New York S 9765: Enacts the "sunshine in litigation act" regarding protective orders

Bill Text

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S09765 Summary:

BILL NOS09765 

&nbsp

SAME ASSAME AS A07473

&nbsp

SPONSORSEPULVEDA

&nbsp

COSPNSR

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

Amd §3103, add Art 31-A §§3141 - 3143, CPLR

&nbsp

Enacts the "sunshine in litigation act" regarding protective orders to prohibit settlement agreements which conceal a public hazard or any information that would identify a public hazard.

Go to top S09765 Actions:

BILL NOS09765 

&nbsp

04/06/2026REFERRED TO JUDICIARY

05/05/20261ST REPORT CAL.914

05/06/20262ND REPORT CAL.

05/07/2026ADVANCED TO THIRD READING 

06/05/2026COMMITTED TO RULES

Go to topS09765 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topS09765 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topS09765 Text:

 STATE OF NEW YORK
 ________________________________________________________________________

 9765

 IN SENATE

 April 6, 2026
 ___________

 Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- 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 enact-
 ing the "sunshine in litigation act" regarding protective orders

 The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
 bly, do enact as follows:

 1 Section 1. Subdivision (a) of section 3103 of the civil practice law
 2 and rules, as amended by chapter 205 of the laws of 2013, is amended to
 3 read as follows:
 4 (a) Prevention of abuse. [The] Subject to the provisions of section
 5 thirty-one hundred forty-three of this chapter, the court may at any
 6 time on its own initiative, or on motion of any party or of any person
 7 from whom or about whom discovery is sought, make a protective order
 8 denying, limiting, conditioning or regulating the use of any disclosure
 9 device. Such order shall be designed to prevent unreasonable annoyance,
 10 expense, embarrassment, disadvantage, or other prejudice to any person
 11 or the courts.
 12 § 2. The civil practice law and rules is amended by adding a new arti-
 13 cle 31-A to read as follows:
 14 ARTICLE 31-A
 15 SUNSHINE IN LITIGATION ACT
 16 Section 3141. Short title.
 17 3142. Definitions.
 18 3143. Sunshine in litigation; concealment of public hazards
 19 prohibited.
 20 § 3141. Short title. This article shall be known and may be cited as
 21 the "sunshine in litigation act".
 22 § 3142. Definitions. When used in this article, unless otherwise so
 23 stated, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
 24 (a) Governmental entity. "Governmental entity" shall mean the state
 25 and any county, city, town, village or any other political subdivision
 26 of the state, and every department, board, bureau, agency, public
 27 authority or other governmental instrumentality of the state or a poli-
 28 tical subdivision of the state.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD06224-01-5

 S. 9765 2

 1 (b) Public hazard. "Public hazard" shall mean any condition of any
 2 device, instrument, person, procedure, product or property that has
 3 caused injury to the person or property of another, or which, unless
 4 altered, removed, reassembled or changed in some manner, creates a risk
 5 of injury to person or property in the future.
 6 (c) Trade secret. "Trade secret" shall mean information, technical or
 7 non-technical, including, but not limited to, a formula, pattern, compi-
 8 lation, program, device, method, technique or process that:
 9 1. derives independent economic value, actual or potential, from not
 10 being generally known to, and not being readily ascertainable by proper
 11 means, by other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclo-
 12 sure or use; and
 13 2. is the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circum-
 14 stances to maintain its secrecy.
 15 § 3143. Sunshine in litigation; concealment of public hazards prohib-
 16 ited. (a) Except in strict compliance with the provisions of this
 17 section, no court shall enter, order or render a judgment in any action
 18 or proceeding brought in this state which has the purpose or effect of
 19 concealing a public hazard or concealing any pertinent information that
 20 would identify a public hazard, nor shall the court enter an order or
 21 render a judgment which has