§ 2704 — Rights of action

§ 2704. Rights of action. (a) Notwithstanding any law or agreement\namong the parties to an insurance policy to the contrary, any action\narising from an occurrence during the period between January first,\nnineteen hundred twenty-nine and December thirty-first, nineteen hundred\nforty-five brought by a Holocaust victim seeking proceeds of an\ninsurance policy issued to or covering the life or property of a\nHolocaust victim prior to December thirty-first, nineteen hundred\nforty-five, shall not be dismissed for failure to comply with any\nstatute of limitations or laches or other similar provision of any\napplicable law relating to the timeliness of the filing of claims that\nmight prevent a claim from being heard on its merits, or any notice\nrequirements imposed by any insurance policy provided the action is\ncommenced within ten years from the effective date of this article.\n (b) With respect to any action arising from an occurrence during the\nperiod between January first, nineteen hundred twenty-nine and December\nthirty-first, nineteen hundred forty-five brought by a Holocaust victim\nseeking proceeds of an insurance policy issued to or covering the life\nor property of a Holocaust victim prior to December thirty-first,\nnineteen hundred forty-five no such action shall be stayed or dismissed\npursuant to rule three hundred twenty-seven of the civil practice law\nand rules.\n (c) In recognition of the significant period of time that has passed\nand in order to effect the goals of substantial justice, the rules\nregarding the admissibility of evidence, including but not limited to\nrule forty-five hundred eighteen and section forty-five hundred nineteen\nof the civil practice law and rules, and principles of law or other\nrules relating to the admission of hearsay evidence shall be relaxed at\nthe discretion of the trial judge in any action or proceeding authorized\nby this section.\n