New York’s court system is one of the more complicated in the country, with overlapping trial courts whose names do not mean what they sound like. The Supreme Court is not the state’s highest court. The Court of Appeals is.
For anyone with an injury claim, three questions matter: which court hears it, which county it belongs in, and what actually happens after it is filed.
Which Court Hears Your Case
Supreme Court is New York’s trial court of general jurisdiction, with a branch in each of the 62 counties. Nearly every serious personal injury lawsuit is filed here. There is no upper limit on the damages it can award.
New York City Civil Court handles claims up to $50,000 within the five boroughs.
County Courts outside New York City hear civil matters within a limited monetary jurisdiction.
District, City, Town, and Village Courts handle smaller civil matters. Small claims limits are $10,000 in New York City, $5,000 in city courts elsewhere, and $3,000 in town and village courts. These forums are not suitable for injury claims of any significance, and a claim cannot be split into pieces to fit under a cap.
The Court of Claims is the exclusive forum for claims against the State of New York itself, including cases involving state agencies and highways. It has its own filing requirements and deadlines that differ from those for city and county defendants.
The New York State Unified Court System maintains directories for every court in the state.
Where Your Case Belongs
Venue determines which county hears the case. In most injury actions, proper venue lies in a county where a party resides or where the events occurred.
This is not a formality. Jury awards vary meaningfully between counties, and so do calendar congestion and time to trial. When more than one county is proper, the choice is a strategic decision your attorney makes based on where the case is likely to be evaluated most favorably and resolved most efficiently.
How a Lawsuit Begins
A New York action is commenced by filing the summons and complaint with the county clerk, not by serving them. That distinction controls the statute of limitations: the filing date stops the clock. Service on the defendants follows within the time the rules allow.
Most counties require electronic filing through NYSCEF, the state’s e-filing system. The defendant then answers, typically asserting comparative fault among other defenses, and discovery begins.
Filing deadlines are unforgiving. Three years for most negligence claims, two and a half for medical malpractice, two for wrongful death, and as little as 90 days for a notice of claim against a municipality. See our statute of limitations page.
Suing a Government Entity
Claims against cities, counties, school districts, transit authorities, and public hospitals require a notice of claim served within 90 days, followed by suit within one year and 90 days. The municipality may demand a hearing under General Municipal Law § 50-h before you file, and appearing is generally a prerequisite to proceeding.
Claims against the State go to the Court of Claims under a separate schedule. Both paths are procedurally strict, and missing a step forfeits the claim regardless of its merits.
What Happens After Filing
Discovery consumes the most time: document exchange, depositions of every party, independent medical examinations, and motion practice over disputes. This phase commonly runs a year or more.
Mediation often follows depositions, when both sides can evaluate risk against the actual record. The great majority of New York injury cases resolve before verdict. Our case timelines page breaks down each phase.
If a case is tried and appealed, it goes to the Appellate Division, which sits in four departments covering different regions of the state.
Why Filing Changes the Dynamic
An insurer evaluating a pre-suit demand is weighing what it costs to say no. Filing changes that calculation, and it changes it more when the firm across the table actually tries cases.
Our attorneys have selected juries and tried cases in Suffolk, Nassau, Queens, Bronx, Kings, and New York Counties, and have conducted nearly 1,000 depositions in accident-injury actions. That record is why many cases resolve without a verdict at all.
Fault allocation is now the pivotal issue in motor vehicle litigation. Under the 2026 amendment covered in our comparative fault guide, a claimant found more than half responsible recovers nothing, which makes every liability decision in discovery consequential.
Talk to a New York Personal Injury Attorney
You do not need to understand court structure to bring a claim. That is what your attorney handles. Buttafuoco & Associates has been filing and trying injury cases in New York courts since 1981.
Whether you need an Albany personal injury lawyer for a Capital Region case, a Rochester personal injury lawyer in Monroe County, or representation downstate, request a free case review, or contact us online. You owe no attorney’s fee unless we recover for you.