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A221Assembly2025-2026 Session

Protect Privacy From Intrusion

Official title

“Establishes a cause of action for intrusion upon seclusion”

Sponsor Clyde VanelAD-33
Status
In Assembly Committee
Governmental Operations
Impact
7/10
Significant
Passage
4%

Bill progress

Step 2 of 7

In committee · Governmental Operations

What's happening

This bill creates a legal cause of action for individuals whose privacy is intentionally and offensively intruded upon in New York.

Why it matters

  1. Empowers individuals to directly sue for intentional intrusions into their private life. this means New Yorkers can take legal action if someone deliberately violates their privacy in a manner that would be considered highly offensive by societal standards.

  2. Covers both physical and non-physical invasions of privacy. the law applies to a wide range of activities, from physical trespassing to digital spying or other forms of surveillance, reflecting modern privacy concerns.

  3. Allows courts to grant strong remedies. judges and juries can award not only monetary damages (both compensatory and punitive) but also injunctive relief (to stop ongoing invasions) and require the losing party to pay legal fees, making it easier for victims to pursue claims.

  4. Does not require proof that the invasion was made public. someone’s privacy can be violated even if the information was not shared widely, focusing protection on the act of intrusion itself rather than on publicity or embarrassment.

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Who cares

Headline styles

Protect Privacy From Intrusion

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

Sponsors

Primary sponsor
Clyde Vanel

Assembly Member · Assembly District 33

Chair, Banks

No co-sponsors yet.

History

  1. Referred to governmental operations
  2. Referred to governmental operations

Full text

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

STATE OF NEW YORK

221

2025-2026 Regular Sessions

IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled)

January 8, 2025

Introduced by M. of A. VANEL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations

AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to establishing a cause of action for intrusion upon seclusion

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

Section 1. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 50-h to read as follows:

§ 50-h. Intrusion upon seclusion. 1. A person shall have a cause of action against any person who intentionally intrudes, physically or otherwise, upon the solitude or seclusion of another or their private affairs or concerns if such intrusion would be highly offensive to a reasonable person.

2. In any action commenced pursuant to subdivision one of this section, the finder of fact, in its discretion, may award injunctive relief, punitive damages, compensatory damages and reasonable court costs and attorney's fees.

3. Liability for a violation of subdivision one of this section shall not depend upon any publicity given to the person whose interest is invaded or to their affairs.

§ 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.

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

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD01918-01-5

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.