New York State Court of Chancery (1st Circuit) Notices of Equity Suits Affecting Title to Real Property

Series is arranged numerically by volume number, then by date of filing.

An 1823 law, incorporated in the Revised Statutes of 1829, required the complainant in a Chancery suit to file a notice of the pending suit (usually called "lis pendens") if title to real property might be affected by the determination of the suit. The notice was filled in the office of the county clerk in the county where the lands were located. Filing of such a notice was constructive notice to a prospective purchaser of the real property.

Notices of pending equity suits ("lis pendens") affecting title to real property were filed in the New York County Clerk's Office. Suits were brought in the Court of Chancery, Court of Equity (1st Circuit) (1823-1829), and Court of Chancery (1st Circuit) (1830-1847).

Most notices concern foreclosure of a mortgage. Such notices typically include names of parties to the suit, purpose of the suit, an abstract of the terms and conditions of the mortgage, a description of the mortgaged property, and the names of any defendants owning equity of redemption in the mortgage. The notice is endorsed with the names of the parties, the signature of the complainant's solicitor, and the filing date. A few notices concern other types of Chancery proceedings involving title to real property, such as sale of lands of a deceased individual.

JN112Series JN112, Indexes to Notices of Equity Suits.

Most documents are very fragile and must be used with care under supervision of an archivist.