Section 487 of the New York Judiciary Law criminalizes and creates a civil cause of action for parties who have been harmed by an attorney’s intentional deceit or collusion in a judicial proceeding. The precise scope of Section 487 remains disputed amongst New York courts. On the one hand, courts have observed that the statute’s policy of protecting against attorney abuse and deceit warrants a broad interpretation. Other courts have found that the text of the statute, along with its criminal component, support a narrower construction.
In a Jan. 7, 2016 decision, Kallista, S.A. v. White & Williams LLP, Justice Alan D. Scheinkman of the Westchester County Commercial Division dismissed a Section 487 claim based on allegations of attorney deceit in connection with a federal administrative proceeding outside of New York State.1 In dismissing that claim, the court found that Section 487 was applicable only to court proceedings, not to administrative proceedings. While the court further observed that there is a “genuine debate” as to whether Section 487 is limited to proceedings within New York, the court did not need to rule on that issue as it disposed of the claim based on its administrative proceeding context.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
