Dec 2, 2021 | By Anthony Ferrante | Read Time: 3 minutes
New York is a “no-fault” state. This means that the legislature has set up a system of rules to ensure that people who are injured in car crashes have medical coverage. In other words, it is health insurance for people who are injured in car accidents. When the New York legislature gave us these no-fault benefits, they took away our right to sue for every little bump or bruise. The reason is this: Your medical bills have been taken care of; if you are missing time from work, you are going to be re-paid; and your out-of-pocket expenses have been reimbursed. So in theory you’ve been put back in the same place you were prior to the crash. In reality, that is not often the case but regardless, a threshold was created with our no-fault law. Can I Sue for Pain and Suffering Under New York’s No-Fault System? Yes, but, before you can recover any money for pain and suffering after a car crash in New York you must prove that your injuries are “serious” under our law. What Qualifies as a “Serious” Injury Under New York Law? This term “serious” has a legal definition under New York law – and the legalese follows: “Serious injury” means a personal injury which results in: death; dismemberment; significant disfigurement; a fracture; loss of a fetus; permanent loss of use of a body organ, member, function or system; permanent consequential limitation of use of a body organ or member; significant limitation of use of a body function or system; or a medically determined injury or impairment of a non-permanent nature which prevents the injured person from performing substantially all of the material acts which constitute such person’s usual and customary daily activities for not less than ninety days during the one hundred eighty days immediately following the occurrence of the injury or impairment. So we have nine different ways that you can be seriously injured. And remember, you can only recover money for pain and suffering in New York if you fit into one of these nine categories. Some of the categories are self-explanatory, like death, dismemberment, a significant disfigurement, a fracture, or the loss of a fetus, but the rest may leave you scratching your head. It is these remaining categories where the majority of claims fall. RECENT CASE RESULT $400,000 Settlement for Injuries Caused by Auto Accident Our firm helped obtain a $400,000.00 settlement for a 50 year old NYC Department of Education security guard who was injured in a two-car accident when a young driver made a U-turn into her car. Learn more In their simplest form, these categories are all some variation on the same idea: You used to be able to do things one way and now, as a result of the injuries you sustained in the accident, you can’t do things the same. You are limited. These limitations can come in the form of your everyday tasks, like getting dressed, doing housework, cooking, cleaning, and sleeping. Or perhaps your inability to enjoy hobbies, or sports, or exercise. We call these “qualitative” limitations. Then there are the things you can actually measure; your inability to turn your neck, bend over, raise your arm over your head or straighten out your leg. These things are called “quantitative” limitations. How Can I Prove That My Injuries Meet New York’s Definition of “Serious”? But how do we go about proving these injuries? There is no set formula, but consistent medical treatment over a course of time, combined with objective evidence of an injury (i.e. an MRI, EMG/nerve test, or the like) is a good start. Each case is different, and each case turns on its own facts but these are some basic ideas that will help you have an understanding of what must be proven. New York Attorney for Pain and Suffering Claims As a personal injury attorney, my job is to maximize the compensation that my clients are able to recover after an accident. In most cases, that means proving that their injuries meet the definition of “serious” under New York law. If you’ve been injured, don’t hesitate to reach out using the form below to schedule a free consultation.
Keep Reading Dec 1, 2021 | By Anthony Ferrante | Read Time: 3 minutes
A statute of limitations puts a time limit on filing a lawsuit. This time clock usually begins to run on the date of the incident for which you are seeking damages for your injuries. This deadline applies to almost all types of personal injury cases, including negligence and intentional torts. What is the NY Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Claims? If you are involved in an auto collision with a privately owned and operated vehicle in New York, the statute of limitations is three (3) years from the date of the accident. In other words, if your accident occurred on January 1, 2020, you would have until January 1, 2023 to file your lawsuit. What are the Exceptions to the NY Personal Injury Statute of Limitations? There are certain exceptions to the typical three-year NY personal injury statute of limitations. These exceptions may delay, pause, or shorten the time limitation imposed for personal injury cases. Legal Disabilities If the injured person looking to file a personal injury lawsuit is a minor under the age of 18 or of unsound mind, they are under a legal disability. In these cases, the three-year time clock will not begin to run until all disabilities are lifted. The clock will then start to run when a minor turns 18 or a person of unsound mind is declared sane. The Discovery Rule Under this rule, the statute of limitations will not begin to run until the injured person has discovered or should have discovered the injury. This can extend the statute of limitations when the injury or harm is not open and obvious. Municipalities This time frame is different when bringing a case against a municipality. A municipality is any local government entity. So, for example, if you are involved in a crash with a City of New York Department of Sanitation truck, a New York City Parks Department pick-up truck, or a New York City Transit Authority bus the statute is different – and shorter. All of these municipal entities are protected by stronger laws that shorten that statute of limitations. In most of these scenarios, you have ninety (90) days from the date of the accident to file a Notice of Claim. Certain Public Authorities, including the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Long Island Railroad, have different and shorter statutes. After filing a Notice of Claim, you must appear for a hearing and a medical exam, if requested. Only after you pass those hurdles, called “conditions precedent” to bringing a lawsuit, will you be allowed to sue the municipality. These rules hold true not only for the City of New York and New York City Transit Authority, but for all municipal entities inside and outside of the City of New York, as well as Towns and Villages in the surrounding counties of Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester. Personal Injury in New York? Reach Out to Anthony Ferrante 24/7 to Ensure the Statue of Limitations Doesn’t Expire. Free Case Review Speak with an New York Injury Attorney Right Away to Prevent Missing the Statute of Limitations Deadline If the three-year statute of limitations has run and you file your personal injury lawsuit, the other side, or defendant, will file a “motion to dismiss.” A motion to dismiss is filed when either party believes that the opposing party’s claim is legally invalid. In this case, the defendant would file a motion to dismiss, pointing out to the court that the statute of limitations has run. In most cases, this will end in your case being dismissed, and you will no longer have a chance to seek damages for your injuries. If you have been injured, it is wise to seek legal counsel as soon as possible. The sooner you contact a personal injury attorney, the sooner they can begin working on your case, ensuring your claim is filed timely.
