Annotated sample complaint: pedestrian struck in a crosswalk
A pedestrian crossing a New York City street in a marked crosswalk is struck and knocked down by a car. The driver of the car also owns it. The pedestrian sues that driver in the Supreme Court for personal injuries. There is one plaintiff and one defendant, and no city vehicle, rideshare, or bicycle is involved.
This sample is also available as a Word file with the blanks highlighted and no notes.
Reading this sample
- The left column is sample text. Words in brackets, like [plaintiff's full name], are blanks. Everything else is the sample wording, which may or may not fit a particular accident.
- The right column explains, in general terms, what each paragraph is for and which rules it relates to. It is the same for every reader and does not say whether any paragraph fits a particular case.
- Each sample fits only the situation described at its top. Paragraphs for other situations, such as passengers, intersections, city vehicles, rideshares, and family members' claims, are in the paragraph catalog.
- Several rules for car accident lawsuits changed for cases started on or after May 26, 2026. The notes describe the rules for those cases; complaints filed earlier, including ones viewed in the court's filing system, may reflect the older rules.
Caption
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF [COUNTY NAME]
COMPLAINT
The same caption as in the two-vehicle sample, with one plaintiff and one defendant. The index number is assigned by the county clerk when the case is filed and the fee is paid (CPLR 306-a, 8018). A complaint is usually filed together with a separate paper called a summons (CPLR 304), which is not part of this sample.
Opening paragraph
Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name], appearing pro se, alleges upon information and belief, except as to matters within the personal knowledge of Plaintiff, as follows:
The opening paragraph says who is suing. "Pro se" means the plaintiff is representing himself or herself without a lawyer. "Upon information and belief" is traditional wording for allegations based on what the plaintiff has learned rather than seen personally.
The parties
At all times relevant herein, Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] was and remains a person entitled to maintain this action.
States that the plaintiff is a person who can bring the case. A child under 18 sues through a parent or guardian instead (CPLR 1201), and a child's claim must be brought by a lawyer (CPLR 321(a)); the catalog has a paragraph for a child plaintiff.
At all times hereinafter mentioned, Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] was and still is a resident of the State of [state where the plaintiff lives].
Where each party lives matters for venue, meaning which county's court may hear the case (CPLR 503(a)). Residence is stated as of the time the case is started.
At all times hereinafter mentioned, Defendant [defendant's full name] was and still is a resident of the State of [state where the defendant lives].
The defendant's residence also bears on venue, and on where and how the defendant can be served with the summons and complaint. A defendant who lives outside New York can generally still be sued here over an accident that happened in New York (CPLR 302(a)).
Jurisdiction and venue
This Court has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of this action, and venue is properly laid in [county where the case is filed] pursuant to CPLR 503, based upon the residence or principal office of one or more of the parties and/or the county in which a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claims occurred.
The Supreme Court is New York's general trial court and can hear cases of any size. Venue is generally proper in a county where any party lived when the case began, or where a substantial part of the events happened (CPLR 503(a)).
The vehicle and its owner
At all times hereinafter mentioned, Defendant [defendant's full name] was the owner of the motor vehicle bearing [state that issued the defendant's plate] State license plate number [defendant's license plate number] operated by said Defendant and involved in the occurrence alleged herein.
There is no paragraph about a plaintiff's vehicle, since the plaintiff was on foot. In this sample the defendant owned and drove the car; when the owner and the driver are different people or companies, the catalog's separate-owner paragraphs are used.
At all times hereinafter mentioned, Defendant [defendant's full name] owned, operated, maintained, controlled, repaired, and used the motor vehicle bearing [state that issued the defendant's plate] State license plate number [defendant's license plate number] involved in the occurrence alleged herein.
Under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 388 Evidence, a vehicle's owner is generally responsible for negligence of anyone driving it with the owner's permission. When the owner is also the driver, this paragraph alleges both ownership and operation.
How the accident happened
On or about [date of the accident], at approximately [approximate time], at or near [street address or intersection where the accident happened], Plaintiff was involved in an occurrence involving a motor vehicle bearing [state that issued the defendant's plate] State license plate number [defendant's license plate number] and a pedestrian.
States when and where the plaintiff was struck. These details are usually checked against the police accident report, photographs, and video. Video from traffic cameras, buses, and businesses is often recorded over quickly, so it is commonly requested early.
Plaintiff was within a marked crosswalk at or near [location of the crosswalk], and Defendant [defendant's full name] failed to exercise reasonable care to observe and respond to Plaintiff's presence.
Used when the pedestrian was in a marked crosswalk. Where no traffic signal is operating, drivers generally must yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1151(a) Evidence); at a signal, drivers turning across a crosswalk generally must yield to pedestrians crossing lawfully (§ 1111(a)(1)). The catalog has paragraphs for crossing outside a crosswalk, stepping out suddenly, and darkness or poor visibility.
Defendant [defendant's full name] failed to maintain a proper lookout, failed to observe conditions reasonably observable from the vehicle bearing [state that issued the defendant's plate] State license plate number [defendant's license plate number], and failed to take reasonable action to avoid the occurrence.
Alleges that the driver failed to keep a proper lookout. Drivers must use due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1146(a) Evidence). A paragraph like this is often paired with a crosswalk or intersection paragraph.
