On March 14, 2024, New York State's Court of Appeals rendered its decision on Syeed v. Bloomberg L.P., which holds that New York City and New York State Human Rights Laws apply to nonresidents who are not yet even employed by a company in the city or state, but who are proactively seeking an actual city or state based job opportunity. 

This decision expands the protections of NY's / NYC's discrimination laws to include individuals who were denied employment based on discrimination even if said individuals were not yet residents or employees in New York State or City.

If you'd like to read the case and learn more about the court's decision, click here. 

On December 22, 2023 Governor Hochul signed Bill A3484A amending New York State's limited liability company law and the executive law. This new amendment will significantly transform the landscape of limited liability companies (LLCs) in New York. How will this bill accomplish this? By eradicating anonymous ownership of LLCs. 

This amendment defines beneficial ownership while also mandating the disclosure of beneficial owners upon the formation of an LLC, and publicizing this information in New York State's business entity database. 

This change to the law stems from concerns about the repercussions of anonymous corporate ownership. It highlights the misuse of anonymous LLCs for various illicit activities, including tax evasion, funding criminal organizations, money laundering, and even hindering routine code enforcement.

This legislative move aligns New York State with global efforts to foster transparency in corporate ownership. By mandating disclosure and establishing a public database, this change to the law aims to curtail illicit activities associated with anonymous ownership while protecting genuine privacy concerns through specific exemptions and waivers.

The transparency this law brings will save time, money, and resources for those suing an LLC. This will reduce unnecessary motion practices and other additional steps that had been required in order to determine who to serve when suing an LLC. 

This bill stands as a significant step towards a more transparent and accountable business landscape in New York State.

This law comes into effect on December 21, 2024, 365 days after being signed by the Governor. To learn more about Bill A3484A , click here. 

On March 7, 2022, the NYS Senate joined the Assembly to pass a bill (now going to the Governor to be enacted), which establishes a hotline for complainants of workplace sexual harassment. 

The Bill's Justification explains that "[n]early 75% of all sexual harassment goes unreported," and it envisions that this toll-free hotline, available, "at minimum, Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.," which will "connect complainants with experienced pro-bono attorneys who will help make them aware of their legal rights and advise them on the specifics of their individualized cases," will result in more reported claims. 

The issue with this STUPID Bill is two-fold:

1. Who needs a toll-free line in 2022? Aren't we past the time when telephone companies charge per second of use? Don't most people utilize VoIP or cell phones? What decade is the NYS Government operating in? Have they heard of the world wide web? 
2. Why are they referring to pro-bono (free) attorneys on a type of case where the plaintiff can recover their attorneys' fees from the plaintiff, by statute, and almost no plaintiffs pay their attorneys hourly fees? Sounds like a lipservice law to us, no?

 

Effective June 20, 2022 video and audio conferenced electronic notarizations will be legal in New York State, but why make us wait until June 20, 2022? 

The law, S1780C, was signed by the Governor on December 22, 2022, but provides its effective date is 180 after signing. So, we have to wait roughly 6 months for new Executive Law 137-a to be effective. Further, not all electronic notarizations are going to be valid with cumbersome rules being set forth in the statute and even more rules to come by the Secretary of State in the form of regulations authorized in the statute. 

The law creates a new type of notary, an Electronic Notary Public or Electronic Notary, who has registered with the Secretary of State such notary's capability of performing electronic notarial acts. Plus, the law requires this notary to "keep a copy of the recording of the video and audio conference and a notation of the type of any other identification used... for a period of at least ten years." Interestingly, electronic notarizations require the electronic notary public to be in New York State when performing the service, but the signer's location is irrelevant. 

While it seems that this law will greatly impact the ability to have wills, mortgages, and citizenship forms signed, on its face, it provides an unnecessarily complicated framework given that we've been doing simple electronic notarizations during the pandemic to much success.