With New York’s recent enactment of the Child Victims Act, the legal landscape surrounding claims of sexual abuse in the civil and criminal contexts has been substantially changed. Given the broad and sweeping impact of the Child Victims Act, it is critically important that public and private institutions familiarize themselves with the law and understand the new rules. In this alert, we explore a few of the major aspects of the Child Victims Act and highlight several of the actions that institutions should take to limit potential liability.

Changes in the business immigration arena continue to affect non-immigrants in significant ways. By March 18, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is expected to publish a proposed regulation rescinding employment authorization documentation (EAD) for the H-4 spouse of H-1B visa holders.

Late last year, the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department issued a decision regarding the enforceability of an attorneys’ fees provision in a Manhattan cooperative’s proprietary lease. In its decision in Krodel v. Amalgamated Dwellings Inc., the Appellate Division found that the attorneys’ fees provision was unenforceable to the extent that it allowed the co-op to recover attorneys’ fees from a tenant if the tenant commenced an action against the co-op, regardless of whether the co-op was or was not in default.