Bill Text: NY A06383 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Changes the penalty for falsely impersonating an attorney or acting as an attorney to a class E felony from a misdemeanor.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 10-2)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-14 - held for consideration in judiciary [A06383 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A06383-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          6383
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                      March 7, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. SMITH -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Judiciary
        AN ACT to amend the judiciary law, in relation  to  feloniously  falsely
          impersonating an attorney
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 485 of the judiciary law, as amended by chapter 492
     2  of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 485. Violation of certain preceding sections a misdemeanor.  [Except
     4  as  provided in section four hundred eighty-five-a of this article, any]
     5  Any person violating the provisions of section  [four  hundred  seventy-
     6  eight,]  four  hundred  seventy-nine,  four hundred eighty, four hundred
     7  eighty-one, four hundred eighty-two, or four  hundred  eighty-three  [or
     8  four hundred eighty-four] of this article[,] shall be guilty of a misde-
     9  meanor.
    10    §  2.  Section 485-a of the judiciary law, as amended by chapter 22 of
    11  the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
    12    § 485-a. Violation of certain sections a class E  felony.  Any  person
    13  who violates the provisions of sections four hundred seventy-eight, four
    14  hundred eighty-four, four hundred eighty-six or four hundred ninety-five
    15  of  this  article  is  guilty  of a class E felony when he or she[: (1)]
    16  falsely holds himself or herself out as a person  licensed  to  practice
    17  law  in this state, a person otherwise permitted to practice law in this
    18  state, or a person who can provide  services  that  only  attorneys  are
    19  authorized to provide[; and (2) causes another person to suffer monetary
    20  loss  or damages exceeding one thousand dollars or other material damage
    21  resulting from impairment of a legal right to which he or she  is  enti-
    22  tled].
    23    §  3.  Section  486 of the judiciary law, as amended by chapter 492 of
    24  the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows:
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06830-01-9
        A. 6383                             2
     1    § 486. Practice of law by attorney who has been disbarred,  suspended,
     2  or  convicted  of a felony. Any person whose admission to practice as an
     3  attorney and counselor-at-law has been revoked or who has  been  removed
     4  from  office  as attorney and counselor-at-law or, being an attorney and
     5  counselor-at-law,  has  been convicted of a felony or has been suspended
     6  from practice and has not been duly and regularly reinstated,  who  does
     7  any  act  forbidden  by the provisions of this article to be done by any
     8  person not regularly admitted to practice law in the courts of record of
     9  this state, unless the judgment, decree or order suspending him  or  her
    10  shall  permit  such act, shall be guilty of a [misdemeanor unless other-
    11  wise provided by section four hundred  eighty-five-a  of  this  article]
    12  class E felony.
    13    §  4. Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 495 of the judiciary law, subdi-
    14  vision 2 as added by chapter 1031 of the laws of 1965, and subdivision 3
    15  as amended by chapter 492 of the laws of 2012, are amended  to  read  as
    16  follows:
    17    2.  No  corporation  or  voluntary  association  shall itself or by or
    18  through its officers, agents or employees, solicit any claim or  demand,
    19  or  [taken]  take an assignment thereof, for the purpose of representing
    20  any person in the pursuit of any civil remedy, nor solicit any claim  or
    21  demand  for  the  purpose  of  representing  as  attorney-at-law,  or of
    22  furnishing legal advice, services or counsel to, a person sued or  about
    23  to  be  sued  in  any  action or proceeding or against whom an action or
    24  proceeding has been or is about to be brought, or who may be affected by
    25  any action or proceeding which has been or  may  be  instituted  in  any
    26  court or before any judicial body.
    27    Nothing  herein  contained  shall  affect any assignment heretofore or
    28  hereafter taken by any moneyed corporation authorized to do business  in
    29  the state of New York or its nominee pursuant to a subrogation agreement
    30  or a salvage operation. Any corporation or voluntary association violat-
    31  ing  the  provisions  of  this subdivision or of subdivision one of this
    32  section shall be liable to a fine of not more than five thousand dollars
    33  and every officer, trustee, director, agent or employee of  such  corpo-
    34  ration  or  voluntary  association who directly or indirectly engages in
    35  any of the acts prohibited in this subdivision or in subdivision one  of
    36  this  section or assists such corporation or voluntary association to do
    37  such prohibited acts is guilty of a [misdemeanor] class  E  felony.  The
    38  fact  that such officer, trustee, director, agent or employee shall be a
    39  duly and regularly admitted attorney-at-law, shall not be held to permit
    40  or allow any such corporation or voluntary association to do the acts so
    41  prohibited nor shall such fact be a defense upon the trial of any of the
    42  persons mentioned herein for a  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this
    43  subdivision or subdivision one of this section.
    44    3.  No  voluntary  association  or  corporation  shall  ask or receive
    45  directly or indirectly, compensation  for  preparing  deeds,  mortgages,
    46  assignments, discharges, leases, or any other instruments affecting real
    47  estate,  wills, codicils, or any other instruments affecting disposition
    48  of property after death or decedents' estates, or pleadings of any  kind
    49  in  actions or proceedings of any nature. Any association or corporation
    50  violating the provisions of this subdivision is guilty of a [misdemeanor
    51  unless otherwise provided by section four hundred eighty-five-a of  this
    52  article] class E felony.
    53    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.