Slip and Fall Lawyer in Kew Gardens Hills, NY
In Kew Gardens Hills, the owner of the place where you fell might be a Main Street shopkeeper, a private landlord, a synagogue, the New York City Housing Authority or a college that belongs to the State. Each is responsible for its own property — but three of them are public bodies with notice deadlines of about three months.
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Falls in NYCHA Housing
The Pomonok Houses, a large New York City Housing Authority development, sit just to the northeast in the Pomonok area, and many Kew Gardens Hills families live there. Falls in NYCHA buildings often involve broken or uneven interior stairs, missing handrails, poorly lit stairwells, wet lobby floors, defective elevators that stop out of level, and ice on the paths and steps between buildings.
NYCHA is a public authority, and its rules are strict. Under Public Housing Law §157, a written notice of claim must be served on NYCHA within 90 days of the fall, NYCHA may require you to give testimony at a hearing before you sue, and the lawsuit must be filed within one year and 90 days. Courts can sometimes allow a late notice, but it is far better not to need one. Keep copies of any repair requests you or your neighbors made about the condition; they show NYCHA knew.
Main Street Shops
Main Street's kosher groceries, bakeries and stores are busiest before Shabbat and holidays, when aisles are crowded and floors near entrances get wet. A store owner must keep its floors reasonably safe. You generally need to show the store created the hazard, knew about it, or should have discovered it — for example, a spill with cart tracks through it, or a broken floor tile that had been there for weeks. The owner of a commercial building is also responsible for the sidewalk in front of it under Administrative Code §7-210.
Synagogues, Schools and Other Institutions
Religious and educational buildings are held to the same standard as any other property owner. Falls on worn steps, in crowded halls after services, on wet floors near entrances or on unlit exterior stairs can support claims against the institution, which normally carries liability insurance for the purpose.
Queens College
Queens College is a senior college of the City University of New York, and claims against CUNY's senior colleges are generally heard in the New York Court of Claims rather than in Queens County Supreme Court. A claim — or a notice of intention to file one — is generally due within 90 days of the fall under the Court of Claims Act. If you fell on a campus path, stairway or in a campus building, deal with that deadline first.
Residential Sidewalks
On the side streets, in front of owner-occupied one-, two- and three-family homes, the City of New York, not the homeowner, is generally responsible for sidewalk defects. A claim against the City requires a notice of claim within 90 days under General Municipal Law §50-e and usually proof that the City had prior written notice of the defect.
Bus Stops and Long Walks
With no subway station in the neighborhood, most trips start with a walk to a bus — the Q44 Select Bus Service and the Q20 on Main Street, the Q64 on Jewel Avenue, the Q46 on Union Turnpike. Falls happen at bus stops and while boarding: a bus pulling away before a rider is seated, a step down onto a broken curb, an icy patch at a stop that no one cleared. A fall caused by the bus or its driver is a claim against the Transit Authority or MTA Bus, with a 90-day notice of claim. A fall caused by the sidewalk at the stop depends on who owns the property next to it. Note the route, the direction and the time, so the bus and its camera footage can be identified.
Fault
New York applies pure comparative fault to falls under CPLR §1411; your share of responsibility reduces your recovery but does not bar it. The stricter 2026 rule for motor-vehicle cases does not reach falls.
After a Fall
NewYork-Presbyterian Queens in Flushing and Queens Hospital Center in Jamaica are the closest emergency departments. Photograph the exact spot, report the fall in writing to the building's management, and get witnesses' contact information. Kew Gardens Hills is in the NYPD's 107th Precinct.
Deadlines
- NYCHA and the City: notice of claim within 90 days; suit within one year and 90 days.
- CUNY senior colleges and the State: Court of Claims, generally within 90 days.
- Private owners: generally three years under CPLR §214; these cases are heard in Queens County Supreme Court, Civil Term.
Talk to Us
We are two miles east along Union Turnpike — one Q46 ride. The consultation is free and there is no fee unless we win. See our slips, trips and falls practice, or meet the attorneys and staff on our team page.
Davidov & Cohen Law, PLLC
185-22 Union Tpke, Suite 203
Fresh Meadows, NY 11366
(718) 328-8001
Nearby: car accidents in Kew Gardens Hills, construction accidents in Kew Gardens Hills and slip and fall injuries in Fresh Meadows.
Common questions
I fell on a broken stair in a NYCHA building that we had complained about for months. Does that help?
Yes. Repair requests and complaints show NYCHA knew about the condition. Keep copies and the dates. The 90-day notice deadline still applies, so do not wait for NYCHA to respond.
I fell in a store on Main Street on a Friday afternoon. Can we meet after Shabbat?
Of course. We schedule around religious observance; call during the week and we will find a time.
Can a synagogue be held responsible for a fall?
Yes. Religious institutions must keep their property reasonably safe like any other owner, and they normally carry insurance for these claims.
This page is general information about New York law for people in Kew Gardens Hills, Queens. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case depends on its own facts. Attorney Advertising.
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