New York A 8169: Relates to consumer protection from unfair or deceptive acts or practices

Bill Text

STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8169
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
June 1, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH, DINOWITZ, SEAWRIGHT, WEPRIN, ABINANTI
-- read once and referred to the Committee on Consumer Affairs and
Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to consumer
protection from unfair or deceptive acts or practices
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions (a) and (h) of section 349 of the general
2 business law, subdivision (a) as added by chapter 43 of the laws of 1970
3 and subdivision (h) as amended by chapter 157 of the laws of 1984, are
4 amended and a new subdivision (i) is added to read as follows:
5 (a) [ ] acts or practices in the conductDeceptive Unfair or deceptive
6 of any business, trade or commerce or in the furnishing of any service
7 in this state are hereby declared unlawful.
8 (h) In addition to the right of action granted to the attorney(1)
9 general pursuant to this section, any person who has been injured by
10 reason of any violation of this section may bring an action in his own
11 name to enjoin such unlawful act or practice, an action to recover his
12 actual damages or [ ] dollars, whichever is greater, orfifty five hundred
13 both such actions. The court may, in its discretion, increase the award
14 of damages to an amount not to exceed three times the actual damages up
15 to [ ] thousand dollars, if the court finds the defendant willful-one ten
16 ly or knowingly violated this section. The court may also award punitive
17 damages in an amount not to exceed three times the actual damages and
18 provide any equitable relief the court considers necessary or proper.
19 The court [ ] award reasonable attorney's fees (2) may shall and costs
20 to a prevailing plaintiff.
21 (i) In determining whether an act or practice is unfair, the court
22 shall consider circumstances of which the defendant knew or reasonably
23 should have known, including, but not limited to the following:
EXPLANATION--Matter in (underscored) is new; matter in bracketsitalics
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00081-03-7

A. 8169 2
1 (1) that the defendant took advantage of the inability of the consumer
2 to reasonably protect the consumer's interests because of the consumer's
3 physical infirmity, illiteracy or inability to understand the language
4 of an agreement;
5 (2) that at the time the consumer transaction was entered into, the
6 price grossly exceeded the price at which similar property or services
7 were readily obtainable in similar transactions by similar consumers;
8 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 349-c of the general
9 business law, as added by chapter 687 of the laws of 1996 and such
10 section as renumbered by chapter 189 of the laws of 1999, is amended to
11 read as follows:
12 (a) In addition to any liability for damages or a civil penalty
13 imposed pursuant to sections three hundred forty-nine, three hundred
14 three hundred fifty-c and three hundred fifty-d of thisforty-nine-f,
15 [ ] , regarding deceptive practices and false advertising,chapter article
16 and subdivision twelve of section sixty-three of the executive law,
17 regarding proceedings by the attorney general for equitable relief
18 against fraudulent or illegal consumer fraud, a person or entity who
19 engages in any conduct prohibited by said provisions of law, and whose
20 conduct is perpetrated against one or more elderly persons, may be
21 liable for an additional civil penalty not to exceed [ ] thou-ten twenty
22 sand dollars, if the factors in paragraph (b) of this subdivision are
23 present.
24 § 3. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 349-f
25 to read as follows:
26 § 349-f. Civil action. Any consumer entitled to bring an action under
27 this article may, if the unlawful act or practice has caused damage to
28 other consumers similarly situated, bring an action on behalf of himself
29 or herself and such other consumers to recover damages or obtain other
30 relief as provided for in this article.
31 Any action brought under this subdivision shall comply with article
32 nine of the civil practice law and rules.
33 § 4. Section 350-d of the general business law, as amended by chapter
34 208 of the laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
35 § 350-d. Civil penalty. Any person, firm, corporation or association
36 or agent or employee thereof who engages in any of the acts or practices
37 stated in this article to be unlawful shall be liable to a civil penalty
38 of not more than [ ] thousand dollars for each violation, whichfive ten
39 shall accrue to the state of New York and may be recovered in a civil
40 action brought by the attorney general. In any such action it shall be a
41 complete defense that the advertisement is subject to and complies with
42 the rules and regulations of, and the statu