Legal Question in Personal Injury in New York

Re: negligent road maintenence

I suppose it depends on what happens next. Does the person get struck by a city-owned vehicle and require medical care? Or does the person simply turn around and exit in the right direction? Of course even if the person does suffer some traumatic injury as a result of the city's neglgience, there would be some comparative fault on the part of the driver for disobeying or not seeing what should have been seen as far as driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

P.S. If it's simply a missing traffic sign? Why not simply write to the Department of Transportation rather than start a lawsuit?

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Re: negligent road maintenence

Not at all likely to sue for the driver's screw up ..or without prior written notice to the municipality for the problem.

Good Luck

Re: negligent road maintenence

I assume there is a law suit and you are a defendant or plaintiff and are claiming the accident was caused in whole or part by the failure of the municipality to have street signs.

I argued an appeal, Monteleone v. Inc. Village of Floral Park in which the same type of question arose about a low hanging tree branch, that was snapped back into a child's eye. That case held the tree branch was an obstruction to a public sidewalk. Under those circumstances

the municipality must have prior written notice

of the defect before it can be held liable.

I think that the rule would be similar in your situation; before you can charge the municipality with liability, they must have prior written notice (by anyone) of the condition, unless there is a specific local rule or ordnance requiring a sign on the street. (if they are violating an ordnance, they may still need prior written notice, for instance, if there was a sign that was knocked down.)

Then, within 90 days, you must file a notice of claim with the municipality or move for leave to serve a late notice as soon as possible.

Re: negligent road maintenence

A person always has the right, and perhaps the obligation, to Report dangerous and "hazardous" conditions to appropriate authorities, for remedy.

However, suit against a public or private owner or authority, is NOT generally allowed or warranted, when the person has not suffered personal physical injury, due to the dangerous or hazardous condition.

In additon, in the US, [a] Public Authority has a "king like" status. Essentially that means, that a person, does NOT have a "right to sue," the State or it's agencies without the State or it's agencies' Permission, which can be withheld.

Good luck,

Phroska L. McAlister,ESQ