Beary v. City of Rye

OPINION OF THE COURT

Fuchsberg, J.

These five separate cases against public corporations involve tort claims which cannot be pressed without the filing of a timely notice of claim. Common to all of them is the fact that they accrued more than 90 days before the effective date of recent amendments of subdivision 5 of section 50-e of the General Municipal Law (L 1976, ch 745, § 2). The heart of the question before us, crucial to survival of each case, is whether the new legislation may be applied retrospectively.

The Legislature fixed September 1, 1976 as the effective date of the amendment. It…