Manhattan / New York County
Manhattan Personal Injury Lawyers
Many people hurt in Manhattan work, commute or visit there. Why you were there and who was responsible decide the claim: workers’ compensation, a lawsuit against another company or driver, or a notice of claim to a public body, often within 90 days.
We have no Manhattan office. Start by phone or video, and meet us in Uniondale, Brooklyn or Corona.
Why were you there?
Why were you in Manhattan?
Your reason for being there often decides which claim you have. Each row names who may be responsible, the first notice or deadline, and the Manhattan page that covers it.
- At work
- Workers’ compensation is generally the only remedy against your employer and co-workers (WCL 11, WCL 29). Depending on the facts, a lawsuit may run against another party, such as a property owner, general contractor, other subcontractor, driver or equipment maker.
- First notice or deadline: Compensation has its own rules. A third-party suit is generally due within three years; the compensation carrier generally has a lien on that recovery, subject to the statute’s rules. See Manhattan work accidents.
- Commuting by bus or subway
- The transit 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 Manhattan bus accidents.
- Walking or cycling
- The driver and vehicle owner; sometimes the City, if a signal or street design is part of the claim.
- First notice or deadline: Driver: generally three years; no-fault where it applies. 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 Manhattan pedestrian accidents.
- A fall on a sidewalk, under a shed or in a building
- The building owner for most abutting sidewalks (Admin Code 7-210), the contractor that put up a sidewalk shed, or the store, tenant 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: no governmental notice of claim, generally three years. City: 90-day notice to the Comptroller (ordinary personal-injury claim). See Manhattan slip and fall.
- Visiting from elsewhere
- Whoever was responsible, under New York law.
- First notice or deadline: A case can generally be venued where a party lived when it started or where a substantial part of the events happened (CPLR 503(a)); a suit against the City over a Manhattan incident is generally venued in New York County (CPLR 504), subject to transfer and other venue rules. Start by phone or video.
- Hospital care
- NYC Health + Hospitals for Bellevue, Metropolitan and Harlem; the private hospital or doctor for hospitals such as NYU Langone.
- First notice or deadline: Public: 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). Private: no governmental notice of claim. See Manhattan medical malpractice.
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.
Hurt on a Manhattan job
You generally cannot sue your own employer, but compensation is not always the whole picture. If another company on the site caused the injury, a separate lawsuit may be possible, depending on the facts (WCL 29). See construction accidents and work accidents.
Records
We use Manhattan’s record trail to prove the case
Manhattan buildings and work sites generate records. The task is to find the ones that show who controlled the place or the work, and to ask before they are lost.
Site and building records
Who owned the building, who was the general contractor, which company put up a shed or scaffold, and permits and safety logs where they exist.
Work injury paperwork
Your report to your employer, the compensation claim number, and the names of other companies working nearby.
Video and witnesses
Lobby, store and street cameras can be recorded over. Co-workers and passers-by may be hard to find later.
Treatment
Emergency and follow-up records, bills and proof of missed work, wherever you live.
Deadlines
Deadlines we check first
Manhattan cases follow New York State law. The deadline depends on the claim and the defendant.
Shared fault. Generally, your own share of fault reduces the damages in proportion but does not bar the claim (CPLR 1411).
One exception: in a personal-injury action subject to Insurance Law article 51 (New York's no-fault law) that is commenced on or after May 26, 2026, recovery is barred if the claimant's culpable conduct is greater than that of the defendant, or greater than the combined culpable conduct of the defendants (DFS Circular Letter No. 3 (2026)). See our car accident page for details.
- Most injury claims against a person or business
- Generally three years (CPLR 214).
- A city, county, town, village or school district may be responsible
- A notice of claim is usually due within 90 days where one is required (GML 50-e), and suit generally within one year and 90 days (GML 50-i).
- Medical malpractice
- Two years and six months, with exceptions (CPLR 214-a).
- Injury from exposure to a substance that shows up later
- Three years from discovery of the injury, or from when it reasonably should have been discovered, whichever is earlier (CPLR 214-c). This applies to latent exposure injuries, not to every product case.
- A death
- A wrongful death action generally within two years after the death (EPTL 5-4.1).
- The injured person is a child
- CPLR 208 can extend the time to sue, but notice deadlines still need attention.
Published results
Construction and work injury results
These are the firm's published construction and work injury results, quoted exactly as recorded. The records do not say where the cases arose, so they are not presented as Manhattan cases. Over 40 years, the firm has recovered more than $100 million for clients across New York and New Jersey.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case depends on its own facts.
See the full verdicts and settlements archive$8,000,000
$8 Million Dollar Settlement — 2nd Department
Plaintiff sustained a series of fractures and other injuries to the right shin, heel and foot, requiring nailing of the right tibia with two proximal and two distal locking bolts, ultimately resulting in below-the-knee amputation.
$750,000
$750,000 Settlement
Plaintiff injured when telephone pole struck him causing a traumatic brain injury and shoulder injury requiring surgery.
