2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 10 - Firefighters and Police Officers › 205-G - Defense and Indemnification of Volunteer Firefighters.

§  205-g. Defense and indemnification of volunteer firefighters. 1. As
used in this section:
a. "Volunteer firefighter" means an active member of a fire company.
b. "Fire company" means: (i) A fire company of a city,  town,  village
or  fire  district  fire department, whether or not any such company has
been incorporated under any general or special law,
(ii)  A  fire  corporation  incorporated  under  or  subject  to   the
provisions  of  article ten of the not-for-profit corporation law, which
is not included within subparagraph  (i)  of  this  paragraph,  if  such
corporation is, by law, under the general control of, or recognized as a
fire  corporation  by,  the  governing board of a city, town, village or
fire district; or
(iii) A fire corporation incorporated under, or  established  pursuant
to  the  provision of, any general or special law, which is not included
within subparagraphs (i) or (ii) of this paragraph, if such  corporation
is,  by  law,  under  the  general  control  of, or recognized as a fire
corporation by, the governing board of a city,  town,  village  or  fire
district  or  Indian reservation. A "fire department" may be composed of
one or more fire companies.
c. "Line of duty" means the performance by a volunteer firefighter  of
the  duties  and activities described in subdivision one of section five
of the volunteer firefighters' benefit law and the same such duties  and
activities  performed for a specialized team established pursuant to the
provisions of section two hundred nine-bb of this article for which  the
volunteer  firefighter  does  not receive any remuneration or a gratuity
and shall be deemed to include any date of injury as determined  by  the
workers'  compensation  board  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of section
forty-one of the volunteer  firefighters'  benefit  law.  The  following
shall  not  be deemed to be remuneration or a gratuity: reimbursement of
expenses for meals, lodging and actual and necessary travel; the receipt
of a mileage allowance in  lieu  of  travel  expense;  reimbursement  of
expenses  for  registration  and  tuition  fees  payable  under  section
seventy-two-g of this chapter, the acceptance of  transportation,  food,
drink,  shelter,  clothing and similar items while on duty or engaged in
such activities; and receipt  of  a  training  stipend  as  outlined  in
section two hundred-aa of this article.
d.  "Public  entity"  means  the  city, town, village or fire district
having general control of the fire company.
2. The public entity shall provide for the defense  of  the  volunteer
firefighter in any civil action or proceeding, state or federal, arising
out  of any alleged act or omission which occurred or allegedly occurred
while the volunteer firefighter was acting in the line of  duty  if  the
volunteer   firefighter   is   in  compliance  with  the  provisions  of
subdivision seven of this section. This duty to provide  for  a  defense
shall  not  arise where such civil action or proceeding is brought by or
at the behest of the public entity.
3. Subject to the conditions set forth  in  subdivision  two  of  this
section,  the  volunteer firefighter shall be entitled to be represented
by private counsel  of  his  or  her  choice  in  any  civil  action  or
proceeding  whenever  the  chief  legal  officer of the public entity or
other counsel designated by the public entity determines that a conflict
of interest exists, or whenever a  court,  upon  appropriate  motion  or
otherwise  by  a  special  proceeding,  determines  that  a  conflict of
interest exists and that the volunteer firefighter  is  entitled  to  be
represented by counsel of his or her choice, provided, however, that the
chief legal officer or other counsel designated by the public entity may
require,  as  a  condition  to  payment of the fees and expenses of such
representation, that appropriate groups of such  volunteer  firefighters

