City Bar Supports Bill Enabling Attorneys to Attach Liens for ADR or Settlement Awards

The New York City Bar Association has issued a report in support of Assembly bill 8697, sponsored by Assembly Members Titone and Weinstein, which would authorize an attorney to attach a lien to awards and settlement proceeds obtained through alternative dispute resolution (ADR) or settlement. The legislation, which is supported by the City Bar’s Committee on Professional Responsibility, Committee on Arbitration and Committee on Alternative Dispute Resolution, is meant to address a deficiency in Judiciary Law Sections 475 and 475-a (collectively, the “Lien Law”). As currently written, the Lien Law permits an attorney to attach a lien to the proceeds of any recovery only after an action has been commenced in court.