$1,157,000
$1,157,000 Award
Plaintiff injured at worksite sustaining traumatic tear of the left biceps tendon with tendon retraction which required surgery.
Meeting us
Manhattan personal injury representation
Start by phone at (516) 227-2662 or by video, then meet at whichever office suits you. See serving Manhattan and all locations.
423 RXR Plaza, East Tower, Uniondale, NY 11556(516) 227-2662
3857 Kings Highway, #1f, Brooklyn, NY 11234(718) 710-4880
100-17 Northern Boulevard, Corona, NY 11368
Manhattan personal injury cases we handle
- Manhattan car accidents
- Manhattan truck accidents
- Manhattan pedestrian accidents
- Manhattan bus accidents
- Manhattan slip and fall
- Manhattan work accidents
- Manhattan dog bites
- Manhattan medical malpractice
- Manhattan wrongful death
Manhattan neighborhoods we serve
Financial District · Tribeca · Lower East Side · Chinatown · Greenwich Village · East Village · Chelsea · Midtown · Hell's Kitchen · Murray Hill · Upper West Side · Upper East Side · Harlem · East Harlem · Washington Heights · Inwood, and the rest of New York County.
All claim types: New York personal injury. Claims against public bodies: suing the City.
Questions
Manhattan personal injury FAQs
Car, truck, taxi, bus and motorcycle crashes; pedestrian and bicycle injuries; falls on sidewalks, in buildings and in stores; construction and other work injuries, including claims against companies other than your employer; dog bites; medical malpractice; and wrongful death claims from anywhere in Manhattan.
The consultation is free, and there is no fee unless there is a recovery. The fee agreement is explained in writing before we start.
Manhattan follows New York State law. Most injury lawsuits against a private person or business must be started within three years. Medical malpractice is generally two years and six months, and wrongful death two years after the death. For an ordinary personal-injury claim against the City or NYC Health + Hospitals, a notice of claim is usually due within 90 days and a lawsuit generally within one year and 90 days; death claims follow separate notice and timing rules. A workers’ compensation claim runs on its own separate rules.
Through the evidence: the police or incident report, video, witnesses, vehicle damage, the condition of the place where you fell, site and building records, and the medical records. On a work site, the question is often which company controlled the work or the area where you were hurt.
Depending on the claim, medical costs, lost earnings, pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life, and in serious cases future care and lost earning capacity. After many vehicle crashes, no-fault benefits, where they apply, pay some losses first. In a work injury, workers’ compensation pays benefits, and where a third party is liable, a lawsuit can seek damages compensation does not cover. We do not quote values before reviewing the records.
Not always. Many claims resolve without a trial, but if a lawsuit is filed you may need to give a deposition or attend a medical examination. A suit against the City over a Manhattan incident is generally venued in New York County, subject to transfer and other venue rules. Other cases can generally be venued where a party lived when the case started or where a substantial part of the events happened, so a case about a Manhattan incident is not always filed in Manhattan.
Your share of fault generally reduces the damages rather than barring the claim. One exception: in a personal-injury action subject to Insurance Law article 51 (the no-fault law) commenced on or after May 26, 2026, recovery is barred if the claimant’s culpable conduct is greater than the defendant’s, or greater than the defendants’ combined.
We request your records from the facility that treated you, whether a public NYC Health + Hospitals facility such as Bellevue, Metropolitan or Harlem, or a private hospital such as NYU Langone. Naming a hospital does not suggest any affiliation with it or any fault by it. If an ordinary personal-injury claim arises at a public hospital, the notice of claim goes to NYC Health + Hospitals, not the Comptroller.
Get medical care and keep the records, then identify who was responsible and why you were there. If you were working, report the injury to your employer and file for workers’ compensation, then look at other companies on the site. A claim against a private party usually starts with their insurer. For an ordinary personal-injury claim against the City, a notice is filed with the NYC Comptroller within 90 days; transit authorities and public hospitals each receive their own notice. Death claims follow separate rules.
Manhattan personal injury claims can arise from pedestrian and cyclist injuries, crashes involving cars, taxis, trucks and buses, falls on sidewalks and in buildings, injuries under sidewalk sheds and on construction sites, bus and subway injuries, and dog bites. The cause matters because it decides who may be responsible and which notice rule applies.
No. Manhattan clients are served from our New York offices in Uniondale, Brooklyn and Corona, Queens. Many clients start by phone at (516) 227-2662 or by video, which also works if you were visiting Manhattan and live elsewhere.
Injured in Manhattan? Get your free consultation today
Tell us where it happened, why you were there and who was involved. We will flag any notice of claim that may be needed and the deadline to check first. No fee unless there is a recovery.
What to bring
- The exact address or cross streets
- Employer, contractor or building names
- Police, incident or compensation claim numbers
- Medical records and bills
Photo credits: Foley Square, Manhattan by Clyde Charles Brown, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized; Inspecting the Oculus rooftop windows by Billie Grace Ward, CC BY 2.0, cropped and resized.