Bill Text: NY S01458 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO CODES [S01458 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S01458-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          1458
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    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:
     1    Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 70-a of the civil
     2  rights law, as added by chapter 767 of the laws of 1992, is  amended  to
     3  read as follows:
     4    (a)  costs  and attorney's fees [may] shall be recovered upon a demon-
     5  stration, including an adjudication pursuant to subdivision (g) of  rule
     6  thirty-two  hundred eleven or subdivision (h) of rule thirty-two hundred
     7  twelve of the civil practice law and rules, that  the  action  involving
     8  public  petition  and participation was commenced or continued without a
     9  substantial basis in fact and law  and  could  not  be  supported  by  a
    10  substantial  argument  for  the  extension,  modification or reversal of
    11  existing law;
    12    § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 76-a of the civil rights law,  as  added
    13  by chapter 767 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as follows:
    14    1. For purposes of this section:
    15    (a)  An  "action  involving  public petition and participation" is [an
    16  action,] a claim[, cross claim  or  counterclaim  for  damages  that  is
    17  brought by a public applicant or permittee, and is materially related to
    18  any  efforts  of  the defendant to report on, comment on, rule on, chal-
    19  lenge or oppose such application or permission] based upon:
    20    (1) any communication in a place open to the public or a public  forum
    21  in connection with an issue of public concern; or
    22    (2)  any  other  lawful  conduct in furtherance of the exercise of the
    23  constitutional right of free speech  in  connection  with  an  issue  of
    24  public  concern, or in furtherance of the exercise of the constitutional
    25  right of petition.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00895-01-9
        S. 1458                             2
     1    (b) ["Public applicant or permittee" shall mean  any  person  who  has
     2  applied for or obtained a permit, zoning change, lease, license, certif-
     3  icate or other entitlement for use or permission to act from any govern-
     4  ment  body,  or  any  person with an interest, connection or affiliation
     5  with  such  person  that  is  materially  related to such application or
     6  permission] "Claim" includes any lawsuit, cause of action,  cross-claim,
     7  counterclaim, or other judicial pleading or filing requesting relief.
     8    (c)  "Communication"  shall mean any statement, claim, allegation in a
     9  proceeding, decision, protest, writing, argument,  contention  or  other
    10  expression.
    11    [(d)  "Government  body"  shall  mean any municipality, the state, any
    12  other political subdivision or agency of such, the  federal  government,
    13  any  public  benefit  corporation,  or  any  public authority, board, or
    14  commission.]
    15    § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day  after  it  shall
    16  have  become a law and shall apply to actions commenced on or after such
    17  date.