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Your Albany Personal Injury Attorney
If you or someone in your family was injured in Albany, you are probably looking for plain answers about time limits, fault, and what a claim involves. New York sets several of those by statute, so many answers can be checked. This page walks through the deadlines, shared fault, no-fault insurance, government defendants, the courts, and what to know about the most common claims. These rules apply across New York, but where a case is filed depends on the county, and an attorney familiar with the Supreme Court in Albany County can explain what to expect there.
Quick Answers on Deadlines, Fault, and Claims
- How long do I have to sue? Usually 3 years (CPLR 214(5)). A wrongful death action has its own two-year clock (EPTL 5-4.1).
- Government defendants have their own clock: a notice of claim within 90 days and a lawsuit within one year and 90 days (General Municipal Law 50-e and 50-i).
- Shared fault reduces recovery in most injury cases (CPLR 1411(a)). In a car accident case subject to no-fault that was filed on or after May 26, 2026, a claimant more at fault than the defendant is barred (CPLR 1411(b)).
- The serious injury threshold in Insurance Law 5102(d) decides whether a crash victim can seek non-economic damages, and it is often disputed.
- Fatal accidents have two kinds of claims: wrongful death for the family (EPTL 5-4.1) and the survival of the decedent’s own injury claim (EPTL 11-3.2(b)).
Filing Deadlines for Injury and Wrongful Death Claims in New York
For most injury claims the clock is three years. CPLR 214(5) applies it to actions to recover damages for a personal injury, subject to the exceptions in sections 214-b, 214-c, 214-i and 215.
Minors are treated differently. If the person entitled to sue is under a disability because of infancy when the claim accrues, the time to sue is extended to three years after the disability ceases (CPLR 208(a)). The ten-year outer limit in that section does not apply to infancy outside medical, dental, or podiatric malpractice.
Fatal accidents can support a wrongful death action, with a two-year limit measured from the death (EPTL 5-4.1). If a criminal action is pending, the statute allows at least one year from its termination to file. The decedent’s own injury claim also survives (EPTL 11-3.2(b)).
Ninety days is the number to remember for local public defendants. A notice of claim must be served within ninety days after the claim arises (General Municipal Law 50-e(1)(a)), and suit must follow within one year and ninety days, or two years for a death (General Municipal Law 50-i(1)).
Before suing, the complaint must also allege that thirty days have passed since the notice of claim was served and that adjustment or payment has been neglected or refused (General Municipal Law 50-i(1)). A court may extend the time to serve a late notice on application, but the extension cannot go past the time allowed to start the action (General Municipal Law 50-e(5)).
If a state agency or state employee may be responsible, the Court of Claims Act sets the timing: file and serve the claim on the Attorney General within ninety days after accrual, or serve a notice of intention within that time and then file within two years (Court of Claims Act 10(3)).
If the ninety days are missed, the court has discretion to allow a late claim before the ordinary limitation period under CPLR article 2 would bar a like action (Court of Claims Act 10(6)).
Injuries from medical treatment are a separate category. CPLR 214-a sets two years and six months for medical, dental, or podiatric malpractice, extended by continuous treatment, with one year from discovery when a foreign object is found in the body.
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What Happens When You Are Partly to Blame
Partial blame reduces a claim but does not usually end it. CPLR 1411(a) provides that the amount of damages otherwise recoverable shall be diminished in the proportion which the claimant’s culpable conduct bears to the total culpable conduct which caused the damages.
Put in numbers, for an ordinary injury claim a claimant 40% at fault receives 60% of the damages found, and a claimant 75% at fault receives 25%. Evidence about speed, lighting, warnings, and conduct after the incident often decides where the percentage lands.
For crashes, there is now a bar. CPLR 1411(b) says a claimant in an action subject to Insurance Law article 51 recovers nothing if the claimant’s culpable conduct is greater than the defendant’s, or greater than the defendants’ combined conduct. The law took effect May 26, 2026 and applies to actions commenced on or after that date, not to accidents on or after it.
