You may not win a sidewalk fall suit, but all is not lost

Dear John: I am hoping you can help me with my case against the City of New York and a homeowner.

I have had a lawsuit going on for almost three years. On May 7, 2016, I tripped on a large crack in the sidewalk and fell in front of a home.

As a result, I broke my nose and two bones in my right wrist. I was taken by ambulance to Elmhurst Hospital in Queens.

I had many tests and treatments. They put a cast up to my elbow on my right arm, which is my dominant arm.

I have a lawyer from Cellino & Barnes, and he says we need a prior notice of claim for the city. This means someone would have had to report the damaged sidewalk to 311 before I fell.

If there is no claim, then I was told I have no case. So basically, the city and homeowner are protected by the law, but not the innocent person who accidentally fell.

This is very wrong and unfair. Someone has to be responsible for what happened to me.

Also, the judge dismissed the homeowner and he’s not allowing me to have a jury trial because my lawyer has not yet provided a prior notice of claim against the city. Also, the lawyer for the city made a motion for dismissal of my case. Please help. Thank you. S.M.

Dear S.M.: I’m sorry to hear that you had such a rough time.

I called your attorney, and he said, “Her case is still open and pending.”

But quite frankly, it’s not looking good. And there isn’t very much anyone can do about it because what your lawyer is telling you seems to be the law.

The city is responsible for sidewalks adjacent to one-, two- and three-family owned and -occupied homes. In your case, the people who owned the house where you fell also lived in it.

So the city is responsible for the sidewalk. But in this case, the city doesn’t seem to have been notified about the crack in the sidewalk.

But when you think about it, how can the city be deemed negligent unless it knows that the sidewalk has a crack that could injure someone? The city can’t inspect every sidewalk, every day.

So, everyone, go out and inspect the sidewalks and report cracks to the city. The next person who trips and gets hurt might be your mother. And she won’t get paid either.

Here’s the website where broken sidewalks can be reported: www1.nyc.gov/nyc-resources/faq/423/how-do-i-report-a-broken-raised-or-uneven-sidewalk

Commit it to memory.