NY Gen Mun L § 51 (2021)
2021 New York Laws GMU - General Municipal Article 4 - Negligence and Malfeasance of Public Officers; Taxpayers' Remedies 51 - Prosecution of Officers for Illegal Acts.

§  51. Prosecution of officers for illegal acts. All officers, agents,   commissioners and other persons acting, or who have acted,  for  and  on   behalf  of  any  county,  town, village or municipal corporation in this   state, and each and every one of them, may be prosecuted, and an  action   may  be  maintained  against them to prevent any illegal official act on   the part of any such officers, agents, commissioners or  other  persons,   or  to  prevent  waste  or  injury  to, or to restore and make good, any   property, funds or estate of such county,  town,  village  or  municipal   corporation  by  any  person  or corporation whose assessment, or by any   number of persons or corporations, jointly, the sum of whose assessments   shall amount to one thousand dollars, and who shall  be  liable  to  pay   taxes  on  such  assessment  in  the  county, town, village or municipal   corporation or by any person who owns shares in  a  cooperative  housing   corporation  where  the pro rata share of the assessment attributable to   such shares shall amount to one thousand dollars (or by  any  number  of   such  persons, jointly, the sum of whose pro rata shares shall amount to   one thousand dollars) and  where  the  cooperative  housing  corporation   shall  be  liable  to  pay taxes on such assessment in the county, town,   village or municipal corporation to prevent the waste or injury of whose   property the action is brought, or who have been assessed or paid  taxes   therein  upon  any  assessment of the above-named amount within one year   previous to the commencement of any such action,  or  who  has  been  so   assessed  but  has  not  paid nor shall be liable to pay any or the full   amount of taxes on such assessment  because  of  a  veteran's  exemption   therefrom  pursuant  to  section  four  hundred  fifty-eight of the real   property tax law, or who has been so assessed but has not paid nor shall   be liable to pay any or the full amount  of  taxes  on  such  assessment   because of an exemption therefrom granted to persons sixty-five years of   age or over or their spouses pursuant to the real property tax law. Such   person  or  corporation  upon  the  commencement  of  such action, shall   furnish a bond to the defendant therein, to be approved by a justice  of   the  supreme court or the county judge of the county in which the action   is brought, in such penalty as the justice or judge approving  the  same   shall direct, but not less than two hundred and fifty dollars, and to be   executed  by  any two of the plaintiffs, if there be more than one party   plaintiff, providing said two parties plaintiff shall severally  justify   in  the  sum  of five thousand dollars.   Said bond shall be approved by   said justice or judge and be conditioned to pay all costs  that  may  be   awarded  the  defendant  in  such  action  if  the  court  shall finally   determine the same in favor of the defendant. The court  shall  require,   when  the  plaintiffs  shall  not justify as above mentioned, and in any   case may require two more sufficient sureties to execute the bond  above   provided for. Such bond shall be filed in the office of the county clerk   of the county in which the action is brought, and a copy shall be served   with  the summons in such action. If an injunction is obtained as herein   provided for, the same bond may also provide  for  the  payment  of  the   damages  arising  therefrom  to  the  party  entitled  to the money, the   auditing, allowing or paying of which was enjoined, if the  court  shall   finally determine that the plaintiff is not entitled to such injunction.   In case the waste or injury complained of consists in any board, officer   or  agent  in  any  county,  town,  village or municipal corporation, by   collusion or otherwise, contracting, auditing, allowing  or  paying,  or   conniving  at  the  contracting,  audit,  allowance  or  payment  of any   fraudulent, illegal, unjust or inequitable claims, demands or  expenses,   or  any item or part thereof against or by such county, town, village or   municipal corporation, or by  permitting  a  judgment  to  be  recovered   against  such county, town, village or municipal corporation, or against   himself in his official capacity,  either  by  default  or  without  the    interposition and proper presentation of any existing legal or equitable   defenses,  or  by any such officer or agent, retaining or failing to pay   over to the proper authorities any funds  or  property  of  any  county,   town, village or municipal corporation, after he shall have ceased to be   such  officer  or  agent, the court may, in its discretion, prohibit the   payment  or  collection  of  any  such  claims,  demands,  expenses   or   judgments,  in  whole  or in part, and shall enforce the restitution and   recovery thereof, if heretofore or hereafter paid, collected or retained   by the person or party heretofore or hereafter  receiving  or  retaining   the  same,  and  also  may,  in  its discretion, adjudge and declare the   colluding or defaulting official personally  responsible  therefor,  and   out  of  his property, and that of his bondsmen, if any, provide for the   collection or repayment thereof, so as to indemnify  and  save  harmless   the  said  county, town, village or municipal corporation from a part or   the whole thereof; and in case of  a  judgment  the  court  may  in  its   discretion,  vacate,  set  aside  and open said judgment, with leave and   direction for  the  defendant  therein  to  interpose  and  enforce  any   existing legal or equitable defense therein, under the direction of such   person  as  the  court  may,  in  its  judgment  or order, designate and   appoint. All books of minutes, entry or account, and the  books,  bills,   vouchers,  checks,  contracts  or other papers connected with or used or   filed in the office of, or with any officer, board or commission  acting   for  or  on behalf of any county, town, village or municipal corporation   in this state or any body corporate or other unit of local government in   this  state  which  possesses  the  power  to  levy  taxes  or   benefit   assessments  upon  real  estate  or to require the levy of such taxes or   assessments or for which taxes or benefit assessments upon  real  estate   may  be required pursuant to law to be levied, including the Albany port   district commission, are hereby declared to be public records, and shall   be open  during  all  regular  business  hours,  subject  to  reasonable   regulations  to  be adopted by the applicable local legislative body, to   the inspection of any  taxpayer  or  registered  voter,  who  may  copy,   photograph  or  make  photocopies  thereof  on  the  premises where such   records are regularly kept. This section shall not be so construed as to   take away any  right  of  action  from  any  county,  town,  village  or   municipal  corporation,  or  from  any  public officer, but any right of   action now existing, or which  may  hereafter  exist  in  favor  of  any   county,  town,  village  or  municipal  corporation,  or in favor of any   officer thereof, may be enforced by action or otherwise by  the  persons   hereinbefore  authorized to prosecute and maintain actions; and whenever   by the provisions of  this  section  an  action  may  be  prosecuted  or   maintained  against  any  officer or other person, his bondsmen, if any,   may be joined in such action or proceeding and their liabilities as such   enforced by the proper judgment or  direction  of  the  court;  but  any   recovery  under  the provisions of this article shall be for the benefit   of and shall be paid to the officer entitled by law to hold and disburse   the  public  moneys  of  such  county,  town,   village   or   municipal   corporation, and shall, to the amount thereof, be credited the defendant   in  determining his liability in the action by the county, town, village   or municipal corporation or public officer.    The  provisions  of  this   article  shall  apply  as  well to those cases in which the body, board,   officer, agent, commissioner or other person above named has not, as  to   those  in which it or he has jurisdiction over the subject-matter of its   action.