Matthew J. Turturro, founder and managing partner of Turturro Law, P.C. Photo: Ryland West/ALM

Gov. Andrew Cuomo's plan to combat coronavirus clusters in New York City quickly drew a lawsuit from a Brooklyn law firm Thursday.

Turturro Law in Brooklyn is located in a red zone where nonessential businesses are forced to shut down due to the state's plan to battle a coronavirus cluster in the borough. Officials say the initiative is particularly aimed at tackling mass gatherings where the virus can be easily spread.

But, the law firm says it doesn't hold mass gatherings and operates within a safe and controlled environment, complying with coronavirus protocols.

"The initiative, which was hastily implemented by defendant Cuomo in an effort to target mass gatherings in the city (and other locations) because of a locality's failure to enforce 'social distancing rules' and 'mask mandates,'" reads the lawsuit, which was filed in the federal Eastern District of New York.

Due to the cluster restrictions, government officials have effectively ordered the law firm "to cease all or most of its operations without any sort of hearing or formal procedure," the lawsuit argues.

The state has faced a wave of litigation in recent months over its coronavirus restrictions, particularly from businesses that were forced to shut down. The rules have been credited with bringing down the state's coronavirus figures.

Federal courts have largely sided with state officials in those cases. But the Turturro Law litigation is perhaps the first launched against the cluster restriction scheme—a new initiative that only affects a limited geographic area.

Cuomo rolled out a tiered plan Tuesday to fight new infections in coronavirus hot spots, which were identified in parts of Brooklyn, Queens and Orange and Rockland counties.

In red zones under the plan, law firm offices and nonessential businesses are shuttered, indoor and outdoor dining is banned and mass gatherings are not allowed. Certain in-person legal work is permitted within the red zones.

The restrictions are less stringent in the areas surrounding the red zones—orange and yellow zones. In the less-restrictive zones, law firms are able to operate their offices.

The lawsuit argues that the zones are arbitrary, and there's "no scientific or other rational basis" to support them.

"There is no lawful basis for suggesting that the public's health or safety is furthered by shuttering a non-essential law office in a 'red zone' while a non-essential law office located several blocks away in an orange or yellow zone remains open," according to the lawsuit.

Plus, the law firm adapted to comply with certain protocols, like temperature checks and coronavirus questioning for workers and clients when they come into the firm's location.

The lawsuit argues the cluster initiative "constitutes an arbitrary, capricious, irrational, and abusive conduct which unlawfully interferes with Turturro Law's liberty and property interests."

Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio are listed as defendants in the litigation.

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