NY State Senate Bill 2025-S4784

Senate Bill S4784

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Eliminates judicial immunity or quasi-judicial immunity for certain third parties who provide a report or finding to the family court

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary 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

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 12, 2025	referred to judiciary

co-Sponsors

2025-S4784 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Judiciary
Law Section:: Family Court Act
Laws Affected:: Add §170, Fam Ct Act
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S9122
2023-2024: S3435

2025-S4784 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Eliminates judicial immunity or quasi-judicial immunity for certain third parties, such as special masters, minor's counsel, investigators, therapists, evaluators, receivers, bankruptcy trustees, experts, and factfinders, who provide a report or finding to the family court.

2025-S4784 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4784

SPONSOR: SKOUFIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the family court act, in relation to eliminating judi-
cial immunity or quasi-judicial immunity for certain third parties who
provide a report or finding to the family court

 
PURPOSE:

Eliminates judicial immunity or quasi-judicial immunity for certain
third parties who provide a report or finding to the family court.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends the Family Court Act by adding a new section 170,
which removes judicial and quasi-judicial immunity for third parties
appointed by the court in an advisory capacity, who provides a report or
findings to the court.

Section 2: Sets Effective Date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Judicial immunity is established to allow a judicial officer or other
member of the judiciary to exercise independent judgment without the
threat of legal reprisal. This bill will clarify that the doctrine of
judicial immunity shall not apply to a third party hired by the court in
an advisory capacity to provide reports in family court proceedings.
These individuals are not a part of the judiciary and, as such, should
not be protected from liability related to any violation of law, rules
of court, or professional standards. This will place third-party indi-
viduals in a similar standing as lawyers, who do not have judicial immu-
nity protections.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

Senate

2021: N/A

2022: 59122, Referred to Judiciary

2023: S3435, Referred to Judiciary

2024: S3435, Referred to Judiciary Assembly

2021: No Assembly Same-As

2022: No Assembly Same-As

2023: No Assembly Same-As

2024: No Assembly Same-As

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S4784 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4784
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 12, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  SKOUFIS,  CLEARE, RAMOS -- read twice and ordered
   printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on  Judici-
   ary
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the family court act, in relation to eliminating judi-
   cial immunity or quasi-judicial immunity for certain third parties who
   provide a report or finding to the family court

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The family court act is amended by adding a new section 170
 to read as follows:
   §  170. JUDICIAL AND QUASI-JUDICIAL IMMUNITY. 1. THE DOCTRINE OF JUDI-
 CIAL IMMUNITY OR QUASI-JUDICIAL IMMUNITY SHALL NOT  APPLY  TO  EXONERATE
 ANY  PRIVATE  THIRD PARTY APPOINTED BY THE COURT IN AN ADVISORY CAPACITY
 BASED ON THEIR PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE, WHO PROVIDES A REPORT OR FINDINGS
 TO THE COURT IN A PROCEEDING UNDER THIS ACT,  FROM  LIABILITY  FOR  ACTS
 PERFORMED  WITHIN  THE  SCOPE  OF THEIR APPOINTMENT IN VIOLATION OF LAW,
 RULES OF COURT, OR PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS.
   2. THIS SECTION SHALL APPLY TO PRIVATE  INDIVIDUALS  SUCH  AS  SPECIAL
 MASTERS, MINOR'S COUNSEL, INVESTIGATORS, THERAPISTS, EVALUATORS, RECEIV-
 ERS,  BANKRUPTCY  TRUSTEES,  EXPERTS,  FACTFINDERS,  AND  OTHER  PERSONS
 SPECIFICALLY APPOINTED BY THE COURT IN AN  ADVISORY  CAPACITY  BASED  ON
 THEIR PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OR EXPERTISE.
   3.  THIS  SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO ANY JUDICIAL OFFICER, SUBORDINATE
 JUDICIAL OFFICER,  ARBITRATOR,  OR  PUBLIC  EMPLOYEE  PROTECTED  BY  THE
 DOCTRINE OF JUDICIAL IMMUNITY OR QUASI-JUDICIAL IMMUNITY.
   4.  DURING  A  CIVIL,  CRIMINAL,  OR  ADMINISTRATIVE  INVESTIGATION OR
 PROCEEDING IN WHICH A COURT APPOINTEE'S ALLEGED MISCONDUCT, AS DESCRIBED
 IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION, IS AT ISSUE, ANY STATUTES OF LIMITA-
 TION APPLICABLE TO THE UNDERLYING, OR OTHER  RELATED,  CIVIL  LITIGATION
 SHALL BE TOLLED.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08758-01-5
 S. 4784                             2

 
   5.  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY OTHER LAW, ANY APPLICABLE STATUTES OF LIMITA-
 TION SHALL BE TOLLED IN AN ACTION FOR RECOVERY OF  DAMAGES  FOR  ALLEGED
 MISCONDUCT PERPETRATED BY A COURT APPOINTEE, AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION
 ONE OF THIS SECTION, WHILE THE PERSON SEEKING RELIEF WAS A MINOR.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Senate Bill S4784

Share this bill

Sponsored By

James Skoufis