Bill Text: NY A07578 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to the imposition of penalties and remedies in suits brought for the vindication of civil rights or human rights.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to governmental operations [A07578 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A07578-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7578

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      May 25, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. STECK -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Governmental Operations

        AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to the  imposition  of
          penalties  and  remedies in suits brought for the vindication of civil
          rights or human rights

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Article  10  and sections 100 and 101 of the civil rights
     2  law, as renumbered by chapter 263 of the laws of  2019,  are  renumbered
     3  article  11  and  sections  110 and 111 and a new article 10 is added to
     4  read as follows:

     5                                 ARTICLE 10
     6                           PENALTIES AND REMEDIES

     7  Section 100. Penalties and remedies.
     8    § 100. Penalties and remedies. 1. Every person who, under color of any
     9  statute,  ordinance,  regulation,  custom,  or  usage,  of  this  state,
    10  subjects,  or causes to be subjected, any citizen of this state or other
    11  person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights,
    12  privileges, or immunities secured by the constitution and laws  of  this
    13  state, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in
    14  equity,  or  other  proper  proceeding  for  redress, except that in any
    15  action brought against a judicial officer for an act or  omission  taken
    16  in  such  officer's  judicial  capacity,  injunctive relief shall not be
    17  granted unless a declaratory decree was violated or  declaratory  relief
    18  was unavailable.
    19    2.  The supreme court of the state of New York shall have jurisdiction
    20  over all suits brought for the vindication of civil rights  as  provided
    21  in  subdivision  one of this section. To the extent that the laws of the
    22  state of New York furnish a remedy for the  vindication  of  such  civil

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11618-01-3
        A. 7578                             2

     1  rights, such laws shall be applied; but in all cases where such laws are
     2  deficient  in the provisions necessary to furnish suitable remedies, the
     3  common law shall be extended to and govern the said courts in the  trial
     4  and disposition of the matter.
     5    3.  (a) In any action or proceeding to enforce this section or the New
     6  York human rights law, the court must award the prevailing party,  other
     7  than  the  state of New York, a reasonable attorney's fee as part of the
     8  costs, except that in any action brought against a judicial officer  for
     9  an  act or omission taken in such officer's judicial capacity such offi-
    10  cer shall not be held liable for any costs, including  attorney's  fees,
    11  unless such action was clearly in excess of such officer's jurisdiction.
    12    (b) In awarding an attorney's fee under paragraph (a) of this subdivi-
    13  sion in any action or proceeding to enforce a provision of this article,
    14  the court shall include reasonable expert fees as part of the attorney's
    15  fee.
    16    4.  This  article  shall  supplement and not displace any jurisdiction
    17  currently existing in the courts  or  administrative  agencies  of  this
    18  state  to  the  extent  that  other laws of this state already provide a
    19  remedy for the type of injury referred to in this section.
    20    5. In interpreting this section, the courts may consider the fundamen-
    21  tal principles already enunciated by the federal courts in  interpreting
    22  42  U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1988, which are the parallel federal civil rights
    23  laws.
    24    § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    25  have become a law.