New York State Department of Law Executive Office Litigation Case Files 18573

New York State Department of Law Executive Office Litigation Case Files

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Overview of the Records

Repository:

New York State Archives
New York State Education Department
Cultural Education Center
Albany, NY 12230

Summary:

The series consists of correspondence, memorandums, copies of legal documents, and related materials produced by executive staff of the Department of Law while supervising the prosecution of significant legal cases. Legal documents include copies of opinions, petitions, orders, motion notices, and exhibit items from state litigation and appeals. Also present are files pertaining to federal litigation monitored for the attorney general by the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG).

Creator:

New York (State). Public Employment Relations Board. Counsel's Office

Title:

Department of Law Executive Office litigation case files

Quantity:

172.5 cubic feet

including 15 VHS tapes)

Inclusive Dates:

1977-2006

Series Number:

18573

Arrangement

Chronological by closing year of case and therein numerical by case number or alphabetical by subject of federal legislation.

18573-07: Unarranged.

Administrative History

18573-07: Executive staff of the Attorney General's Office represented in these records include Attorney General Eliot Spitzer (1999-2006); Terryl Brown Clemons, Assistant Deputy Attorney General of the Division of Public Advocacy (who served as the Acting Deputy of this division from May 2003 to October 2004); Natalie Gomez-Velez, Assistant Deputy Attorney General for Public Advocacy; and Joseph Palozza, Avi Schick, and Peter Pope who served as Deputy Counsel to Attorney General Spitzer.

Scope and Content Note

The series consists of correspondence, memoranda, copies of legal documents, and related materials produced by executive staff of the Department of Law while supervising the prosecution of significant legal cases. Legal documents include copies of opinions, petitions, orders, motion notices, and exhibit items from state litigation and appeals. Also present are files pertaining to federal litigation monitored for the attorney general by the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG).

The files document the department's investigation and prosecution of cases deemed important enough to warrant involvement of the attorney general's executive office staff. Records include cases supervised by George Zuckerman, R. Scott Greathead, and Harvey J. Golubock, all of whom worked in the Division of State Counsel and were in charge of Litigation Bureau cases. The subset of records relating to federal legislation contains memoranda from attorneys general around the country giving the status of cases and issues relevant to initiatives in other states. Also included in this group are advisements from the U.S. attorney general and reports on federal legislation sent by the Washington counsel of NAAG.

18573-00: This accretion documents a case brought before the Court of Appeals in 1981 by the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, challenging the state's generic prescription drug law. The state's case was argued personally by Attorney General Robert Abrams. The accretion also includes earlier legislative hearing transcripts, reports, and other material related to the creation of the law.

18573-07, 18573-08, 18573-10, 18573-10A, 18573-12, 18573-13: These accretions contain case files for litigation handled by executive office staff of the Attorney General's Office, during the tenure of Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, as part of their supervision of significant legal cases. Typically included in the case files for accretion 18573-07 are correspondence, memoranda, transcripts, advisory group reports, statements, and other materials pertaining to a case's prosecution.

In addition to handling prisoner lawsuits against the State, the Attorney General's office was active in prosecuting real estate and consumer fraud, CD price fixing, health insurance coverage, Internet fraud, and anti-trust violations in the airline industry. High-profile corporate cases include litigation against Microsoft and Merrill Lynch. The case files in accretion 18573-08 consist exclusively of VHS tapes.

A large portion of the files in accretion 18573-10A document the Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) and the National Voters Registration Act (NVRA).

18573-12: These records are originally from accretion 18573-07, covering Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's tenure, and are records determined to have no restrictions for disclosure. Some records are photocopies containing redactions. Records determined to be restricted for these folders remain in 18573-07.

Related Material

B1721 Council for Tobacco Research files and

B1793 Tobacco Institute records, provide fuller descriptions of litigation case files made available by the New York State Attorney General's Office as a result of the November 23, 1998, Master Settlement Agreement between the U.S. tobacco industry and various states' attorneys general.

Other Finding Aids

Available at Repository

Container lists for each accretion are available at the repository as noted below.

18573-08: item list

18573-10, 18573-10A, 18573-12: folder list

18573-13: transfer list.

Acquisition Information

18573-13A: This accretion includes records from transfer list 07/0440.

Custodial History

18573-00: The files were transferred to the State Archives at an unknown date but were not accessioned until 2000.

Access Restrictions

18573-07, 18573-08, 18573-09, 18573-10, 18573-10A, 18573-13, 18573-13A: Designated records may contain information that is exempt from disclosure pursuant to state or federal statute or common law. Requests for access to designated records are reviewed by staff of the State Archives and the Office of the Attorney General (Dept. of Law). In certain circumstances, designated records or portions of records may be withheld.