Gregory v. Monroe County Water Authority

795 F. Supp. 92, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11823, 1992 WL 188277
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. New York
DecidedJuly 31, 1992
DocketNo. 92-CV-6006
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 795 F. Supp. 92 (Gregory v. Monroe County Water Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gregory v. Monroe County Water Authority, 795 F. Supp. 92, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11823, 1992 WL 188277 (W.D.N.Y. 1992).

Opinion

DECISION AND ORDER

TELESCA, Chief Judge.

This diversity action arises from an accident that occurred on October 4, 1990 in Greece, New York, and which resulted in the death of Michael E. Parks. His mother Frances I. Gregory, as personal representative of his estate, brings this action against the Monroe County Water Authority (“MCWA”) and Durocher Dock and Dredge, Inc. (“Durocher”) for the wrongful death of her son. Ms. Gregory is a citizen of Maryland. Pursuant to the § 1109 of the Public Authorities Law, plaintiff filed a notice of claim on December 31, 1990.

Michael E. Parks (“Decedent”) was a commercial diver employed with Parks Diving Corporation (“Parks Diving”), a Maryland corporation. In September of 1990, MCWA and Durocher entered into a contract whereby Durocher agreed to provide certain construction services and equipment for the “Zebra Muscle Control Strategy, Installations of Intake Piping Contract 1G” (the “Zebra Project”), an intake pipe at the Shoremont Water Treatment Plant. Also during that month, Durocher and Parks Diving entered into an agreement whereby Parks Diving would provide cer[93]*93tain services and equipment for the Zebra Project.

On October 4, 1990, the Decedent was engaged in underwater construction work inside a pipe extending from the M.CWA facility to Lake Ontario at the Zebra Project. Plaintiff alleges that because of defendants’ negligence: (1) the facility’s pumping system was not deactivated causing strong currents and pressure inside of the pipe, and (2) the blueprints provided to Parks Diving were inaccurate and did not show a second pipe which exacerbated the strong currents and pressure. Plaintiff states in her complaint that as a result of this negligence, Decedent was caught in the strong cross currents and drowned.

Defendant MCWA now moves to dismiss the claims against it. Plaintiff opposes this motion and cross moves to amend her complaint.

DISCUSSION

I. PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND COMPLAINT

Plaintiff has cross moved under Rule 15 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for an order granting plaintiff leave to amend her complaint. Under Fed. R.Civ.P. 15(a), leave to amend a pleading “shall be freely given when justice so requires.” In the absence of undue delay, bad faith, dilatory motive on the part of the movant, or undue prejudice to the opposing party by virtue of allowance of the amendment, the amendment will be granted. Foman v. Davis, 371 U.S. 178, 182, 83 S.Ct. 227, 230, 9 L.Ed.2d 222 (1962).

Generally, plaintiff’s proposed amendments state that the complaint alleges two separate causes of action, for wrongful death and for personal injury, each for one million dollars; and, that a notice of claim was timely filed as required by General Municipal Law § 50-i(l)(b). Plaintiff’s amendments are not substantial and if allowed would not unduly prejudice the defendants. Defendants do not allege undue delay, bad faith, or dilatory motive on the part of the plaintiff. Plaintiff’s motion to amend her complaint is, therefore, granted.

II. DEFENDANT MCWA’S MOTION TO DISMISS

MCWA moves to dismiss plaintiff’s claims for the following reasons: (a) the action was filed after the statute of limitations had run; (b) the plaintiff lacks capacity to sue for wrongful death; (c) the complaint does not state two separate causes of action, one for personal injuries and one for wrongful death; and (d) the notice of claim was made only for the wrongful death claim and not for the personal injury claim. As stated above, this Court has allowed an amendment to the complaint providing two separate causes of action, thus MCWA’s claim regarding this issue will not be addressed further.

1. Statute of limitations

MCWA claims that the personal injury action against it is untimely. MCWA argues that Title 8-A of the Public Authorities Law (“PAL”), the New York State Local Water and Sewer Authority Act (the “Act”), applies to the MCWA; and, specifically, that § 1196-m(l) of the PAL sets forth the applicable statute of limitations for actions against the MCWA. Defendant MCWA further states that § 204(a) of the CPLR has been interpreted to add a thirty day extension to the statutory one-year period. MCWA argues that this action is outside of the prescribed statute of limitations because it was filed on January 6, 1992, one year and ninety four days after Decedent’s death, and sixty four days after the expiration of the statute of limitations.

The question of whether § 1196-m(l) sets the applicable statute of limitations for personal injury actions against the MCWA has not been previously addressed by any court and there is no legislative history regarding the applicability of Title 8-A to the MCWA. To construe the meaning of this statute, it is therefore necessary to look at the plain language in the statute.

Section 1196-m of the PAL states that, with the exception of wrongful death actions,

no action or proceeding shall be prosecuted or maintained against an authori[94]*94ty for personal injury or damage to real or personal property alleged to have been sustained by reason of the negligence or wrongful act of the authority or any member, officer, agent or employee thereof, unless ... (c) the action or proceeding shall be commenced within one year after the happening of the event upon which the claim in based. An action against the authority for wrongful death shall be commenced in accordance with the notice of claim an time limitation provisions of title eleven of article nine of this chapter, (emphasis added).

Defendant argues that the MCWA is “an authority” covered by this section. Plaintiff contends, however, that the restricted statute of limitations of § 1196-m(l) does not apply to the MCWA but only to “authorities” established pursuant to Title 8-A, after its enactment. According to the plaintiff, the three-year statute of limitations of CPLR § 214(5) controls.

Title 8-A, § 1196-b(l) defines “authority” as “a water authority or sewerage authority organized pursuant to the provisions of this title ” (emphasis added). The MCWA was created prior to the enactment of Title 8-A and pursuant to Title 5 of the Public Authorities Law. § 1094(1) of Title 5 defines “authority” as “the corporation created by section one thousand ninety-five of this title,” i.e. the Monroe County Water Authority. Since the MCWA was not created pursuant to Title 8-A, it seems to fall outside of the scope of authorities covered under that title.

Neither Title 8-A nor Title 5 cross-reference the other, and Title 8-A does not address its applicability to already existing authorities such as MCWA. Significantly, Title 5 has its own provision regarding actions against the MCWA in § 1109. Furthermore, recent amendments to § 1109 of Title 5 provide a requirement of notice of claim in tort actions against MCWA and a two-year statute of limitations in wrongful death actions against MCWA.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
795 F. Supp. 92, 1992 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 11823, 1992 WL 188277, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gregory-v-monroe-county-water-authority-nywd-1992.