§ 340. Contracts or agreements for monopoly or in restraint of trade
illegal and void. 1. Every contract, agreement, arrangement or
combination whereby

A monopoly in the conduct of any business, trade or commerce or in the
furnishing of any service in this state, is or may be established or
maintained, or whereby

Competition or the free exercise of any activity in the conduct of any
business, trade or commerce or in the furnishing of any service in this
state is or may be restrained or whereby

For the purpose of establishing or maintaining any such monopoly or
unlawfully interfering with the free exercise of any activity in the
conduct of any business, trade or commerce or in the furnishing of any
service in this state any business, trade or commerce or the furnishing
of any service is or may be restrained, is hereby declared to be against
public policy, illegal and void.

2. Subject to the exceptions hereinafter provided in this section, the
provisions of this article shall apply to licensed insurers, licensed
insurance agents, licensed insurance brokers, licensed independent
adjusters and other persons and organizations subject to the provisions
of the insurance law, to the extent not regulated by provisions of
article twenty-three of the insurance law; and further provided, that
nothing in this section shall apply to the marine insurances, including
marine protection and indemnity insurance and marine reinsurance,
exempted from the operation of article twenty-three of the insurance
law.

3. The provisions of this article shall not apply to cooperative
associations, corporate or otherwise, of farmers, gardeners, or
dairymen, including live stock farmers and fruit growers, nor to
contracts, agreements or arrangements made by such associations, nor to
bona fide labor unions.

4. The labor of human beings shall not be deemed or held to be a
commodity or article of commerce as such terms are used in this section
and nothing herein contained shall be deemed to prohibit or restrict the
right of workingmen to combine in unions, organizations and
associations, not organized for the purpose of profit.

5. An action to recover damages caused by a violation of this section
must be commenced within four years after the cause of action has
accrued. The state, or any political subdivision or public authority of
the state, or any person who shall sustain damages by reason of any
violation of this section, shall recover three-fold the actual damages
sustained thereby, as well as costs not exceeding ten thousand dollars,
and reasonable attorneys' fees. At or before the commencement of any
civil action by a party other than the attorney-general for a violation
of this section, notice thereof shall be served upon the
attorney-general. Where the aggrieved party is a political subdivision
or public authority of the state, notice of intention to commence an
action under this section must be served upon the attorney-general at
least ten days prior to the commencement of such action. This section
shall not apply to any action commenced prior to the effective date of
this act.

6. In any action pursuant to this section, the fact that the state, or
any political subdivision or public authority of the state, or any
person who has sustained damages by reason of violation of this section
has not dealt directly with the defendant shall not bar or otherwise
limit recovery; provided, however, that in any action in which claims
are asserted against a defendant by both direct and indirect purchasers,
the court shall take all steps necessary to avoid duplicate liability,
including but not limited to the transfer and consolidation of all
related actions. In actions where both direct and indirect purchasers
are involved, a defendant shall be entitled to prove as a partial or
complete defense to a claim for damages that the illegal overcharge has
been passed on to others who are themselves entitled to recover so as to
avoid duplication of recovery of damages.