Two Roslyn-area villages are among the targets of a complaint filed by a New York law firm claiming that such villages are violating antitrust laws in their ordinances concerning electrical inspections.

The firm of Brand, Brand, and Burke filed a suit in March against both the villages of East Hills and Roslyn in order to have them end the "monopoly" the firm claims is given to the New York Board of Fire Underwriters. Whenever a homeowner wants to make electrical changes in their house, the home must first be inspected by an electrical company.

According to the suit, East Hills, Roslyn and 15 other Long Island villages have ordinances that extend all such business to the Board of Fire Underwriters, which the firm describes as a private corporation owned by a large group of insurance companies.

Ron Burke, an attorney with Brand, Brand and Burke, said the Village of Roslyn is ready to amend its law to allow other firms to do electrical inspections in the village. A hearing on amending the law was scheduled to be held at the village's April 20 meeting.

However, Mr. Burke claims that the Village of East Hills has issued a summons against its client, Electrical Inspectors, Inc. of East Meadow for doing inspection work at a residence in the village. The village ordinance, according to Mr. Burke, does not prohibit other companies from doing inspections, it only establishes a requirement for the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy.

And so, the firm is filing an extra suit to dismiss the charges against Electrical Inspectors. A hearing will be held Wednesday, April 28 at 8 p.m. at the East Hills Village Court.

Gerard Terry, Village Attorney for East Hills, acknowledged that the village has used the Board of Fire Underwriters as its "authoritative source" for inspections and safety-related issues for many years.

He added that the village and people from Electrical Inspectors have conducted "candid discussions" for the past three years on similar issues. Despite having "positive" talks, the village, Mr. Terry said is still not ready to embrace an alternative source of electrical inspections.

"We still have questions about Electrical that have not been resolved," he said.

The Brand, Brand and Burke suit claims that homeowners in East Hills are "free to contract with any electrical inspection company to inspect their home." However, if the village, according to the suit, "refuses to recognize the electrical inspection company, it will not issue a Certificate of Occupancy."

Such a code, the firm claims, "establishes a perpetual monopoly for the New York Board and precludes the Village Clerk from recognizing or accepting inspection certificates from any other competing electrical inspection company."

The suit contends that such actions violate both the federal Sherman Anti-Trust Act and the 14th amendment of the US Constitution, the latter on the grounds that Electrical Inspectors has been denied its "due process/equal protection rights and its right to contract with their residents."

Mr. Burke has noted that more than 50 villages in Nassau and Suffolk counties have allowed the services of Electrical Inspectors to be used in their towns. He added that the New York State attorney's office agrees that such ordinances violate the Sherman Act. In addition, the Nassau County Attorney's offices has recommended that the "exclusive designation" given to the New York Board of Fire Underwriters by the county "may not continue" and should be modified.