S 4221: Provides for award of attorneys' fees to prevailing parties in human rights law cases.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4221 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 3, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- 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 providing for the award of attorneys' fees to prevailing parties in actions based on the human rights law The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 298-b 2 to read as follows: 3 § 298-b. Attorneys' fees for prevailing parties. 1. The court shall 4 award the prevailing party, in an action or proceeding alleging a 5 violation of section two hundred ninety-six or two hundred ninety-six-a 6 of this article, attorneys' fees, including but not limited to, expert 7 witness fees. 8 2. The state or any division thereof is prohibited from collecting 9 attorneys' fees under subdivision one of this section. 10 3. The losing party shall be liable for all costs awarded by the court 11 pursuant to this section. 12 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 13 it shall have become a law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07860-01-5