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Gallagher v. Liberty Lines Transit, Inc.
Citations: 211 A.D.2d 440; 621 N.Y.S.2d 55; 1995 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 177
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; January 9, 1995; New York; State Appellate Court
The Supreme Court of Bronx County issued an order on October 19, 1993, granting the defendants' motion to dismiss the complaint due to the plaintiff's failure to file a timely notice of claim as required by General Municipal Law § 50-e(1). The court also denied the plaintiff’s cross motion to file a late notice of claim. This decision was unanimously reversed on appeal. The appellate court ruled that the defendants' motion to dismiss was denied and the plaintiff's cross motion was granted, effectively recognizing the plaintiff's notice of claim as timely filed and reinstating the complaint without costs. The court distinguished the current case from Frazier v. Liberty Lines Transit, where the plaintiffs did not return necessary claim forms. In the present case, the accident report filed by the bus driver and sent to Liberty Lines' general counsel contained all relevant accident information. Additionally, the no-fault application signed by the plaintiff was received by the defendants within 90 days of the accident. The court noted that Liberty Lines' general counsel regularly represents Westchester County in bus-related accident claims, which contributed to establishing adequate notice of claim under General Municipal Law § 50-e. The attempt by the general counsel to differentiate this case from Losada v. Liberty Lines Transit, based on the timing of personal awareness of the claim, was found unconvincing. The court emphasized that the notice of claim requirement serves to protect public entities from fraudulent claims, not to impose traps for the unwary.