Brooklyn Personal Injury Lawyers

A car or truck crash

The other driver and vehicle owner; a trucking company when a commercial truck was involved. No-fault eligibility is checked first.

First notice or deadline: No governmental notice of claim, though insurance or other reporting deadlines may still apply. A lawsuit generally must be started within three years. See Brooklyn car accidents or Brooklyn truck accidents.

Hit while walking or cycling

The driver and owner; sometimes the City, if a signal or street design is part of the claim.

First notice or deadline: Private driver: generally three years. City: Ordinary personal-injury claim: a notice of claim filed with the NYC Comptroller within 90 days (eClaim, in person or by mail, not email), and a lawsuit generally within one year and 90 days. See Brooklyn pedestrian accidents.

On a bus or subway

The authority or company that ran the bus or train.

First notice or deadline: NYC Transit and MaBSTOA are separate authorities with their own notice rules, and some transit claims may have a one-year limit (PAL 1212). Act early. See Brooklyn bus accidents.

A fall on a sidewalk, stoop or in a store

The building owner for most abutting sidewalks (Admin Code 7-210); the store, landlord or manager inside; the City for areas it maintains, generally only if it had prior written notice of the defect (7-201). Ownership alone is not liability.

First notice or deadline: Private owner: no governmental notice of claim, generally three years. City: 90-day notice to the Comptroller (ordinary personal-injury claim). See Brooklyn slip and fall and premises liability.

An injury in a NYCHA development

The New York City Housing Authority, if its upkeep caused the injury.

First notice or deadline: Ordinary personal-injury claim: a notice of claim served on NYCHA itself, not the Comptroller, generally within 90 days (GML 50-e), and a lawsuit generally within one year and 90 days (Public Housing Law 157).

Hurt at work

Workers’ compensation is generally the remedy against the employer and co-workers; depending on the facts, a lawsuit may run against another company on the site (WCL 29).

First notice or deadline: Third-party suit generally three years. See Brooklyn work accidents and construction accidents.

A dog bite or motorcycle crash

The dog’s owner or keeper; the other driver. Motorcycle riders are generally outside mandatory no-fault.

First notice or deadline: Generally three years. See Brooklyn dog bites and Brooklyn motorcycle accidents.

Harm from hospital or medical care

A private hospital or doctor, or NYC Health + Hospitals for its public hospitals such as Kings County and Woodhull.

First notice or deadline: Private: generally two years and six months. Public hospital: Ordinary personal-injury claim: a notice of claim filed with NYC Health + Hospitals itself, not the Comptroller, within 90 days, and a lawsuit generally within one year and 90 days (Scantlebury, 2005). See Brooklyn medical malpractice.

A family member died

Whoever would have been liable for the injury.

First notice or deadline: Generally two years after the death; public bodies have their own notice rules. See Brooklyn wrongful death.

Rows describe ordinary personal-injury claims. A death claim has separate notice, accrual and time-limit rules, and the exact defendant, exceptions and tolls must be checked in every case. Naming a public body, building or hospital explains which rule could apply; it is not a statement that anyone was at fault.