44.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Personal Injury Law
Q: Yesterday my mother was walking on the sidewalk in front of a store in New York City and tripped and fell on a raised portion of the sidewalk and was injured. What should I do?
A: The first thing that you should do is take photographs depicting the defect where your mother fell. Further, you need to document the address of the abutting property owner. You should also report the incident to the building where she fell. Pursuant to the General Municipal Law of the State of New York, when a fall occurs on a public sidewalk a Notice of Claim must be filed with the municipal entity that owns or maintains the sidewalk. The Notice of Claim must be filed within ninety (90) days of the incident with the proper municipal entity.
After a Notice of Claim is filed, pursuant to section 50-h of the General Municipal Law, a deposition will be held with the attorneys for the municipal entity where your mother would have to testify as to the facts surrounding the incident. A lawsuit would then have to be commenced within a year and ninety days from the date of the incident against the municipality.
Additionally, pursuant to New York City Administrative Code Section 7-210 the abutting property owner of any sidewalk in New York City is responsible to maintain the sidewalk in a reasonably safe condition. The exception to this rule is for one to three family owner occupied residential property that is used exclusively for residential purposes.
A claim for your mother’s trip and fall would also have to be presented to the abutting property owner unless they meet an exception to the Administrative Code. The Statute of Limitations for a non-municipal is generally three (3) years and there is no Notice of Claim requirement for the private entity. However, this determination can be confusing and unclear, and you should immediately consult with an attorney to help you make this determination. Failure to timely present the necessary claim to all appropriate entities could result in jeopardizing your mother’s claim in this matter.
Michael D. Napolitano is an Associate in the firm’s Personal Injury group. Mr. Napolitano’s practice includes clients who have been injured due to construction accidents, motor vehicle accidents, slip/trip and falls, dog bites and all general negligence matters.
