§ 50-K — Civil actions against employees of the city of New York

§ 50-k. Civil actions against employees of the city of New York. 1.\nAs used in this section:\n a. "Agency" shall mean a city, county, borough, or other office,\nposition, administration, council, department, division, bureau, board,\ncommunity board, commission, institution or agency of government, the\nexpenses of which are paid in whole or in part from the city treasury,\nbut shall not include, unless otherwise provided by law, any public\nauthority, public benefit corporation or board of education.\n b. "City" shall mean the city of New York.\n c. "Comptroller" shall mean the comptroller of the city.\n d. "Corporation Council" shall mean the corporation council of the\ncity.\n e. "Employee" shall mean any person holding a position by election,\nappointment or employment in the service of any agency, whether or not\ncompensated, or a volunteer expressly authorized to participate in a\ncity sponsored volunteer program, but shall not include an independent\ncontractor. The term employee shall include a former employee, his\nestate or judicially appointed personal representative.\n 2. At the request of the employee and upon compliance by the employee\nwith the provisions of subdivision four of this section, the city shall\nprovide for the defense of an employee of any agency in any civil action\nor proceeding in any state or federal court including actions under\nsections nineteen hundred eighty-one through nineteen hundred\neighty-eight of title forty-two of the United States code arising out of\nany alleged act or omission which the corporation counsel finds occurred\nwhile the employee was acting within the scope of his public employment\nand in the discharge of his duties and was not in violation of any rule\nor regulation of his agency at the time the alleged act or omission\noccurred. This duty to provide for a defense shall not arise where such\ncivil action or proceeding is brought by or on behalf of the city or\nstate or an agency of either.\n 3. The city shall indemnify and save harmless its employees in the\namount of any judgment obtained against such employees in any state or\nfederal court, or in the amount of any settlement of a claim approved by\nthe corporation counsel and the comptroller, provided that the act or\nomission from which such judgment or settlement arose occurred while the\nemployee was acting within the scope of his public employment and in the\ndischarge of his duties and was not in violation of any rule or\nregulation of his agency at the time the alleged damages were sustained;\nthe duty to indemnify and save harmless prescribed by this subdivision\nshall not arise where the injury or damage resulted from intentional\nwrongdoing or recklessness on the part of the employee.\n 4. The duty to defend or indemnify and save harmless prescribed by\nthis section shall be conditioned upon (a) delivery to the corporation\ncounsel at the office of the law department of the city by the employee\nof the original or a copy of any summons, complaint, process, notice,\ndemand or pleading within ten days after he is served with such\ndocument, and (b) the full cooperation of the employee in the defense of\nsuch action or proceeding and in defense of any action or proceeding\nagainst the city based upon the same act or omission, and in the\nprosecution of any appeal. Such delivery shall be deemed a request by\nthe employee that the city provide for his defense pursuant to this\nsection. In the event that the corporation counsel shall assume an\nemployee's defense and thereafter the employee fails to or refuses to\ncooperate in the formation or presentation of his defense, the court\nshall permit the corporation counsel to withdraw his representation ten\ndays after giving written notice to the employee of his intention to\ndiscontinue such representation.\n 5. In the event that the act or omission upon which the court\nproceeding against the employee is based was or is also the basis of a\ndisciplinary proceeding by the employee's agency against the employee,\nrepresentation by the corporation counsel and indemnification by the\ncity may be withheld (a) until such disciplinary proceeding has been\nresolved and (b) unless the resolution of the disciplinary proceeding\nexonerated the employee as to such act or omission.\n 6. Every action or proceeding instituted hereunder, including an\naction brought to enforce a provision of sections nineteen hundred\neighty-one through nineteen hundred eighty-eight of title forty-two of\nthe United States code, shall be commenced pursuant to the provisions of\nsection fifty-i of this chapter and within one year and ninety days. No\naction or proceeding instituted hereunder, other than one instituted\npursuant to sections nineteen hundred eighty-one through nineteen\nhundred eighty-eight of title forty-two of the United States code shall\nbe prosecuted or maintained against the city or any agency or an\nemployee unless notice of claim shall have been made and served upon the\ncity in compliance with section fifty-e of this chapter and within\nninety days after the claim arises.\n 7. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to impair,\nalter, limit or modify the rights and obligations of any insurer under\nany policy of insurance.\n 8. The provisions of this section shall apply to all actions and\nproceedings pending upon the effective date thereof or thereafter\ninstituted, except that the provisions of subdivision six shall apply\nonly to actions and proceedings instituted on or after the effective\ndate of this section.\n 9. The provisions of this section shall not be construed in any way to\nimpair, alter, limit, modify, or abrogate or restrict any immunity\navailable to or conferred upon any unit, entity, officer or employee of\nthe city or any agency or any other level of government, or any right to\ndefense and/or indemnification provided for any governmental officer or\nemployee by, in accordance with, or by reason of, any other provision of\nstate, federal or local law or common law.\n