
and thereafter no action or proceeding for the recovery of the real
property described in said final order or any part thereof, or of any
interest therein, shall be maintained by any person named as a defendant
in the notice of pendency of action referred to in section 1941, or by
any person or persons claiming under such defendant or either of them.

S 1945. Hearing and final order upon appearance of adverse claimants.
If any person shall appear on the return day of said notice and claim in
writing an interest in the real property adverse to that of the
petitioners, stating the nature of his claim and his place of residence,
the court may proceed in like manner to inquire into the truth of the
facts stated in the petition and may make a final order in like manner
and with like effect as above provided, except that such final order
shall not affect in any way any person who shall have appeared on the
return day and asserted a claim adverse to the petitioners, as herein
provided for.

S 1946. Notice of pendency to be filed and recorded. No final order
pursuant to section 1944 or section 1945 shall be made until the
petitioners named in said proceedings, or their attorney, shall file in
the clerk`s office of the county in which such real property is situated
a notice of the pendency of the said special proceeding, containing the
names of all the persons claiming to be then owners of the property in
fee, pursuant to said sheriff`s or referee`s deed, the object of the
proceeding, together with a brief description of said property. Each
county clerk with whom such notice is filed must immediately record it
in the book kept in his office for recording of notices of pendency of
an action, and index it to the name of each person claiming to be owner
as aforesaid, and said clerk shall be entitled to receive for his
services the same fees therefor as are now allowed by law for filing,
recording and indexing a notice of pendency of action.

S 1951. Extinguishment of non-substantial restrictions on the use of
land. 1. No restriction on the use of land created at any time by
covenant, promise or negative easement, or created on or after September
1, 1958, by a special limitation or condition subsequent governed by
section 1953, shall be enforced by injunction or judgment compelling a
conveyance of the land burdened by the restriction or an interest
therein, nor shall such restriction be declared or determined to be
enforceable, if, at the time the enforceability of the restriction is
brought in question, it appears that the restriction is of no actual and
substantial benefit to the persons seeking its enforcement or seeking a
declaration or determination of its enforceability, either because the
purpose of the restriction has already been accomplished or, by reason
of changed conditions or other cause, its purpose is not capable of
accomplishment, or for any other reason.
2. When relief against such a restriction is sought in an action to
quiet title or to obtain a declaration with respect to enforceability of
the restriction or to determine an adverse claim arising from the
restriction, or is sought by way of defense or counterclaim in an action
to enforce the restriction or to obtain a declaration with respect to
its enforceability, if the court shall find that the restriction is of
no actual and substantial benefit to the persons seeking its enforcement
or seeking a declaration or determination of its enforceability, either
because the purpose of the restriction has already been accomplished or,
by reason of changed conditions or other cause, its purpose is not
capable of accomplishment, or for any other reason, it may adjudge that
the restriction is not enforceable by injunction or as provided in
subdivision 2 of section 1953 and that it shall be completely
extinguished upon payment, to the person or persons who would otherwise
be entitled to enforce it in the event of a breach at the time of the
action, of such damages, if any, as such person or persons will sustain
from the extinguishment of the restriction.

S 1953. Effect of certain special limitations and conditions
subsequent. 1. Except as provided in subdivision 4, a special limitation
or condition subsequent created on or after September 1, 1958 shall be
governed by this section in any case where it expressly or by necessary
result restricts the use of land, but if such special limitation or
condition subsequent also creates a possibility of reverter or right of
entry conditioned upon an event other than breach of such a restriction,
it shall be governed by this section to the extent only that the right
of entry or possibility of reverter is conditioned upon breach of such
express or implied restriction on the use of land.
2. No reverter shall occur and no possessory estate shall result by
reason of such special limitation, and no right of entry shall accrue by
reason of breach of such condition subsequent, but upon the happening of
such a breach the person or persons who would have such possessory
estate or right of entry except for this section, may maintain an action
in the supreme court to compel a conveyance to him or them of the land,
or the interest therein, which is subject to the special limitation or
condition subsequent.
3. The relief provided in subdivision 2 shall be granted only to
protect a substantial interest in enforcement of the restriction,
established by the person or persons in whose favor the relief is
granted. The action provided for in this section shall be subject to any
defense that might be interposed in an action to enjoin a violation of
the restriction if it were created by covenant of the person or persons
against whom the relief is sought, and the court may deny such relief,
or impose conditions upon the granting thereof, or grant alternative
relief, upon like cause and in like manner as in an action for such
injunction. If it appears that the relief provided in subdivision 2
would be inequitable, the court may, in lieu thereof, restrain the
repetition or continuation of a breach of the restriction, or it may
grant the relief provided in subdivision 2 upon such terms as justice
may require to avoid a forfeiture of the value of improvements or other
unjust enrichment.
4. This section shall not apply where the special limitation or
condition subsequent was created in a conveyance or devise, whether or
not in trust, for benevolent, charitable, educational, public or
religious purposes and restricts the use of land to such a purpose or to
a particular application or means of carrying out such purpose, or was
created by a lease for a term of less than one hundred years and
restricts use of the leased premises.

