If you have been injured due to the negligence of a municipal entity (such as the City of New York), you will need to file a document known as a “Notice of Claim” within a fixed deadline after the accident or event in order to protect your rights. Failure to do so may result in dismissal…
Read More What is a “Notice of Claim”?A recent First Department decision, Cambio v. City of New York (decided June 19, 2014), underscores the notice function of a “notice of claim” and held that the plaintiff’s subsequent deviation from allegations in his notice of claim mandated dismissal. The facts: Plaintiff, who is legally blind, alleged in his notice of claim that he…
Read More Trip/Fall Claims Dismissed Where Litigation Theory Deviated From That Asserted in Notice of ClaimIn Herling v. New York City Department of Education, decided April 23, 2014, the Eastern District of New York held that plaintiff stated a claim for discrimination based on race and religion, but not retaliation. Plaintiff, who is Jewish, alleged that he was subjected to discrimination by the school’s African-American principal, defendant Gray. He claimed,…
Read More Physical Education Teacher States Claim for Religious Discrimination Against Department of EducationUnder New York law, a plaintiff suing a municipality (including the City of New York) must first file what is called a “Notice of Claim.” The particulars of the Notice of Claim requirement are spelled out in General Municipal Law § 50-e. In Jimenez v. City of New York, decided May 15, 2014, the Appellate Division, First…
Read More Notice of Claim Sufficiently Alleged Playground Equipment’s Defective DesignIn Grant v. County of Erie (Summary Order), the Second Circuit vacated the dismissal, under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), of plaintiff’s disability discrimination claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Ordinarily, when reviewing the facial sufficiency of a federal court complaint to determine whether it states a claim, a trial court must accept…
Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Disability Discrimination; Allegations Regarding Qualification to Perform Job Were Not ContradictoryRecently, in Ciaravino v. City of New York (a trip-and-fall case), the Appellate Division, First Department reversed summary judgment for defendant and granted plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff alleged that she was injured when she tripped and fell after she stepped into a depression in the street near a subway exit in Union Square Park.…
Read More Trip/Fall Suit Continues, Despite Incorrect Identification in Notice of Claim of Location of AccidentIn Garrett v. City of New York, the New York Supreme Court (NY County) recently granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s disability discrimination claims under the New York State and City Human Rights Laws. This case illustrates the extent to which illness-related absences from work may constitute a “reasonable accommodation”. Plaintiff alleged that…
Read More Absences and Failure to File Notice of Claim Doom Disability Discrimination Suit Against City of New York