New York Branded “Lawsuit Inferno” in Legislative HeatCheck

Today, the American Tort Reform Association named New York a “Lawsuit Inferno” for the second consecutive year in its latest Legislative HeatCheck report. The designation comes in response to lawmakers’ continued efforts to pass some of the most problematic, liability-expanding bills in the nation. 

“New York lawmakers use the same tactics year after year — pushing bills that the governor repeatedly vetoes,” said Tiger Joyce, president of ATRA. “It’s a vicious cycle and a broken record. Instead of learning from past failures, they waste time and ignore the real issues facing the state.” 

Legislation

During the 2025 legislative session, New York’s legislators pushed multiple proposals to create new opportunities to sue, two of which are nearly identical to previously vetoed bills. 

Among the most concerning bills, ATRA’s report calls out:

• Wrongful Death Lawsuit Expansion: For the fourth year in a row, legislators passed a bill that would significantly expand the damages available in wrongful death lawsuits in New York, allowing recovery for emotional losses such as grief, anguish, and loss of companionship — not just financial harms. Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul has vetoed this bill the past three times it was sent to her desk.
• Lawsuit Tourism: On its third trip to the governor’s desk is a bill that would make simply registering to do business in New York a trigger for broad legal exposure. It would enable more out-of-state cases to be filed, leading to greater court congestion and higher legal expenses for businesses operating in New York. Gov. Hochul has vetoed this bill twice already. A similar bill is before Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D).

“If New York were to extend its jurisdiction so expansively, it would open the floodgates for out-of-state litigation to park itself in New York’s ‘Judicial Hellhole®’ courts,” Joyce said. “This lawsuit tourism bill combined with yet another attempt to expand damages in wrongful death cases poses serious economic risks and could make New York an outlier nationally in all the worst ways.”

The Legislative HeatCheck report also calls out a bill that would allow plaintiffs in lawsuits to recover money directly from third-party defendants. All three of these bills, if signed into law, have the potential to significantly increase litigation costs for all New Yorkers.

“We encourage Gov. Hochul to again exercise the strength of her veto pen and strike down these liability-expanding bills that will only further burden the people of New York,” Joyce said.

Economic Squeeze for Families and Small Businesses

The consequences of expanding opportunities to sue are not just theoretical. New York residents already pay the third-most expensive annual “tort tax” in the nation, at nearly $2,535 per person – that’s more than $10,139 for a family of four. Excessive tort costs in New York also result in nearly 427,800 jobs lost in the state each year. 

A “Lawsuit Inferno” In a “Judicial Hellhole®” 

New York City has a long-held reputation as a perennial Judicial Hellhole®, ranking No. 2 in the most recent 2024-2025 report. State lawmakers also were included in last year’s Legislative HeatCheck as a “Lawsuit Inferno,” further highlighting legislators’ seemingly tireless efforts to increase costs for everyone else.

ATRA’s Legislative HeatCheck report evaluates a select group of states’ progress — or lack thereof — in enacting meaningful tort reform measures during their most recent legislative sessions. 

New York joins West Virginia’s Senate Judiciary Committee, the Florida House of Representatives and the state legislatures of Colorado, Illinois and Virginia as 2025 “Lawsuit Infernos.” The full Legislative HeatCheck report is available at heatcheck.atra.org.

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About the Legislative HeatCheck: The Legislative HeatCheck is an annual analysis, started in 2024 by the American Tort Reform Association, that assesses which states are making strides to improve their civil justice systems through tort reform and which states remain in dire need of legal reform. The report categorizes a select group of states into three groups:

• Tort Reform Trailblazers: States that have recently enacted key tort reform measures to rein in lawsuit abuse and improve their legal climates.
• Lawsuit Infernos: States whose legislatures are actively expanding liability and worsening their civil justice systems or failed to pass any meaningful legal reforms during their latest legislative sessions, leaving their civil justice systems mired in a litigious status quo.
• Heat Watch: States whose legislatures still are in session and are considering either positive or negative legislation. These states are placed on “Heat Watch” due to inaction on tort reform or the potential for liability-expanding legislation that could worsen their legal climates.

The Legislative HeatCheck provides an overview of tort reform battles waged in statehouses nationwide and serves as a guide for where reform efforts should be focused in the year ahead.