Senate Bill S1458

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Requires awarding of costs and attorney fees in frivolous action involving public petition and participation

download bill text pdf

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee


  • Introduced
    • In Committee Assembly
    • In Committee Senate
    • On Floor Calendar Assembly
    • On Floor Calendar Senate
    • Passed Assembly
    • Passed Senate
  • Delivered to Governor
  • Signed By Governor

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2019-S1458 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Senate Codes
Law Section:
Civil Rights Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §§70-a & 76-a, Civ Rts L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2013-2014: S7280
2015-2016: S1638
2017-2018: S68, S2183

2019-S1458 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires awarding of costs and attorney fees in frivolous action involving public petition and participation; expands application of actions involving public petition and participation.

2019-S1458 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S1458 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1458
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 15, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to  actions  involving
   public petition and participation
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 70-a of the civil
 rights law, as added by chapter 767 of the laws of 1992, is  amended  to
 read as follows:
   (a)  costs  and attorney's fees [may] SHALL be recovered upon a demon-
 stration, INCLUDING AN ADJUDICATION PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION (G) OF  RULE
 THIRTY-TWO  HUNDRED ELEVEN OR SUBDIVISION (H) OF RULE THIRTY-TWO HUNDRED
 TWELVE OF THE CIVIL PRACTICE LAW AND RULES, that  the  action  involving
 public  petition  and participation was commenced or continued without a
 substantial basis in fact and law  and  could  not  be  supported  by  a
 substantial  argument  for  the  extension,  modification or reversal of
 existing law;
   § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 76-a of the civil rights law,  as  added
 by chapter 767 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
   1. For purposes of this section:
   (a)  An  "action  involving  public petition and participation" is [an
 action,] A claim[, cross claim  or  counterclaim  for  damages  that  is
 brought by a public applicant or permittee, and is materially related to
 any  efforts  of  the defendant to report on, comment on, rule on, chal-
 lenge or oppose such application or permission] BASED UPON:
   (1) ANY COMMUNICATION IN A PLACE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC OR A PUBLIC  FORUM
 IN CONNECTION WITH AN ISSUE OF PUBLIC CONCERN; OR
   (2)  ANY  OTHER  LAWFUL  CONDUCT IN FURTHERANCE OF THE EXERCISE OF THE
 CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT OF FREE SPEECH  IN  CONNECTION  WITH  AN  ISSUE  OF
 PUBLIC  CONCERN, OR IN FURTHERANCE OF THE EXERCISE OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL
 RIGHT OF PETITION.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

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