Personal Injury Lawyer in Far Rockaway, Queens
Far Rockaway sits at the eastern end of a narrow barrier peninsula, with the ocean on one side, Jamaica Bay on the other, and the Nassau County line a few streets away at Inwood. Almost everything about injury claims here follows from that geography: a small number of through routes carrying all the traffic, a public beach and boardwalk that draw crowds for four months a year, and a border that decides which set of rules applies to your case. It is one of the few parts of Queens where the answer to “where exactly did this happen?” can change everything.
The county line at Inwood
Cross Mott Avenue eastward and you leave New York City for the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County. On the Queens side, the NYPD responds, the case is filed in Queens County, and City rules govern sidewalks and roadways. A few hundred yards away in Inwood, Nassau County Police respond and the case belongs in Nassau County Supreme Court. Reports get requested from the wrong agency and claims get prepared for the wrong venue more often than you would expect on a border this quiet.
What does not change is the timetable when a public body is responsible. Whether the defendant is the City of New York, the MTA, Nassau County or the Town of Hempstead, a Notice of Claim under General Municipal Law § 50-e is due within 90 days, followed by a sworn 50-h hearing and suit within one year and 90 days. Against a private party you have the three years under CPLR 214.
The beach and boardwalk
The beach, the boardwalk and the surrounding recreational facilities are public property, which puts the 90-day Notice of Claim in play for injuries there — a boardwalk plank that has lifted or splintered, a missing or damaged railing, a broken access ramp, poor lighting on a stairway to the sand.
There is a second doctrine worth knowing about here. New York recognizes a limited form of primary assumption of risk for injuries arising from the inherent risks of a sporting or recreational activity — the risks that make the activity what it is. The ordinary comparative fault rule in CPLR 1411 otherwise applies, meaning a share of fault reduces recovery proportionally without barring it. The important limit is that assumption of risk does not cover concealed or unreasonably enhanced dangers. Rough surf is an inherent risk of swimming. A rotted plank in a boardwalk is not an inherent risk of walking, and treating it as one is an argument to resist rather than accept.
Traffic on the peninsula
Beach Channel Drive, Seagirt Boulevard, Mott Avenue and the Rockaway Freeway carry essentially all of the peninsula’s traffic, including buses and the vehicles serving a hospital and several care facilities. Under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1146 drivers owe a standing duty of due care to avoid colliding with pedestrians and cyclists on the roadway, whether or not there is a crosswalk.
No-fault covers your treatment and part of your lost earnings regardless of fault — including for passengers, pedestrians and cyclists — with the NF-2 generally due within 30 days. Compensation for the injury itself requires the serious injury threshold in Insurance Law § 5102(d). Where the driver fled or carried no insurance, the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation (MVAIC) may respond for a qualified New York resident, on short deadlines and only with a police report.
Frequently Asked Questions
I was hurt on the boardwalk. Doesn’t going to the beach mean I accepted the risk?
No. Assumption of risk covers dangers inherent in an activity, not defects in the property you were walking on. A splintered or lifted plank, a missing railing or an unlit stair is a maintenance failure, and it is exactly the sort of condition a property owner is expected to find and fix. Expect the argument; it is not a reason to walk away.
I’m not sure whether I was in Queens or Nassau when it happened. Does it matter?
It matters a great deal — for which police report exists, which court hears the case, and which public entity would need to be served. It is also easy to resolve from the location itself. If you are unsure, tell us the nearest cross street and we will work it out; do not guess and do not delay on the strength of a guess.
I can’t easily travel to an office. Is that a problem?
No. We handle consultations by phone and make home and hospital visits, which matters on a peninsula where getting anywhere takes a while and many injured clients are not driving. You should not be choosing a lawyer based on how far you can travel.
The City says the boardwalk area was closed. Does that end it?
Not automatically. Whether an area was genuinely closed, whether the closure was marked in a way an ordinary person would notice, and whether people routinely used it anyway are all questions of fact. Photographs of the signage and barriers as they actually appeared on the day are worth taking immediately, because they change quickly after an incident.
Courts that hear Far Rockaway injury cases
- Queens County Supreme Court, Civil Term — 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica, and 25-10 Court Square, Long Island City.
- NYC Civil Court, Queens County — 89-17 Sutphin Boulevard, Jamaica.
- Incidents on the Nassau side of the line are heard in Nassau County Supreme Court instead.
Our Office & Directions from Far Rockaway
Yakov Mushiyev & Associates, PC
1 Cross Island Plaza, Suite 325
Rosedale, NY 11422
Phone: 718.775.3110
Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Home and hospital visits available.
Open these directions in Google Maps
Request a Free Case Review
Nearby: Rosedale · Inwood · Cedarhurst · Springfield Gardens · Premises Liability Practice · All Queens Locations
This page is general information about New York law, not legal advice about your situation. Every case turns on its own facts, and deadlines vary. Speak with an attorney before relying on anything here.