New York personal injury lawyer

New York injury law has features that surprise people who assume a claim is simply a matter of proving fault. Motor vehicle injuries run through a no-fault system first, and recovery for pain and suffering requires meeting a statutory threshold. Construction workers have protections available almost nowhere else. Claims against public entities carry pre-suit requirements that expire long before the ordinary deadline. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. handles documented injury claims across New York. Call (888) 437-7747.

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No-Fault and the Serious Injury Threshold

For a motor vehicle injury, the injured person’s own carrier pays medical treatment and a portion of lost earnings regardless of fault. That is the no-fault system, and it has its own early notice deadlines. What no-fault does not pay is compensation for pain and suffering, and to reach that an injured person must satisfy the serious injury threshold at N.Y. Insurance Law 5102(d). The threshold is where most contested motor vehicle cases in this state are actually decided, which is why a case that looks like a dispute about how a crash happened is frequently a dispute about medical proof.

Construction Injuries Are Governed Separately

Labor Law 240, Labor Law 241(6), and Labor Law 200 give construction workers routes to recovery against owners and general contractors that exist alongside a workers compensation claim. Which applies depends on how the injury happened. Elevation-related risks fall under 240, violations of specific Industrial Code provisions under 241(6), and general workplace safety under 200. Because compensation does not pay for pain and suffering and does not permit suit against the employer, the Labor Law claim against the owner and contractor is frequently the only route to full recovery.

Claims Against Public Entities

A claim against a city, a county, a school district, a public hospital, or a transit authority requires a formal notice of claim served before an action is commenced, on a timetable far shorter than the ordinary limitations period. The entity may then examine the claimant under oath before suit. Identifying the correct entity is its own task, because transportation and infrastructure are operated through a network of authorities and subsidiaries, and notice served on the wrong one may not preserve the claim.

Premises and Property Claims

A premises claim requires proof that the responsible party created a dangerous condition or knew of it and failed to correct it in a reasonable time. Notice is usually the contested element, and it is proved with evidence about the condition itself and about inspection practices. In New York City, responsibility for most sidewalks sits with the abutting property owner under N.Y.C. Administrative Code 7-210 rather than with the City, so identifying the right defendant is part of the early work.

Medical Malpractice

A malpractice claim requires expert proof both that care departed from accepted standards and that the departure caused the injury. The limitations period is two years and six months from the act or omission under N.Y. C.P.L.R. 214-a, subject to a continuous treatment toll and a discovery rule for foreign objects. In a delayed diagnosis case the causation question dominates, because the claim depends on showing what the outcome would have been had the condition been identified when it should have been.

How Fault and Damages Interact

New York applies comparative fault, so an injured person’s own share of responsibility reduces a recovery proportionally rather than barring it. Article 16 of the C.P.L.R. limits joint liability for non-economic damages where a defendant is found fifty percent or less at fault, subject to exceptions. The practical consequence is that how a jury apportions responsibility, and how an award divides between economic and non-economic damages, determines what is actually collectible.

Deadlines to Confirm Early

A personal injury action generally must be commenced within three years of the injury under N.Y. C.P.L.R. 214(5). Medical malpractice runs two years and six months under C.P.L.R. 214-a. Wrongful death runs two years from the date of death under N.Y. E.P.T.L. 5-4.1. Claims involving a public entity carry much earlier pre-suit requirements. Tolls and exceptions apply in fact-specific ways, so no deadline should be assumed without review of the particular circumstances.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to bring a claim?

Generally three years from the injury for a personal injury action under N.Y. C.P.L.R. 214(5), two years and six months for medical malpractice under C.P.L.R. 214-a, and two years from death for wrongful death under N.Y. E.P.T.L. 5-4.1. Claims against public entities require much earlier notice. Confirm the deadline on your own facts.

Do I have a case if I was partly at fault?

Yes. New York applies comparative fault, which reduces a recovery in proportion to your share rather than eliminating it.

Why did my own insurer pay my medical bills?

Because New York is a no-fault state for motor vehicle injuries. Those benefits are paid regardless of fault and are separate from any claim against the driver who caused the collision.

What is the serious injury threshold?

A statutory standard at N.Y. Insurance Law 5102(d) that a person injured in a motor vehicle collision must meet before recovering for pain and suffering. It is defined through categories, and which one is pleaded shapes the proof required.

Can I sue if I am getting workers compensation?

Generally not against your employer, but a construction claim under the Labor Law runs against the property owner and general contractor, which are usually different entities. Both commonly proceed at once.

What should I do first after an injury?

Get evaluated, report the incident to the appropriate insurer promptly, photograph the scene and any condition involved if you can, and keep the names of witnesses. Then get advice before giving a recorded statement to anyone else’s carrier.

About Mr. Sris

Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., has practiced since 1997. He is a former prosecutor, and that experience shapes how he builds a record and reads the other side’s file. He is admitted in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York. His background at George Mason University in accounting and information systems applies to the documentary and financial side of an injury claim, from billing records to wage loss. Mr. Sris and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys handle New York matters together, with the division of work set at the start of the engagement.

Speak With Mr. Sris

Request a consultation. Reach our location at (888) 437-7747. Bring the police or incident report, the name of every provider who has treated you, your no-fault claim number if one was opened, and any correspondence from an insurer. That material lets the first conversation move past intake.

No attorney fee unless we recover. Clients may be responsible for case expenses.

Last updated: August 25, 2026

This page provides general information about New York personal injury law and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.

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