Personal Injury Deadlines in New York

New York has some of the shortest and least forgiving notice requirements in the country, and they vary by who caused the harm. A perfectly provable case against the MTA is worth nothing if the notice of claim was served on day 91. Here is the full map, followed by the traps.

• 3 years: most negligence claims — car crashes, slip and fall, premises liability, construction.
• 2 years: wrongful death, measured from the date of death.
• 2 years 6 months: medical, dental and podiatric malpractice.
• 1 year: intentional torts such as assault and battery against the person who did it.
• 1 year 90 days: lawsuits against a city, the MTA, NYCHA or another public entity — plus a notice of claim within 90 days.
• 90 days: notice of claim against any municipality or public authority. This is the deadline people miss.
• 30 days: no-fault application to the insurer for medical bills and lost earnings.
• 90 days: MVAIC notice of intention in hit and run and uninsured driver cases.
• 2 years: workers' compensation claim, with notice to the employer in 30 days.

Injured children

The limitation period is generally tolled until an injured child turns 18, but the 90-day notice of claim against a public entity is not automatically excused — court permission is usually required.

Foreign object and continuous treatment

In malpractice, the clock can run from discovery of a retained foreign object, or from the end of a continuous course of treatment for the same condition.

Toxic exposure and latent injury

Some exposure claims run from discovery of the injury rather than the exposure, and specific statutes apply to certain substances.

Call today rather than tomorrow. Late notice of claim applications can sometimes be granted, defendants sometimes waive defects, and a different theory against a different defendant may still be timely. What cannot be fixed is a deadline discovered a year after it passed.