2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 4 - Negligence and Malfeasance of Public Officers; Taxpayers' Remedies › 50-E - Notice of Claim.

§  50-e.  Notice of claim. 1. When service required; time for service;
upon whom service required.
(a) In any case founded upon tort where a notice of claim is  required
by  law  as  a  condition  precedent to the commencement of an action or
special proceeding against a  public  corporation,  as  defined  in  the
general construction law, or any officer, appointee or employee thereof,
the  notice  of claim shall comply with and be served in accordance with
the provisions of this  section  within  ninety  days  after  the  claim
arises; except that in wrongful death actions, the ninety days shall run
from the appointment of a representative of the decedent's estate.
(b)  Service  of  the  notice  of  claim upon an officer, appointee or
employee of a public corporation shall not be a condition  precedent  to
the commencement of an action or special proceeding against such person.
If an action or special proceeding is commenced against such person, but
not  against the public corporation, service of the notice of claim upon
the public corporation shall be required only if the corporation  has  a
statutory  obligation to indemnify such person under this chapter or any
other provision of law.
2. Form of notice; contents. The notice shall be in writing, sworn  to
by  or  on behalf of the claimant, and shall set forth: (1) the name and
post-office address of each claimant, and of his attorney, if  any;  (2)
the  nature  of  the  claim;  (3) the time when, the place where and the
manner in which the claim arose; and (4) the items of damage or injuries
claimed to have been sustained so far as then practicable but  a  notice
with  respect  to  a  claim against a municipal corporation other than a
city with a population of one million or more persons  shall  not  state
the  amount  of  damages  to  which the claimant deems himself entitled,
provided, however, that the municipal corporation,  other  than  a  city
with  a  population  of  one  million  or  more persons, may at any time
request a supplemental claim setting forth the total  damages  to  which
the  claimant  deems  himself  entitled.  A  supplemental claim shall be
provided by the claimant within fifteen days  of  the  request.  In  the
event  the  supplemental  demand  is not served within fifteen days, the
court, on motion, may order that it be provided by the claimant.
3. How served; when service by mail  complete;  defect  in  manner  of
service; return of notice improperly served.
(a) The notice shall be served on the public corporation against which
the  claim  is  made  by  delivering  a  copy  thereof personally, or by
registered or certified mail, to the person designated by law as one  to
whom  a  summons  in  an action in the supreme court issued against such
corporation may be delivered, or to an  attorney  regularly  engaged  in
representing  such public corporation or, in a city with a population of
over one million, by electronic means in a form and manner prescribed by
such city.
(b) Service by registered or certified mail  shall  be  complete  upon
deposit  of  the  notice  of  claim,  enclosed  in  a  postpaid properly
addressed wrapper, in a post office or  official  depository  under  the
exclusive  care  and custody of the United States post office department
within the state.
(c) If the notice is  served  within  the  period  specified  by  this
section,  but  in a manner not in compliance with the provisions of this
subdivision, the service  shall  be  valid  if  the  public  corporation
against  which  the claim is made demands that the claimant or any other
person interested in the claim be examined in regard to it,  or  if  the
notice is actually received by a proper person within the time specified
by  this  section, and the public corporation fail to return the notice,
specifying the defect in the manner of service, within thirty days after
the notice is received.
(d) If the notice is  served  within  the  period  specified  by  this
section  and  is returned for the reason and within the time provided in
this subdivision, the claimant may  serve  a  new  notice  in  a  manner
complying  with the provisions of this subdivision within ten days after
the  returned  notice  is  received. If a new notice is so served within
that period, it shall be deemed timely served.
(e) If the notice  is  served  by  electronic  means,  as  defined  in
paragraph two of subdivision (f) of rule twenty-one hundred three of the
civil  practice law and rules, it shall contain the information required
under the provisions of subdivision two of this  section.  In  addition,
such notice shall contain the following declaration: "I certify that all
information  contained in this notice is true and correct to the best of
my knowledge and belief. I understand that the  willful  making  of  any
false  statement  of  material  fact  herein will subject me to criminal
penalties and  civil  liabilities."  Service  of  the  notice  shall  be
complete  upon  successful transmission of the notice as indicated by an
electronic receipt provided  by  such  city,  which  shall  transmit  an
electronic receipt number to the claimant forthwith.
(f) Service of a notice of claim on the secretary of state as agent of
any  public  corporation,  as  defined  in  subdivision  one  of section
sixty-six  of  the  general  construction  law,  whatsoever  created  or
existing  by  virtue  of  the  laws  of  the state of New York upon whom
service of a notice of claim is required as  a  condition  precedent  to
being sued, may be made by personally delivering to and leaving with the
secretary  of  state  or  a deputy, or with any person authorized by the
secretary of state to  receive  such  service,  at  the  office  of  the
department  of  state  in  the  city of Albany, duplicate copies of such
notice of claim together with the statutory fee, which fee  shall  be  a
taxable  disbursement but only in the amount equal to the portion of the
fee collected by the public corporation in accordance  with  subdivision
four  of  this  section.  Service  on  such  public corporation shall be
complete when the secretary of state is so served. Within ten days after
receiving a notice of claim, the secretary of state  shall  either:  (1)
send  one of such copies by certified mail, return receipt requested, to
such public corporation, at the post  office  address  on  file  in  the
department  of  state,  specified for the purpose; or (2) electronically
transmit a copy to such public corporation at the electronic address  on
file  with  the  department  of state specified for that purpose; or (3)
transmit a copy to such public corporation by any other  such  means  or
procedure  established  by  the  secretary  of state, provided that such
other means or procedure of transmittal must be verifiable.
