S 4282: Creates the anti-SLAPP act; provides that discovery shall be suspended pending a decision on the motion.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4282 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 Judiciary AN ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to creat- ing the anti-SLAPP act The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "anti-SLAPP act". 3 § 2. Subdivision (c) and paragraph 1 of subdivision (g) of rule 3211 4 of the civil practice law and rules, subdivision (c) as amended by judi- 5 cial conference proposal number 4 for the year 1973, and paragraph 1 of 6 subdivision (g) as amended by chapter 250 of the laws of 2020, are 7 amended to read as follows: 8 (c) Evidence permitted; immediate trial; motion treated as one for 9 summary judgment. Upon the hearing of a motion made under subdivision 10 (a) or (b) or paragraph one of subdivision (g), either party may submit 11 any evidence that could properly be considered on a motion for summary 12 judgment. Whether or not issue has been joined, the court, after 13 adequate notice to the parties, may treat the motion as a motion for 14 summary judgment. The court may, when appropriate for the expeditious 15 disposition of the controversy, order immediate trial of the issues 16 raised on the motion. 17 1. A motion to dismiss based on paragraph seven of subdivision (a) of 18 this section, in which the moving party has demonstrated that the 19 action, claim, cross claim or counterclaim subject to the motion is an 20 action involving public petition and participation as defined in para- 21 graph (a) of subdivision one of section seventy-six-a of the civil 22 rights law, shall be granted unless the party responding to the motion 23 demonstrates that the cause of action has a substantial basis in law or 24 is supported by a substantial argument for an extension, modification or 25 reversal of existing law. Discovery shall be suspended pending a deci- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08032-01-5 
 S. 4282 2 1 sion on the motion. The court shall grant preference in the hearing of 2 such motion and shall set such hearing date no later then sixty days 3 after the date of service of the motion unless the docket condition of 4 the court requires a later hearing, but in no event shall the hearing 5 occur more than ninety days after service of the motion. If a motion to 6 dismiss is granted the court shall provide for the imposition of costs 7 or other sanctions, including imposition of reasonable attorneys' fees. 8 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.