.avif)
A personal injury case filed in New York will be heard and may be decided in accordance with numerous New York statutes. These NYS personal injury law statutes not only dictate the substance of your legal rights, but will also govern how those rights are exercised and the procedural rules that will prescribe when and how your lawsuit is to be heard. Presenting your New York personal injury lawsuit is not as simple as appearing in court and telling your side of the story; there may be several legal hurdles you must surmount before you are able to have “your day in court.” Not knowing personal injury case law – or how it applies in New York personal injury lawsuits – can be the cause of great confusion and grief. Knowing some of the more significant can help prepare you for what can be a long and challenging road to recovery.
Laws That Pertain to New York Personal Injury Cases
The following are but a few of the many laws and personal injury law reforms that those filing a lawsuit in New York should be aware of. Even though the facts giving rise to your particular injury incident are unique, these are laws which almost every personal injury victim will contend with:
- NY CPLR 1411. This statute tells personal injury victims what happens in the event that they are partly to blame for causing or exacerbating their own harm in a personal injury accident. This situation can arise (for example) if someone is walking through a construction site, but is not wearing a hard hat or if someone falls down a defective stairway after overlooking a warning sign. New York is one of a handful of states which permit personal injury cases to be filed no matter how much responsibility the person filing the suit may have; even if the person injured and who is filing the suit is the predominant cause of the injury. The catch is this: The personal injury victim’s recovery will be reduced according to the amount of fault the victim bears. For example, should a judge or jury determine that by failing to seek prompt medical treatment for your injuries you are 60 percent responsible for the harm you suffered, any monetary judgment you can recover would be reduced by sixty percent according to current personal injury protection law.
- NY CPLR 214(5). This statute is known as New York’s personal injury “statute of limitations.” The purpose of this statute is simple: to set forth the amount of time that a personal injury victim has to file a lawsuit and seek compensation. In New York, this period of time is three years from the date either (1) your injury accident occurred; or under certain limited circumstances (2) you knew or had reason to know you had suffered an injury, whichever occurs later. Once this three-year time period elapses, however, it becomes extremely difficult (or outright impossible) for you to pursue your claim for damages from the at-fault party under the (law relating to personal injury claims).
- NY CPLR 1601. An injury accident can come about because of the actions of more than one person. When you suffer noneconomic harm (such as pain and suffering) as the result of a New York personal injury accident, determining who is responsible for payment of these noneconomic damages is governed by this statute. Specifically, this statute says that if a person is less than 50 percent responsible for the accident, that person cannot be held responsible for more than his or her proportionate share of the total noneconomic damage award. For instance: suppose that you are awarded $100,000 in noneconomic damages against two defendants, one of whom is 60 percent responsible for causing your injuries and the other who is 40 percent responsible. The person who is 40 percent responsible for the accident can only be held responsible for $40,000 of noneconomic damages. However, this is not so for the other individual, who can be held responsible for the complete $100,000 noneconomic damages award. (Understand, though, that you are not entitled to a “double recovery” – meaning if the one defendant pays his or her $40,000 share, you are only able to recover up to $60,000 from the other defendant.)
- NY CPLR R 3216. This is one of several statutes in the NY personal injury protection law code that permit a defendant to request the court dismiss a personal injury case. Here, a court may grant a motion to dismiss your case if you fail to prosecute – that is, fail to press ahead – with your personal injury case and instead allow it to languish for too long. A judge can dismiss your personal injury case if it does not appear you are taking timely action to keep your case moving.
Other laws may at first blush appear to have little, if anything, to do with a personal injury case, but can nonetheless have a profound impact on how your lawsuit turns out. In fact, there are a great number of laws passed by the New York State Legislature and even Congress, as well as the common law of the State of New York, court decisions commonly called “caselaw”, that can come to bear on the facts of your personal injury case. The party who is most familiar with these laws, decisions, and how they operate will have a distinct advantage over the other party in and out of the courtroom. A top lawyer skilled in personal injury protection law is your best chance for achieving the most compensation.
.svg){kind=small}
.avif)
.avif)