Attorney General James Defends New York’s Shield Law Against Texas Attack

 

AG James Says New York Will Not Enforce Texas’s Abortion Bans

New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that she is intervening to block the Texas attorney general's attempts to use New York courts to enforce Texas’s abortion bans. The Texas attorney general is suing a New York county clerk after his office was blocked from filing papers to collect a $113,000 judgment against a New York doctor who provided safe, legal telehealth abortion care. His lawsuit challenges New York’s shield law, which protects providers and patients by preventing state and local officials from helping out-of-state prosecutions for abortion or gender-affirming care. Today, Attorney General James formally intervened in the lawsuit to defend the constitutionality of the shield law and ensure out-of-state extremists cannot use New York’s courts to advance their anti-abortion agenda.

“I am stepping in to defend the integrity of our laws and our courts against this blatant overreach,” said Attorney General James. “Texas has no authority in New York, and no power to impose its cruel abortion ban here. Our shield law exists to protect New Yorkers from out-of-state extremists, and New York will always stand strong as a safe haven for health care and freedom of choice. I will fight every last attempt to roll back our rights and turn back the clock on reproductive freedom.”

Passed in 2023 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, New York's shield law protects reproductive and gender-affirming care providers who offer health care that is fully legal in New York. The law prohibits public officials from enforcing out-of-state subpoenas, judgments, arrests, or extraditions in cases targeting providers, and extends these protections to reproductive health care providers offering telehealth care in New York.

In December 2024, the Texas attorney general sued a New York doctor in Texas court for providing abortion telehealth care from her clinic in Ulster County. After a Texas judge issued a $113,000 judgment against the doctor, the attorney general attempted to bring his case to New York courts, asking the Ulster County Supreme Court to enforce the judgment and help collect the money awarded in Texas. The county clerk rejected the filing under New York’s shield law, which bars courts and officials from using state resources to enforce out-of-state punishments against protected health care providers. In response, the Texas attorney general sued the clerk and challenged New York’s shield law, claiming the law violates the Constitution’s Full Faith and Credit Clause.

Now, Attorney General James is stepping in to defend the shield law. Today, she formally notified Ulster County Supreme Court Judge David Gandin that she is intervening in Texas’s lawsuit, invoking her authority to defend New York laws that are challenged in court. In a filing later this month, Attorney General James will argue that Texas cannot commandeer New York’s courts to enforce its punitive abortion laws, and that New York has the legal right and responsibility to safeguard its residents, its providers, and its courts from out-of-state overreach.

This case is part of a growing effort by anti-abortion politicians to extend their bans across state lines and punish providers and medical professionals who continue to offer abortion and reproductive health care. Attorney General James is standing up to protect New York’s sovereignty and to ensure that one state’s politics cannot dictate the health care choices of people in another.

Since Roe was overturned, New York has led the nation in safeguarding reproductive rights, enacting one of the strongest shield laws in the country and expanding access to care. Today’s intervention is the latest in Attorney General James’ efforts to defend access to reproductive care and protect reproductive freedom. In July, Attorney General James sued to stop the federal government from defunding Planned Parenthood. In June, Attorney General James filed a petition asking the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to eliminate unnecessary and outdated restrictions on the abortion medication mifepristone. Also in June, Attorney General James led 21 other attorneys general in reminding hospitals of their obligation to provide emergency abortion care. In May, Attorney General James led a multistate effort to protect abortion providers from dangerous certification requirements. In March, Attorney General James won her lawsuit against militant anti-abortion group Red Rose Rescue for blocking access to abortion care in New York. In October 2024, Attorney General James filed an amicus brief urging a federal court to maintain access to emergency abortion care and filed an amicus brief in support of access to Mifepristone. In May 2024, Attorney General James sued an anti-abortion group and 11 crisis pregnancy centers for promoting unproven abortion reversal treatment. 

For more information on New York’s shield law, visit the Office of the Attorney General’s website.