Keep Reading Aug 24, 2021 | By Anthony Ferrante | Read Time: 4 minutes
How Much Will I Have to Pay My New York Injury Lawyer? Generally, New York personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis. This means that your personal injury lawyer does not earn a fee until the case has been resolved and there was a positive money recovery. This is the case whether you were involved in a car accident in Brooklyn or a trip and fall in the Bronx. In other words, in order for an injury lawyer to actually get paid, you will be walking away from the case with money via settlement or verdict. Here in New York the accident lawyer’s fee is almost always one-third (1/3) of the sum recovered or 33.33%. The most notable exception to the 1/3 fee is in a medical malpractice case where there is a sliding scale, which is not covered here. A recent change in New York personal injury law has created two separate options for how the 1/3 contingency fee is calculated, both of which we will go over, but the important thing to remember is that the personal injury attorney’s fee will be 1/3 (33.33%) regardless of which option you choose. This will always be consistent. Injured in New York? Reach Out to Anthony Ferrante 24/7 for a Free Case Review Free Case Review Injury Attorney Payment Option 1: Percentage of Net Recovery Under the first option, the case expenses are taken off of the top, meaning they are subtracted from the full personal injury settlement amount. The 1/3 contingency fee is taken from what remains. This option can also be described as 1/3 of the net recovery or 1/3 of the profit of the case. In this scenario, the client retains some risk because if the case is not successful the attorney will have the right to charge the client for the expenses, which are usually paid out of pocket by the attorney. So this means that if the case is lost, then the attorney has the right to send a bill for whatever money was spent to move the case forward. In reality, this “risk” is not a very significant one as (1) the vast majority of accepted cases are settled; and (2) most firms would never send a bill to a client after they’ve lost their case. That would really be kicking someone while they are down (but the attorney does the right to do so under this option). In return for taking this risk, the client will see small savings at the end of the case. The fee is calculated after the expenses are taken off of the top so the accident attorney shares in paying the expenses in this scenario. It amounts to a savings of 1/3 of the expenses, meaning that if the expenses were $1,500.00 on your case, you would get $500.00 more at the end under Option 1. Injury Lawyer Payment Option 2: Percentage of Total Recovery The second option changes the equation a little bit. The 1/3 fee is taken from the total recovery instead of the net recovery. This means that the injury attorney’s fee is 1/3 of the full settlement amount. And from the remainder, the client is responsible to repay the attorney for the case expenses. Under this option, there is no risk that the client will receive a bill for the case expenses if you lose. The trade-off is that the client will see a little bit less money if you win. Here, as the expenses are paid out of your portion of the settlement proceeds the attorney doesn’t share in the ultimate cost. So you are losing out on the 1/3 contribution towards expenses that you would get under Option 1. As described above, if the expenses on your case were $1,500.00, you would see $500.00 less under Option 2. How Are Expenses Covered in New York Personal Injury Cases? The expenses in a case are generally advanced by the personal injury lawyer handling the case. In order to move the case forward, money must be spent to investigate the incident, hire investigators and/or an engineer, gather medical records, file a lawsuit, serve the defendants, pay court filing fees, take depositions, create demonstrative evidence and prepare the case for trial. All of these expenses must be ultimately repaid at the conclusion of the case. It is essentially a zero-interest loan. The average expenses in a personal injury case vary depending on the type of case and how far it was pushed. Obviously, the expenses on a simple car accident case that was settled within 6 months will be much less than the expenses on a complex construction site accident case that has been fully litigated for 4 years. Examples of NY Personal Injury Lawyer Fees Client A was involved in a rear-end car accident. She suffered a herniated disc in her neck and a torn meniscus in her knee. The insurance company did not agree that her injuries were serious under New York law and offered no money. A lawsuit was started against the owner and driver of the vehicle, the defendants were served and the case was litigated through depositions. After pushing the case close to trial a reasonable settlement offer was made and accepted. The expenses in this case may range between approximately $1,000.00 – $1,500.00. Client B was caused to trip and fall over a raised sidewalk in Manhattan. She fractured or broke her wrist and required an open reduction internal fixation (ORIF) surgery. An engineer was hired to investigate the accident location and offer an opinion on the dangerous sidewalk. The case was litigated against the owner of the building, the management company, the ground floor tenant and a contractor who previously performed work in that area. A lawsuit was started, the defendants were served, depositions of all of these parties were held and then the case was settled at a mediation. The expenses in this case may range between $3,500.00 – $5,000.00. These are only examples and...
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