Led by Edward J. Phillips, the Firm scored a major victory for two Sullivan County farms in their efforts to stop the City of New York from enforcing Local Law 202 — which would ban the sale of foie gras in City restaurants and retail stores. On June 21, 2024, the Albany County Supreme Court issued a lengthy decision denying the City’s Article 78 petition, which had claimed that the City Council’s enactment of Local Law 202 constituted a valid exercise of its municipal home rule authority.
Since September 15, 2022, the City has been enjoined from enforcing Local Law 202 pursuant to a preliminary injunction that the Firm obtained in New York County Supreme Court. After the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets issued its own Administrative Order invaliding Local Law 202, the battleground shifted to Albany, where the City sought to overturn the Department’s Administrative Order.
The Albany Supreme Court ruled that the City had targeted the Farms when it enacted Local Law 202, and that the legislation would unreasonably restrict farming practices in violation of New York State Law. The Court’s decision upholds longstanding statewide laws and policies designed to protect agricultural uses, which serve a vital economic role. As the Court noted: “There simply is no precedent for a local government, particularly the State’s largest consumer market, to ban the sale of agricultural products produced in compliance with federal and State law based on objections to farm practices.” This ongoing story has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and other news outlets.
