The New Jersey Tort Claims Act applies to tort actions against public entities or their employees. In this case, the term public entity includes State, county, municipality, district, public authority, public agency, and any other political subdivision or public body in the State. The New Jersey Tort Claims Act provides limitations to which these public entities are liable for their negligence.
One unique aspect of the New Jersey Tort Claims Act is that the potential plaintiff must provide notice within 90 days of the incident. This is an extremely short period of time to file a claim, which is why it is imperative that your attorney is experienced with these types of claims and that you contact him or her immediately after your incident.
While the Tort Claims Act provides protection for the government entity and its’ employees, public employees may not act in complete disregard for the rights of others. It must be proved that the public employee’s conduct was outside the scope of his employment or constituted a crime, actual fraud, actual malice or willful misconduct.
If you have been injured on public property or by an employee of a governmental entity, contact our Claims Tort Act attorneys for a free consultation.