[Adopted 12-27-1983 by L.L. No. 5-1984 (Ch. 35, Art. IV, of
the 1985 Code)]
A.
B.
Current local legislation thus provides coverage for legal defense
of County employees which is broader than the coverage provided for
indemnification of such employees. The purpose of this article is
to conform the indemnification provisions to the legal defense provisions
already enacted.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The County of Suffolk.
Any person holding a position by appointment, election or employment in the service of the County of Suffolk, including but not limited to volunteers, any person serving as a hearing officer for any County department, any person serving as a traffic prosecutor for the Suffolk County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency ("TPVA"), any person not compensated for his or her services and any member of any board or agency appointed by the County Executive and/or the Legislature, but shall not include an independent contractor, other than the Suffolk County Chief Medical Examiner when serving as an independent contractor. For purposes of this article and Article I of this chapter only, a person serving as a hearing officer for any County department or a person serving as a traffic prosecutor for the TPVA shall not be considered an independent contractor. The term "employee" shall include a former employee, his estate or judicially appointed personal representative.
[Amended 3-27-1984 by L.L. No. 6-1984; 3-22-2016 by L.L. No. 10-2016; 3-7-2017 by L.L. No. 5-2017]
The Suffolk County Legislature.
A.
The County shall indemnify and save harmless County employees in
the amount of any judgment obtained against such individuals in a
state or federal court or in the amount of any settlement of a claim,
provided that the act or omission from which such judgment or claim
arose occurred while this individual was acting within the scope of
his employment or duties; provided, further, that in the case of a
settlement, the duty to indemnify and save harmless shall be conditioned
upon the approval of the amount of settlement by the Legislature,
which approval shall not include the vote of any elected official
who is a party in such settlement.
B.
Except as otherwise provided by law, the duty to indemnify and save
harmless prescribed by this section shall not arise where the injury
or damage resulted from intentional wrongdoing or recklessness on
the part of the County employees.
C.
Nothing in this section shall authorize the County to indemnify or save harmless these individuals with respect to punitive or exemplary damages, fines or penalties, or money recovered from said individuals pursuant to § 51 of the General Municipal Law. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the County to indemnify or save harmless any individual prohibited from receiving such indemnity under § 18 of the Public Officers Law.
D.
Upon entry of a final judgment against said individuals or upon the
settlement of a claim, said individuals shall serve a copy of such
judgment or settlement, personally or by certified or registered mail,
within 30 days of the date of entry or settlement, upon the chief
executive officer of the County, and, if not inconsistent with the
provisions of this section, the amount of such judgment or settlement
shall be paid by the County.
The duty to indemnify and save harmless prescribed by this article
shall be conditioned upon:
A.
Delivery by said individual to the Suffolk County Attorney of the
original or a copy of the summons, complaint, process, notice, demand
or pleading within 10 days after he is served with such document;
and
B.
The full cooperation of said individuals in the defense of any action
or proceeding against the County, based upon the same act or omission
and in the prosecution of any appeal.
The benefits of this article shall inure only to said individuals as defined herein and shall not enlarge or diminish the rights of any other party. This article shall not in any way affect the obligation of any claimant to give notice to the County under § 10 of the Court of Claims Act, § 50-e of the General Municipal Law or any other provision of law.
The County is hereby authorized and empowered to purchase insurance,
from any insurance company created by or under the laws of the State
of New York or authorized by law to transact business in the State
of New York, against any liability imposed by the provisions of this
article or to act as a self-insurer with respect thereto. All payment
made under the terms of the law, whether for insurance or otherwise,
shall be deemed to be for a public purpose and shall be audited and
paid in the same manner as other public charges. The provisions of
this article shall not be construed to impair, alter, change or modify
the rights and obligations of any insurer under any policy of insurance.
Except as otherwise specifically provided by this article, the
provisions of this article shall not be construed in any way to limit,
alter, impair, modify, abrogate or restrict any immunity to liability
available to or conferred upon any County employee in accordance with
or by reason of any other provision of state or federal statutory
or common law.
[Amended 3-7-2017 by L.L.
No. 5-2017]
A.
Except as provided in Subsection B of this section, benefits granted to said individuals by this article shall supplement or be available in addition to benefits or indemnification protection offered by other enactments by the State of New York or the County of Suffolk. The provisions of this article shall apply to all actions and proceedings specified herein which have been commenced, instituted or brought on or after the effective date of this article.
B.
With respect to persons serving as hearing officers for the County,
or persons serving as traffic prosecutors for the TPVA, the provisions
of this article shall apply to all claims, actions, proceedings, or
other litigation made, occurring or accruing on or after the first
date of service rendered by such hearing officers or traffic prosecutors.
