Bus Accidents Lawyer in New York

Bus Accidents are accidents in which people are injured physically and/or emotionally by or in buses. The personal injury laws relating to bus accidents help determine which individuals were at fault for the incident, which individuals need to pay for medical treatment, and which individuals need to pay for vehicle repairs.  

Public vs. Private Bus Ownership

The heart of a personal injury case as it relates to a bus accident is whether the bus company is privately or publicly owned. If private, the personal injury laws and processes are identical to that for a car accident. If public, the personal injury laws, and processes will be altered in the following ways:  

• The legal process will, as a whole, be accelerated.
• Special procedural requirements will be set to make a claim 
• The total amount of damages that individuals can claim will be capped: While the government agency will set a cap on the amounts of damages that an individual can claim, these agencies often deny non-economic damages and punitive damages altogether, meaning an individual cannot sue for “pain and suffering.”   
• “Sovereign Immunity” may be granted: If the employee(s) driving the publicly owned bus are also public servants – a.k.a government employees – “sovereign immunity” protection can be granted, meaning discretionary immunity was granted to the governmental unit (as an agency) or its employees. While sovereign immunity will make the process more regimented from a procedural standpoint, it does not mean that you are not able to sue a government-owned-and-operated bus.  

Legal Process for a Bus Accident Personal Injury Lawsuit 

If you have been in a bus accident, the first step in the legal process is filing a notice of claim, which essentially alerts the bus company and your local courts that you are intending to sue the bus company. While this does not effectively commence a lawsuit, it is a necessary step to take as not filing a notice of claim results in the loss of your ability to sue. One must also remember to respect the statute of limitations which, in this case, is typically two (2) or more years. If you have been injured by another passenger in a said bus, and not injured by the negligent or deliberately reckless actions of the bus driver, your claim will be a civil suit rather than an accident suit.  

If you have been injured in a bus accident in New York, call us today at (646) 766-8308 or contact us online. Our team of experienced personal injury lawyers are ready to help.