Appellate Court Denies Late Notice of Claim in Mass Transit Injury Case for Lack of Extraordinary Circumstances

In an encouraging adherence to procedural rules, a New Jersey appellate court denied an application to file a late notice of claim when the plaintiff failed to show extraordinary circumstances.

This matter was a relatively classic claim by a mass transit passenger who alleged injury when the bus was involved in an accident. However, the plaintiff, through her counsel, failed to serve her notice of claim on the municipal entity within the required 90 days. She served her notice eight days late. She filed her complaint and then only later moved for relief to file a late notice of claim. 

The court upheld the lower court’s finding that no extraordinary circumstances prevented the plaintiff from filing timely, her injury did not cause the late filing, she was able to consult with two attorneys, and, in fact, her counsel had signed the notice of claim within the 90 days, but the document was not served. For these reasons, the appellate court found no basis to overturn the decision and upheld the dismissal. 

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