NY State Senate Bill 2015-S758

Senate Bill S758

2015-2016 Legislative Session

Permits awarding of reasonable attorneys' fees, costs and exemplary damages in court actions for unlawful discriminatory practices pursuant to the human rights law

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Investigations And Government Operations 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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 06, 2016	referred to investigations and government operations
Jan 07, 2015	referred to investigations and government operations

2015-S758 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A113
Current Committee:: Senate Investigations And Government Operations
Law Section:: Executive Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §297, Exec L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2009-2010: A635
2011-2012: A1284
2013-2014: S4372, A642
2017-2018: S2782, A1113
2019-2020: A2624
2021-2022: A3204
2023-2024: A2182

2015-S758 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Permits awarding of reasonable attorneys' fees and costs and exemplary damages in court actions for unlawful discriminatory practices pursuant to the human rights law; provides incentive to the employer not to discriminate against the employee knowing there will be financial repercussions for their actions.

2015-S758 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:S758

TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the executive law, in relation to awarding attorneys'
fees and costs and exemplary damages in an action brought for an
unlawful discriminatory practice

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

Permits awarding of reasonable attorneys' fees, costs and exemplary
damages in court actions for unlawful discriminatory practices
pursuant to the human rights law.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Amends Subdivision 9 of section 297 of the Executive Law.

JUSTIFICATION:

Currently, if you feel that you are a victim of a human rights
violation you can either file a suit with the Human Rights Commission
or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission or you may consult your
own private lawyer. The latter can be a significant financial burden
on the plaintiff costing an average of ten thousand dollars per case.
The first choice will not prove any more feasible. Due to cutbacks and

continual case overloading referring a case to either the Human Rights
Commission or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission will only
result in the victim waiting an undetermined and inconvenient amount
of time. This new legislation will serve multiple purposes. First, it
will ease the financial burden on the victim by requiring the
defendant to pay the victims attorney's fees upon being found guilty.
Second, it will provide incentive to the employer not to discriminate
against the employee knowing there will be financial repercussions for
their actions.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2013-14: S.4372 Referred to Investigations and Government Operations
2011-12 - A.1284 - Referred to Governmental Operations
2009-10 - A.635/S.2044 - Referred to Investigations and Government
Operations
2007-06 - A.609 - Passed Assembly
2005-06 - A.1235 - Passed Assembly
2003-04 - A.5022 - Passed Assembly
2001-02: A.688 - Referred to Governmental Operations

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Possible if the decision of the court is rendered against the
defendant and the defendant happens to be the State.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have
become a law.

2015-S758 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   758

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. KENNEDY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
  ment Operations

AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation  to  awarding  attorneys'
  fees  and  costs  and  exemplary  damages  in an action brought for an
  unlawful discriminatory practice

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  Subdivision  9  of  section  297 of the executive law, as
amended by section 16 of part D of chapter 405 of the laws of  1999,  is
amended to read as follows:
  9.  Any  person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory
practice shall have a cause of action in any court of appropriate juris-
diction for damages, including, in cases of housing discrimination only,
punitive damages, and UPON PREVAILING, SHALL RECOVER  REASONABLE  ATTOR-
NEYS'  FEES  AND  COSTS  IN THE ACTION. IN ADDITION THERETO THE TRIER OF
FACT MAY AWARD EXEMPLARY DAMAGES AND  such  other  remedies  as  may  be
appropriate,  including any civil fines and penalties provided in subdi-
vision four of this section, unless such person had  filed  a  complaint
hereunder  or  with  any  local  commission on human rights, or with the
superintendent pursuant to the provisions of section two  hundred  nine-
ty-six-a  of  this  chapter,  provided  that,  where  the  division  has
dismissed such complaint on the grounds of  administrative  convenience,
on  the  grounds of untimeliness, or on the grounds that the election of
remedies is annulled, such person shall maintain  all  rights  to  bring
suit  as  if  no complaint had been filed with the division. At any time
prior to a hearing before  a  hearing  examiner,  a  person  who  has  a
complaint  pending at the division may request that the division dismiss
the complaint and annul his or her election  of  remedies  so  that  the
human  rights  law  claim may be pursued in court, and the division may,

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD01545-01-5

S. 758                              2

upon such request, dismiss  the  complaint  on  the  grounds  that  such
person's election of an administrative remedy is annulled. Notwithstand-
ing  subdivision  (a)  of section two hundred four of the civil practice
law  and  rules, if a complaint is so annulled by the division, upon the
request of the party bringing such complaint before the  division,  such
party's rights to bring such cause of action before a court of appropri-
ate  jurisdiction  shall  be  limited  by  the statute of limitations in
effect in such court at the time the complaint was initially filed  with
the division. Any party to a housing discrimination complaint shall have
the right within twenty days following a determination of probable cause
pursuant  to  subdivision two of this section to elect to have an action
commenced in a civil court, and an attorney representing the division of
human rights will be appointed to present the complaint  in  court,  or,
with  the  consent  of  the  division,  the  case  may  be  presented by
complainant's attorney. A complaint filed by the equal employment oppor-
tunity commission to comply with the requirements of 42  USC  2000e-5(c)
and 42 USC 12117(a) and 29 USC 633(b) shall not constitute the filing of
a  complaint  within  the meaning of this subdivision. No person who has
initiated any action in a court of competent jurisdiction or who has  an
action  pending  before any administrative agency under any other law of
the state based upon an act which would be  an  unlawful  discriminatory
practice  under  this  article, may file a complaint with respect to the
same grievance under this section or under section two  hundred  ninety-
six-a of this article.
  S  2.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
have become a law.

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