In a decision dated August 10, 2016, Justice Michael D. Stallman denied the motion of the petitioners seeking leave to file late notices of claim against our clients, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Metropolitan Transportation Authority Capital Construction Company, New York City Transit Authority, Long Island Railroad and the City of New York. The petitioner sought damages for personal injuries he allegedly sustained during construction on the East Side Access Project. Specifically, the petitioner claimed that he was standing on a mantrip that came to a complete stop at or about East 55th Street inside the East Side Access Tunnel when a locomotive rear-ended the mantrip, causing the petitioner’s body to be jolted from one side to the other. In denying the petitioners’ motion, the Court held that the petitioners did not set forth a reasonable excuse for failing to serve a timely notice of claim, nor did they demonstrate that the respondents acquired actual notice of the essential facts of their claim within 90 days of the accident. Moreover, the Court noted that, even if one of the respondents had acquired actual notice, such knowledge could not have been imputed to each of the other respondents, which are distinct and separate entities from one another.

Rodriguez v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority, et al., Index No. 162629/2015 (New York Co. Sup. Ct., Aug. 10, 2016).