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A1068Assembly2017-2018 Session

Immigrants Can Be Lawyers

Official title

“Relates to establishing status as a New York state citizen or possession of a federal immigration card shall constitute no cause for refusing any person examination admission to practice law”

Sponsor Jo Anne SimonAD-52+5 co-sponsorsAffects Legal
Status
In Assembly Committee
Judiciary
Impact
4/10
Low
Passage
0%

Bill progress

Step 2 of 7

In committee · Judiciary

What's happening

This bill prohibits denying someone the opportunity to take the bar exam or become a lawyer in New York based on state citizenship or federal immigration status.

Why it matters

  1. Expands equal access to the legal profession. by ensuring that qualified individuals cannot be barred from taking the bar exam or becoming an attorney in New York solely because of their state citizenship or immigration status, broadening who can pursue a legal career.

  2. Promotes inclusivity and diversity in the legal community. by removing barriers for immigrants and non-citizens, which could lead to a legal workforce that better reflects and serves the state’s diverse population.

  3. Aligns with broader anti-discrimination principles. by explicitly adding state citizenship and federal immigration card holder status to the list of protected categories (like race, sex, and national origin), reinforcing New York’s stance against discrimination in professional licensing.

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Who cares

Headline styles

Immigrants Can Be Lawyers

Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.

Sponsors

Primary sponsor
Jo Anne Simon

Assembly Member · Assembly District 52

Chair, Mental Health

History

  1. Referred to judiciary
  2. Referred to judiciary

Full text

1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗

STATE OF NEW YORK

1068

2017-2018 Regular Sessions

IN ASSEMBLY

January 10, 2017

Introduced by M. of A. SIMON, SEPULVEDA, BICHOTTE, GOTTFRIED, BLAKE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary

AN ACT to amend the judiciary law, in relation to establishing status as a New York state citizen or possession of a federal immigration card shall constitute no cause for refusing any person examination or admission to practice law

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

Section 1. Section 460 of the judiciary law, as amended by chapter 226 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:

§ 460. Examination and admission of attorneys. An applicant for admission to practice as an attorney or counsellor in this state, must be examined and licensed to practice as prescribed in this chapter and in the rules of the court of appeals. Race, creed, color, national origin, alienage, status as a New York state citizen or federal immigration card holder, or sex shall constitute no cause for refusing any person examination or admission to practice.

§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD00972-01-7

Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.

Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.