be  represented  by  the  same  counsel.  Reasonable attorneys' fees and
litigation expenses shall be paid by the public entity to  such  private
counsel  from  time  to  time during the pendency of the civil action or
proceeding with the approval of the governing body of the public entity.
4.  Any  dispute  with respect to representation of multiple volunteer
firefighters by a single counsel or the amount of litigation expenses or
the reasonableness of attorneys' fees shall be  resolved  by  the  court
upon motion or by way of a special proceeding.
5.  Where  the  volunteer  firefighter  delivers process and a written
request for a defense to the public entity under  subdivision  seven  of
this section, the public entity shall take the necessary steps on behalf
of  the  volunteer  firefighter  to  avoid  entry  of a default judgment
pending resolution of any  question  pertaining  to  the  obligation  to
provide for a defense.
6.  a.  The  public  entity  shall  indemnify  and  save  harmless its
volunteer firefighters in the amount of any  judgment  obtained  against
such  volunteer  firefighters  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 the volunteer
firefighter was acting in the line of duty; 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
governing body of the public entity.
b. The duty to indemnify and save harmless shall be construed  in  the
same manner as provided in section two hundred five-b of this article.
c.  Nothing  in  this  subdivision  shall authorize a public entity to
indemnify or save harmless  a  volunteer  firefighter  with  respect  to
punitive  or  exemplary  damages, fines or penalties, or money recovered
from a volunteer firefighter  pursuant  to  section  fifty-one  of  this
chapter;  provided,  however, that the public entity shall indemnify and
save harmless its volunteer firefighters in the  amount  of  any  costs,
attorneys'  fees,  damages,  fines  or penalties which may be imposed by
reason of an adjudication that a volunteer firefighter,  acting  in  the
line  of  duty,  has,  without willfulness or intent on his or her part,
violated a prior order,  judgment,  consent  decree  or  stipulation  of
settlement entered in any court of this state or of the United States.
d.  Upon  entry of a final judgment against the volunteer firefighter,
or upon the settlement of the claim,  the  volunteer  firefighter  shall
serve  a copy of such judgment or settlement, personally or by certified
or  registered  mail  within  thirty  days  of  the  date  of  entry  or
settlement,  upon the chief administrative officer of the public entity;
and if not inconsistent with the provisions of this section, the  amount
of such judgment or settlement shall be paid by the public entity.
7.  The  duty  to  defend or indemnify and save harmless prescribed by
this section shall be conditioned upon:
a. delivery by the volunteer firefighter to the chief legal officer of
the public entity or to its chief administrative officer  of  a  written
request  to provide for his or her defense together with the original or
a copy of any summons, complaint, process, notice,  demand  or  pleading
within ten days after he or she is served with such document;
b. the full cooperation of the volunteer firefighter in the defense of
such  action  or  proceeding  and in defense of any action or proceeding
against the public entity based upon the same act or  omission,  and  in
the prosecution of any appeal; and
c. the volunteer firefighter maintaining at least the minimum level of
training required by the public entity.
8.  The  benefits  of  this  section  shall  inure  only  to volunteer
firefighters as defined  in  this  section  and  shall  not  enlarge  or

diminish  the  rights of any other party nor shall any provision of this
section be construed to affect, alter or repeal  any  provision  of  the
workers' compensation law or volunteer firefighters' benefit law.
9.  This  section  shall  not  in any way affect the obligation of any
claimant to give notice to the public entity under section  ten  of  the
court  of  claims  act,  section  fifty-e  of this chapter, or any other
provision of law.
10. Any public entity is hereby authorized and empowered  to  purchase
insurance  from  any  insurance  company created by or under the laws of
this state, or authorized by law to transact  business  in  this  state,
against  any  liability imposed by the provisions of this section, or to
act as a self-insurer with respect thereto.
11. All payments made under the terms of  this  section,  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.
12. The provisions of this section shall not be construed  to  impair,
alter,  limit  or modify the rights and obligations of any insurer under
any policy of insurance.
13. Except as otherwise specifically provided  in  this  section,  the
provisions  of this section shall not be construed in any way to impair,
alter, limit, modify, abrogate or restrict  any  immunity  to  liability
available  to  or  conferred upon any unit, entity, officer or volunteer
firefighter of any public entity by, in accordance with,  or  by  reason
of, any other provision of state or federal statutory or common law.