4. Requirements of section exclusive except as to conditions precedent
to liability for certain defects or snow or ice.  No  other  or  further
notice, no other or further service, filing or delivery of the notice of
claim,  and  no  notice  of  intention  to commence an action or special
proceeding, shall be required as a condition to the commencement  of  an
action or special proceeding for the enforcement of the claim; provided,
however,  that nothing herein contained shall be deemed to dispense with
the requirement  of  notice  of  the  defective,  unsafe,  dangerous  or
obstructed  condition  of any street, highway, bridge, culvert, sidewalk
or crosswalk, or of the existence of snow or  ice  thereon,  where  such
notice  now  is,  or  hereafter  may be, required by law, as a condition
precedent to liability for damages or injuries  to  person  or  property
alleged  to  have  been  caused  by  such  condition, and the failure or
negligence to repair or remove  the  same  after  the  receipt  of  such
notice.
5. Application for leave to serve a late notice.
Upon application, the court, in its discretion, may extend the time to
serve a notice of claim specified in paragraph (a) of subdivision one of
this section, whether such service was made upon a public corporation or
the  secretary of state. The extension shall not exceed the time limited
for  the  commencement  of  an action by the claimant against the public
corporation. In determining whether to grant the  extension,  the  court
shall  consider,  in  particular,  whether the public corporation or its
attorney or its insurance  carrier  acquired  actual  knowledge  of  the
essential  facts  constituting  the  claim  within the time specified in
subdivision one of this section or within a reasonable time  thereafter.
The   court   shall   also   consider   all  other  relevant  facts  and
circumstances,  including:  whether  the  claimant  was  an  infant,  or
mentally  or  physically  incapacitated, or died before the time limited
for service of the notice of claim; whether the claimant failed to serve
a timely notice of claim by reason  of  his  justifiable  reliance  upon
settlement  representations  made by an authorized representative of the
public corporation or its insurance carrier;  whether  the  claimant  in
serving  a  notice  of  claim  made  an  excusable  error concerning the
identity of the public corporation against which  the  claim  should  be
asserted;  if  service of the notice of claim is attempted by electronic
means pursuant to paragraph (e) of subdivision three  of  this  section,
whether  the  delay  in  serving  the notice of claim was based upon the
failure of the computer system of  the  city  or  the  claimant  or  the
attorney  representing  the claimant; that such claimant or attorney, as
the case may be, submitted evidence or proof as  is  reasonable  showing
that  (i) the submission of the claim was attempted to be electronically
made in a timely manner and  would  have  been  completed  but  for  the
failure  of the computer system utilized by the sender or recipient, and
(ii) that upon becoming aware of both the failure of such system and the
failure of the city to receive such submission, the claimant or attorney
had insufficient time to make  such  claim  within  the  permitted  time
period in a manner as otherwise prescribed by law; and whether the delay
in  serving  the  notice  of  claim  substantially prejudiced the public
corporation in maintaining its defense on the merits.
An application for leave to serve a late notice shall not be denied on
the ground that it was made after commencement of an action against  the
public corporation.
6.  Mistake,  omission,  irregularity or defect. At any time after the
service of a notice of claim and at any stage of an  action  or  special
proceeding  to  which  the  provisions of this section are applicable, a
mistake, omission, irregularity or defect made  in  good  faith  in  the
notice of claim required to be served by this section, not pertaining to
the  manner  or  time  of service thereof, may be corrected, supplied or
disregarded, as the case  may  be,  in  the  discretion  of  the  court,
provided  it  shall  appear  that  the  other  party  was not prejudiced
thereby.
7. Applications  under  this  section.  All  applications  under  this
section  shall  be made to the supreme court or to the county court: (a)
in a county where the action may properly be brought for trial,  (b)  if
an  action  to enforce the claim has been commenced, in the county where
the action is pending, or (c) in the event that there is no motion  term
available  in any of the counties specified in clause (a) or (b) hereof,
in any adjoining county. Where the application is for leave to  serve  a
late  notice of claim, it shall be accompanied by a copy of the proposed
notice of claim.
8. Inapplicability of section. (a) This section  shall  not  apply  to
claims  arising  under  the provisions of the workers' compensation law,
the volunteer firefighters' benefit  law,  or  the  volunteer  ambulance

workers'  benefit  law or to claims against public corporations by their
own infant wards.
(b)  This  section  shall  not  apply  to any claim made for physical,
psychological, or other injury or condition  suffered  as  a  result  of
conduct  which  would  constitute a sexual offense as defined in article
one hundred thirty of the penal law committed against a child less  than
eighteen  years  of  age, incest as defined in section 255.27, 255.26 or
255.25 of the penal law committed against a  child  less  than  eighteen
years  of  age, or the use of a child in a sexual performance as defined
in section 263.05 of the penal law committed against a child  less  than
eighteen years of age.