Evening journal., 1893-05-01
SUITS AGAINST CITY
PEOPLE WHO GO TO LAW FOR DAM
AGES RECEIVED FROM FALLS.


only Tor Small sums.
The city appears in the courts at least
twice a week as defendant in damage
suits brought by its citizens. Time was
when the city paid out in such damages
many thousands annually. The corpo
ration counsel systematized the work Of
the Office few years ago and placed
such damage suits in the care of a single
assistant Since that time the special
knowledge in the corporation counsel's
office has been considerable and increas
ing, so that the Office has n minute ac
quaintance with the methods of thos
lawyers that bring damage suits agains
the city.
One result Of specializing the work
the corporation counsers Office has been
a marked decrease in the annual jude
ments against the city as the outcome OF
suits for damages. The whole amount oi
damages paid by the city in the past -four
years has been less than S23,OO0 There
have been many hundred suits brought
in that time, and the aggregate Of dam
ages claimed has reached $1,000 GOO
Only a small percentage Of these suits
are successful. and IN few or none do the
plaintiffs recover the amount claimed
The city fights nearly every case that is
brought and seldom compromises q suit
unless the justice Of the plaintiffs case is
of the plainest character.
There are many lawyers who make it
their business to seek out persons who
meet with accidents and urge them TO
bring suits for damages. It is believed
in the corporation counsels Office that
there has not yet developed a class Of
lawyers who make a speciality of such
suits against the city, though such spe-
cialization is a tendency Of the present
time. When an accident of sufficient
importance 10 get into the newspapers
occurs, the victim or victims received
almost Immediately communications
somewhat in this fashion:
I'VE have learned of the painful and
serious accident that befell you yester-
day, and we write to assure you Of our
sympathy in your afiliction and TO say
that we are ready TO do all IN our power
to aid you in recovering damages from
the responsible parties for the wrong you
have undoubtedly suffered"
The signature is that of a lawyer or a
firm of lawyers making a speciality Of
accident cases. Surprisingly respectable
names are attached 10 such letters, and
in many instances the victim Of the acci-
dent seeks the advice Of some one Of the
lawyers that send such communications
BY way Of making all things sure, some
lawyers have in their pay nurses and
other attendants in hospitals to which
persons suffering from the results of ac-
cidents are usually taken.
In a recent case 30 or 40 agents Of &C
cident lawyers applied to see patient
at hospital ON the day following his
mishap. Many hundreds of such suits
are brought against the city every year,
and perhaps half Of those instituted come
to trial. The city seldom loses on first
trial, and when it does usually appeals
the case. The Office of the corporation
counsel is extremely skeptical as TO the
justice of such claims. and there is
strong suspicion that litigation of the
kind is melted by lawyers who hope to
profit by it, and that many cases are
brought with full knowledge on the part
of claimant and counsel that the claim
is groundless The counsel in many in
stances discontinued the cases when
claimants are unable or unwilling 10 adj
vance money to meet preliminary ex-
penses. Nearly all such cases are under
taken upon contingent fees, and the
share of the lawyer is commonly half Of
the amount recovered.
Many cases arise every winter from
injuries received by persons who fall
upon icy pavements The Brooklyn
bridge was long the fruitful source Of
damage suits against the two cities, until
the legislature passed last year a law
making the bridge trustees responsible
for such damages. The most conspicu-
GUS case Of late years was that of Mar
gharita Melneke, who asked $50 600 dam
ages for injuries received on the bridge
She received q verdict for the full
amount, but on appeal this verdict was
reversed. One Page received a verdict
of $4,000 for injuries in an accident to a
bridge train. This was cut down to
$4,000 on appeal, and the city finally
paid him something less.
A common ground Of action is acci.
dents caused by inequality in the flag
ging or pavements. The climate of New
York makes such inequalities unavoid-
able, and the city solicitors Office conf
IDENTIFY expects n considerable number OF
such suits every year. Many other cases
grow out Of broken pavements and cross
walks. tits not unusual for suits to be
instituted by persons who slip upon ba-
mana peels and the like. The effort OF
the counsel in such cases is to prove that
the pavement at the scene Of the acci
dent was defective. The corporation
counsels Office, however, usually man
ages to find some one who was present
at the scene of the accident and is able
10 show that there was no defect in the
pavement. The Office keeps watch up
on such accidents as are likely to result
in damage suits. and as soon as a suit i,
begun the Office sends ont an agent tC
look up the facts in the case and especial
lyto examine the scene of the accident
The assistant who is to represent tn,