If you intend to file a legal claim for an injury you sustained from a dog bite, you must do so within one of the following statutes of limitations in New York:
- If you know the dog’s owner or handler: If the dog’s owner can be identified, you can file a personal injury lawsuit but must do so within three years of the date you were injured, per New York Civil Practice Laws & Rules § 214.
- If there is potential municipal or public authority liability: For example, if the dog was kept in a public housing setting and the publice authority or municipality that owns and operates the housing knew or should have known of the dog’s vicious propensity and took no step to protect the public and, ultimately, the bite victim, from the subject attack, the incident may and would fall under that a local municipality or pubic authority’s ’s liability. In these cases, you generally have 90 days to file a notice of claim, per General Municipal § 50-E. While technically this not a statute of limitations, it is what is known as a “condition precedent,” to filing a law suit. That is, to start a law suit a claimant must be able to state that they (timely & properly,) filed a Notice of Claim. Failure to do so can be fatal to a claim.
- If you are filing on behalf of a late loved one: If your loved one’s injuries led to their death and you qualify to file for compensation on their behalf, you generally have two years from their death to do so, per Estates, Powers & Trusts § 5-4.1.
If you are unsure about the statute of limitations or other elements of your dog bite case and would like legal representation to make sure filings are made in a timely and technically accurate manner, assistance, our team will review your case and discuss a plan of action for pursuing compensation.
- You do Not Want to Miss Your Case’s Filing Deadline, So Find Out Early On
- Our Legal Team Will Manage and Build Your Personal Injury Case
- Hire a Lawyer from Friedman & Simon, L.L.P. to File Your Dog Bite Lawsuit in New York
You do Not Want to Miss Your Case’s Filing Deadline, So Find Out Early On
Knowing your case’s deadline will allow you to understand how much time you have to build your claim and negotiate a settlement before you decide whether to file a lawsuit. When you work with the team at Friedman & Simon, L.L.P., we will identify this deadline for you, keeping in mind that the window period starts with the day you were injured.
If you fail to submit your lawsuit within its statutory deadline, you may lose your right to pursue compensation. Being tardy with your legal claim will could lead to the the worst possible case outcome for you. That is: following:
- The opposing party will have may find out that you did not comply with the statute of limitations in New York, which gives them grounds to request a dismissal of your case, and it is a practical certainty that they will do so. Simply stated, your case will be over. .
- A judge may dismiss your case upon reviewing it.
- Once your case gets dismissed, the other party is absolved of liability and will not be obligated to cover your damages, meaning you would have to cover those costs yourself.
Certain Evidence May No Longer be Available If You Wait Too Long to Retrieve It
Another important factor to note is that while you have a certain amount of time to submit your dog bite case into New York’s court system, other elements of your case may be more time-sensitivetime sensitive. This often applies to evidence, which can have short expiration dates or becomes unreliable over time.
For example, the following evidence may not be available if you wait too long to file your case:
- Surveillance footage
- Witness testimonies, which rely on the accuracy of people’s memories
- Certain records related to the dog
We encourage you to act as soon as possible to start building your case. A dog bite injury lawyer from our team will lead an investigation into your case to retrieve supporting evidence as quickly as possible.
For a free legal consultation, call 516-932-0400
Our Legal Team Will Manage and Build Your Personal Injury Case
If you decide to work with a personal injury lawyer from our firm, our team will begin taking steps to prepare your claim for court, even if we end up negotiating a settlement before needing to go to trial.
Managing your case involves:
- Keeping you informed about the latest developments in your case
- Investigating your situation to identify the dog’s owner or whoever may be held liable for its aggressive behavior
- Communicating with all relevant parties in your case, ranging from opposing attorneys to Animal Control officials
- Retrieving evidence to support your claim
- Calculating your damages to determine an approximate value for your case
- Fighting relentlessly to win the best possible outcome for you
If we see an opportunity to negotiate an out-of-court settlement with the other party’s insurance company, we will advocate for your legal interests. Otherwise, our team is prepared intends to take your case to court and fight for compensation on your behalf in front of a judge and jury.
Hire a Lawyer from Friedman & Simon, L.L.P. to File Your Dog Bite Lawsuit in New York
If you or someone you know suffered an injury from a dog bite, the legal team at Friedman & Simon, L.L.P. is ready to represent you in New York and prepare your legal claim. We will review any relevant information that can help us identify the filing deadline for your case to ensure that we comply with the appropriate statute of limitations.
Call (516) 932-0400 today for your free consultation. We have a multilingual staff that speaks English, Spanish, Bengali, Greek, Tamil, and Kannada.
Call or text 516-932-0400 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form