Where several parties share the blame, CPLR 1601(1) limits a defendant found 50 percent or less liable to its equitable share of non-economic loss, with the exceptions in CPLR 1602.
Basic Economic Loss, Serious Injury, and Crash Lawsuits
Section 5102(a) of the Insurance Law sets the core no-fault benefit: up to fifty thousand dollars per person for basic economic loss, which covers necessary medical and rehabilitation services, lost earnings, and other reasonable and necessary expenses.
The definition sets specific limits inside the $50,000 figure. Loss of earnings is counted up to two thousand dollars a month for a maximum of three years, and other reasonable and necessary expenses are counted up to twenty-five dollars a day for up to one year from the accident (Insurance Law 5102(a)). An optional additional twenty-five thousand dollars of coverage can be purchased for lost earnings or therapy after the first fifty thousand is used.
Insurance Law 5104(a) bars recovery of non-economic loss unless the injury is a serious injury, and Insurance Law 5102(d) sets out categories that include a fracture, significant disfigurement, permanent loss of use of a body organ, member, function or system, and significant limitation of use of a body function or system.
The regulation on mandatory no-fault coverage (11 NYCRR 65-1.1) calls for written notice of the accident within 30 days at most and written proof of claim within 45 days after services, so paperwork should start early.
The rules changed in 2026. Chapter 58 of the Laws of 2026, effective May 26, 2026 for actions commenced on or after that date, removed from the serious injury definition the category for a medically determined non-permanent injury that prevents usual daily activities for 90 of the 180 days after the accident, and it amended Insurance Law 5104(a) so that liability for non-economic loss cannot be fixed until the trier of fact has determined that a serious injury exists, after first determining who was at fault.
Suing a Government Body in New York
Before suing a city, county, town, village, fire district, or school district for negligence, three conditions must be met: a notice of claim made and served in compliance with General Municipal Law 50-e, thirty days passing without adjustment or payment, and commencement of the action within one year and ninety days after the event (General Municipal Law 50-i(1)). A wrongful death action must be commenced within two years after the death.
Notice of the defect itself can be a separate hurdle. Under Town Law 65-a(2), written notice specifying the particular place must have been given to the town clerk or the superintendent of highways, and Village Law 6-628 applies a similar rule to villages, including snow and ice conditions.
For state defendants the timing is in Court of Claims Act 10(3): a claim filed and served on the Attorney General within ninety days after accrual, or a written notice of intention within that time followed by a claim within two years.
Combined with the ninety-day notice of claim, these rules make speed important whenever public property or a public vehicle may be involved.
From Local Courts to the Supreme Court
Most serious injury lawsuits are filed in the Supreme Court, the state’s court of general jurisdiction. Local courts hear smaller claims within their limits, the Civil Court of the City of New York is limited to $50,000 (New York City Civil Court Act 202), and the Court of Claims hears actions for money damages against the State of New York.
By statute the state has thirteen judicial districts (Judiciary Law 140), and a lawsuit from Albany that reaches the Supreme Court is filed in the Supreme Court in Albany County, which sits in the Third Judicial District. The county seat of Albany County is Albany.
Types of Personal Injury Claims
Motor Vehicle Accident Claims
After a collision, the questions are fault, injuries, and insurance. No-fault pays basic economic loss first (Insurance Law 5102(a)), non-economic damages depend on a serious injury (Insurance Law 5104(a)), and your share of the fault can reduce or bar the award (CPLR 1411).
Written notice of the accident goes to the no-fault insurer within 30 days at most (11 NYCRR 65-1.1).
Falls and Unsafe Property Conditions
A slip and fall claim is a negligence claim, so the same three-year deadline (CPLR 214(5)) and comparative fault rule (CPLR 1411) apply as in other injury cases.