Cause of action: personal injury
AS AND FOR A FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION
ON BEHALF OF PLAINTIFF [PLAINTIFF'S FULL NAME]
(Negligence: Personal Injury)
Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] repeats, reiterates, and realleges each and every allegation set forth above with the same force and effect as if fully set forth herein.
The only cause of action in this sample, still numbered "FIRST." There is no property-damage claim, although damaged belongings such as a phone or clothing can be the subject of one.
Plaintiff alleges that, at the time of the occurrence, a motor vehicle, bicycle, device, or other instrumentality involved in the occurrence came into contact with the person of Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name], and that such contact caused and/or contributed to the personal injuries alleged herein.
Alleges that the vehicle came into contact with the plaintiff and that this caused the injuries. The wording also mentions bicycles and other devices because the same paragraph is used in those cases.
As a result of the occurrence, Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] sustained physical injuries and associated pain, suffering, limitations, and other damages to the extent established by the evidence.
A general statement that the plaintiff was injured. Complaints often describe injuries broadly; the details come out later in a bill of particulars and medical records. The catalog has more specific paragraphs for injured body parts, medical treatment and expenses, and lost earnings.
The occurrence and resulting injuries were caused solely by the negligence, carelessness, and recklessness of the Defendant or Defendants, without any negligence or culpable conduct on the part of Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] contributing thereto.
In pedestrian cases, defendants commonly argue that the pedestrian was partly at fault, for example by crossing against the signal. An injured pedestrian's claim also comes under the no-fault law, so for lawsuits started on or after May 26, 2026, a pedestrian whose share of fault is greater than the defendant's cannot recover, and a smaller share reduces the award (CPLR 1411(b) Evidence). This paragraph states that the plaintiff was not at fault, subject to the signer's certification that it is not frivolous (22 NYCRR 130-1.1a).
Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] sustained a serious injury as defined in Insurance Law § 5102(d) and/or economic loss greater than basic economic loss as defined in Insurance Law § 5102(a).
By reason of the foregoing, Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name] has been damaged in an amount that exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts that would otherwise have jurisdiction.
A pedestrian struck by a car is generally covered by no-fault insurance, so the same limits apply as for drivers: pain and suffering only for a "serious injury" (Insurance Law § 5102(d) Evidence), and economic loss only above what no-fault covers (Insurance Law § 5104(a) Evidence). For cases started on or after May 26, 2026, the 90-of-180-days category of serious injury was removed, and the jury decides fault before deciding whether an injury is serious (Insurance Law § 5104(a)). No dollar amount is stated for personal injuries (CPLR 3017(c)).
Closing paragraphs
By reason of the foregoing, the liability of the Defendant or Defendants is joint and several. To the extent any Defendant seeks the benefit of CPLR Article 16, Plaintiff alleges that Article 16 does not limit liability herein, including under the exceptions set forth in CPLR 1602, and that Plaintiff is entitled to recover the full amount of damages from each Defendant found liable.
Points to the motor-vehicle exception (CPLR 1602) to CPLR Article 16, which otherwise can limit a defendant who is 50 percent or less at fault to that share of non-economic damages (CPLR 1601). With one defendant it usually matters less; the multi-vehicle sample shows a case with two.
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff demands judgment against the Defendant as follows:
(a) On the First Cause of Action, on behalf of Plaintiff [plaintiff's full name], for personal injuries, in an amount that exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts that would otherwise have jurisdiction; and
(b) The costs and disbursements of this action, together with interest as permitted by law, and such other and further relief as this Court deems just and proper.
With one cause of action there are two lettered items: the personal-injury demand, and costs and interest. Consistent with CPLR 3017(c), no dollar figure is stated for personal injuries.
Dated: [county where the complaint is signed] County, New York
____________________, 20____
The place and date of signing. The date is usually filled in by hand when the final version is signed.
______________________________
[PLAINTIFF'S FULL NAME]
Plaintiff pro se
[plaintiff's mailing address]
Telephone: ____________________
Email: ____________________
A plaintiff without a lawyer signs the complaint personally, with the name printed below the signature (22 NYCRR 130-1.1a(a)), and lists an address and telephone number (CPLR 2101(d)). Signing certifies that, to the best of the signer's knowledge after reasonable inquiry, the paper is not frivolous (22 NYCRR 130-1.1a(b)).
What this sample leaves out
- The summons, which is filed with the complaint and tells the defendant how and when to respond (CPLR 304, 305).
- A notice of claim, which is generally required within 90 days when the vehicle belonged to New York City, a transit agency, or another public entity (General Municipal Law § 50-e Evidence).
- The application for no-fault benefits, which generally must be made in writing to the insurer within 30 days of the accident. It is separate from the lawsuit.
- Paragraphs for crossing outside a crosswalk, stepping out suddenly, and darkness or poor visibility, and a family member's claim for loss of services. These are in the catalog.
- A verification (CPLR 3020), a jury demand (CPLR 4102), proof of service, and later papers such as a bill of particulars.
Other sample paragraphs are in the paragraph catalog. Other samples: two-vehicle rear-end collision; three-vehicle chain collision.
Last reviewed October 2026. Sample text is general and may be out of date.