Municipal Lawsuits Against the City of New York
If you want to sue a municipal entity such as the City of New York, there are there are additional requirements that must be met. There are also shorter and strict deadlines to report a claim and file a lawsuit.
One additional requirement that must be met is that you must file a Notice of Claim (NOC) within ninety (90) days from the date of the incident. The NOC reports the claim to the municipal entity and puts them on notice that you plan to sue them. This document includes:
- Your name and address
- The name and address of your attorney
- A description of the date, time, place and manner in which your claim arose
- The nature of your claim
- The damages or harm you for which you are suing
The next additional requirement that must be met is a statutory hearing commonly referred to as a 50-h hearing. The 50-h hearing is similar to a deposition but not as detailed. Like a deposition, your testimony will be under oath and anything you say can be used against you later in the case. The 50-h hearing is very casual. It does not occur before a Judge nor does it take place in the Courthouse. The purpose of the 50-h hearing is not to dispute that your accident happened or how it happened. The purpose of this hearing is to give the municipal entity an opportunity to ask you questions. The questions are very simple. The following are typical questions:
- Name & address
- Date of birth
- Date and location of accident
- How the accident happened
- Whether police and ambulance came to scene
- Injuries
- Name of hospital who treated you, if any
- Name of private doctor/nurses who treated you, if any
- Daily limitations
- Amount of time you spent in bed &/or home
Whether medical bills paid & by whom - Amount of money you had to spend because of accident
After the hearing is completed, we have to wait thirty (30) days before we are allowed to file a lawsuit. This lawsuit typically must be filed within one (1) year and ninety (90) days of the date of the accident.
If you have a municipal claim, it is critical to work with a personal injury law firm that has experience handling municipal cases. At Greenstein & Milbauer, LLP, we have had great success handling cases against municipal entities such as the City of New York. Because the shorter deadlines with municipal cases, you need to act quickly. Our firm’s motto is “Don’t Be A Victim Twice”, contact the New York municipal attorneys at Greenstein & Milbauer, LLP. Don’t Be A Victim Twice! We are here to help. We are happy to walk you through the process with no obligation. Call 1-800-Victim2 (1-800-842-8462) to schedule a confidential consultation with the New York municipal attorneys at Greenstein & Milbauer, LLP. The call is free. The consultation is free. You don’t pay us unless we are successful. That’s our “Our Fee Guarantee: No Fee Unless Successful!”