S 1954. Action to limit existing possibilities of reverter and rights
of entry restricting the use of land. 1. This section shall apply to a
special limitation or condition subsequent created prior to September 1,
1958 which would be subject to section 1953 if it had been created on or
after September 1, 1958.
2. The owners of the estate subject to the special limitation or
condition subsequent, or one or more of such owners, may maintain an
action to obtain a judgment that the special limitation or condition
subsequent be governed by section 1951 and section 1953, or that it be
so governed to the extent of particular terms of the special limitation
or condition subsequent, or to the extent of a particular part of the
land burdened by the restriction. Such action may be maintained against
one or more of the persons who would have a possessory estate resulting
from the occurrence of the reverter or a right of entry for breach of
the condition if a breach of the restriction had occurred at the time
the action is commenced, to obtain such a judgment with respect to the
interests of the parties to the action.
3. Except as provided in subdivision 4, the court may grant the relief
described in subdivision 2 if it finds that the primary purpose of the
special limitation or condition subsequent was to restrict the use of
land and that the tenor of the restriction, the circumstances in which
it was imposed, and the conditions in which it operates at the time of
the action are such that the special limitation or condition subsequent
unreasonably limits the use and development of the land or unreasonably
impairs the certainty of titles.
4. The relief provided in this section shall not be granted if the
court finds that a breach of the restriction has already occurred.
5. If the complaint in any such action is dismissed on the ground that
a breach of the restriction has already occurred at the time the action
is brought or relief is denied on such ground, the right of entry for
breach of the condition or any cause of action to recover possession of
the land, owned by a person who was a party to the action, or a person
claiming through or under him, must be asserted in the same action or by
action commenced within six months from the entry of the judgment
therein, and if such action is not commenced within that time the right
of entry, or the possessory estate resulting from the occurrence of the
reverter, shall be extinguished to the extent that it is vested at the
time of the entry of the judgment in persons who are parties to the
action, or thereafter vests in persons claiming through or under them by
title accruing after the filing of a notice of pendency of the action.
6. The action provided in this section may be commenced at any time.

S 1955. Modification or extinguishment of certain restrictions on the
use of land held for charitable purposes. 1. Where land is held, whether
or not in trust, for benevolent, charitable, educational, public or
religious purposes and the use of such land is restricted to such
purpose or to a particular application of or means of carrying out such
purpose by a special limitation or condition subsequent created in the
conveyance or devise under which the land is so held, or by an agreement
to convey, reconvey or surrender the land or the estate so held upon a
contingency relating to its use, an action may be brought in the supreme
court to obtain relief from such restriction as provided in this
section.
2. No action for the relief provided in this section shall be
commenced until the expiration of two years from the creation of the
special limitation or condition subsequent, or the making of the
agreement. The attorney-general shall be a party to such action.
3. In determining whether relief shall be granted, and the nature of
such relief, the court shall consider and shall make findings with
respect to the following:
(a) whether the primary purpose of the special limitation, condition
subsequent or agreement to convey, reconvey or surrender was to restrict
the use of the land;
(b) whether the purpose of the restriction was to ensure that the
substantial value of the land or of the estate subject to the special
limitation, condition subsequent or agreement, rather than the land
itself, or such estate itself, be devoted to and employed for a
benevolent, charitable, educational, public or religious purpose.
If the findings with respect to (a) and (b) are such as to make the
following matters relevant or appropriate for consideration, the court
shall also consider and make findings with respect to the following:
(c) whether the existence of the restriction is substantially impeding
the owner of the land, or of the estate subject to the special
limitation, condition subsequent or agreement, in the furtherance of the
benevolent, charitable, educational, public or religious purposes for
which the land is held;
(d) whether the person or persons who would have a right of entry,
possessory estate resulting from the occurrence of a reverter, or right
to conveyance, reconveyance or surrender of the land or estate in the
event of breach of the restriction at the time of the action will suffer
substantial damage by reason of extinguishment or modification of the
restriction, and, in such event, whether damages or restitution of the
land, or its value, in whole or in part, should be awarded to such
person or persons.
4. The judgment of the court may include, in the discretion of the
court, an adjudication (a) that the restriction is discharged in whole
or in part, or that its tenor is modified as provided in the judgment;
(b) that the holder of the land or estate therein subject to the
restriction be authorized or directed to convey, lease, mortgage or
otherwise dispose of the land or estate therein free of the restriction
and that the purchaser under such disposition shall take free of the
restriction; (c) directing the use to which the avails of any such
disposition shall be put; (d) declaring the interests that the owners of
the possibility of reverter or right of entry, or persons having an
interest pursuant to the agreement, shall have in any property paid for
in whole or in part with the proceeds of the disposition; (e) awarding
damages for such injury as a party to the action may sustain by reason
of extinguishment or modification of the restriction. The judgment may
include such other provisions as will in the opinion of the court
further the benevolent, charitable, educational, public or religious
purposes for which the land is held and such other provisions as equity
may require.
5. This section shall apply to a special limitation or condition
subsequent created or agreement made either before or after September 1,
1958, except that it shall not apply (a) where a right of entry or right
to a conveyance, reconveyance or surrender of the property has accrued
or a reverter has occurred prior to that date, or (b) where the
conveyance creating the restriction was made by or the agreement
creating the restriction was made with the United States, the state of
New York or any governmental unit, subdivision or agency of the United
States or the state of New York.