No liability shall attach to a custodian of property paid into court because of a payment made by him in good faith in accordance with the direction of an order of the court or as provided in rule 2607.
§ 2608.Liability of custodian
Article 26. Property Paid Into Court · Last amended 1964 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 2608 shields a custodian of property paid into court from liability for a payment it makes in good faith under a court order or under the small-sum procedure allowed by CPLR 2607.
Full Text of CPLR 2608
Plain-English Summary
Custodians of court-held property — county treasurers, depositories, banks holding funds under a court's designation — carry out payments they're directed to make, and CPLR 2608 protects them for doing so. As long as the payment is made in good faith and follows either a court order or the procedure set out in CPLR 2607, no liability attaches to the custodian.
The protection matters because a custodian isn't in a position to relitigate whether the underlying order was correct. It relies on the order as given and the process the statute lays out. Section 2608 confirms that reliance, in good faith, is enough to close off later claims against the custodian over that payment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a county treasurer be sued for paying out court funds under a valid order?
No. CPLR 2608 shields a custodian from liability for a payment made in good faith in accordance with a court order or the procedure allowed under CPLR 2607.
What does good faith mean for a custodian under CPLR 2608?
It means the custodian followed the court's order or CPLR 2607's payment procedure in good faith, without reason to doubt its validity, rather than acting on its own judgment about who should be paid.
Does CPLR 2608 protect banks or safe deposit companies acting as custodians?
It protects any custodian of property paid into court, which includes a bank or safe deposit company holding property under a court's direction.
Is a custodian liable if a court order it relied on turns out to be flawed?
CPLR 2608 protects the custodian for good-faith reliance on the order itself, so the custodian isn't the one exposed if the order later proves to have been wrong.
How does CPLR 2608 relate to the payment procedure in CPLR 2607?
Section 2608 immunizes the custodian for payments made either under a court order or under the small-sum procedure that CPLR 2607 allows a county treasurer to use without one.
Advisory Committee Notes
This section is derived from the last sentence of CPA § 137. The words “in any event” have been omitted as unnecessary, and the phrase “county treasurer” has been changed to “custodian of property paid into court” to include any custodian appointed by the court. The phrase “or as provided in § 2606” has been added to conform with the 1959 amendments to CPA § 137 (Laws 1959, c. 707) by taking account of the county treasurer’s authorization to pay out property less than $50.00 in value without an order. See CPLR § 2606.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, § 1; amd, L 1962, ch 318, § 10; L 1964, ch 388, § 9, eff Sept 1, 1964.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: custodian liability court paid funds NYcounty treasurer immunity payment ordergood faith payment court depositliability of custodian property paid into court