Claims involving government-owned property carry a ninety-day notice requirement (General Municipal Law 50-e(1)(a)), and snow and ice on a town sidewalk brings in Town Law 65-a(2).
Wrongful Death Claims for Families
When a person dies, no cause of action for injury to person or property is lost because of the death (EPTL 11-3.2(b)). The personal representative may bring or continue the action, alongside the wrongful death action limited by EPTL 5-4.1.
The two-year deadline in EPTL 5-4.1 applies to actions for a death caused by another’s wrongful act.
On-the-Job Injuries
For injuries at work, an employer’s liability under the Workers’ Compensation Law is exclusive and in place of any other liability to the employee (Workers’ Compensation Law 11). An injured employee can still pursue a claim against a third party who was not in the same employ, while taking compensation benefits (Workers’ Compensation Law 29(1)).
On construction and repair work, Labor Law 240(1) requires owners and contractors to furnish or erect scaffolding, hoists, stays, ladders, and similar devices for the performance of the work.
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What to Know About Cases in Albany
An injury in Albany belongs to Albany County and its Supreme Court. Local practice, such as how quickly cases are listed and how motions are handled, shapes how the general rules on this page play out, and a local attorney can tell you what that looks like.
If your issue is a patent, trademark, or copyright matter instead of an injury, see our Albany intellectual property page. Nearby communities we serve include Troy, Schenectady, and Amsterdam. For the full list of New York communities we serve, see our New York personal injury page.
Hospitals in Albany
Facilities in Albany include Albany Medical Center Hospital at 43 New Scotland Avenue and St. Peter’s Hospital at 315 South Manning Boulevard.
Treatment records from any hospital involved are part of an injury claim, and the dates in them help show when an injury happened and what care followed. Mentioning a hospital here is only a factual reference to its location.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the statute of limitations for an injury claim in New York?
Most personal injury actions must be commenced within three years (CPLR 214(5)). A wrongful death action is shorter, two years after the death (EPTL 5-4.1), and claims against government bodies have earlier notice deadlines.
What is a notice of claim in New York?
It is the written notice required by General Municipal Law 50-e before an action against a local public body. It must be served within ninety days after the claim arises, and it is a condition of bringing the lawsuit (General Municipal Law 50-i(1)).
Is New York a comparative negligence state?
Yes, with a newer exception for car crashes. Damages are diminished in proportion to the claimant’s culpable conduct (CPLR 1411(a)), while CPLR 1411(b) bars a claimant in an Insurance Law article 51 action commenced on or after May 26, 2026 whose fault is greater than the defendant’s.
Are slip and falls affected by the new car accident fault rule?
No. The bar is limited to actions subject to Insurance Law article 51, which is the motor vehicle no-fault law. Other injury claims, such as falls, remain under the proportional reduction in CPLR 1411(a).
Can I get lost wages under no-fault?
Yes, within limits: loss of earnings is counted up to $2,000 a month for a maximum of three years (Insurance Law 5102(a)).
What counts as a serious injury under New York law?
The statute lists 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, and significant limitation of use of a body function or system (Insurance Law 5102(d)).
How long do I have to bring a wrongful death claim in New York?
Two years after the decedent’s death (EPTL 5-4.1). If a criminal action is pending, the statute allows at least one year from the termination of the criminal action.
Which court hears a personal injury case from Albany?
A lawsuit is typically filed in the Supreme Court, here the Supreme Court in Albany County, which is New York’s trial court of general jurisdiction. A claim against the State goes to the Court of Claims.
Does Labor Law 240(1) apply to ladder falls?
It can. Labor Law 240(1) covers the furnishing and erection of scaffolding, hoists, stays, and ladders for the performance of work such as repair or alteration of a building or structure, so a fall from a ladder on a job site may raise it.
Do minors get more time to sue in New York?
Yes, in the way CPLR 208(a) describes: a disability of infancy extends the three-year period to three years after the disability ceases.
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