The 90-Day Trap: Why Westchester Medical Center Medical Malpractice Claims Don't Get 2.5 Years

OSSINING, NY - Following record-setting $120 million verdict and $35.6 million settlement against the hospital, Westchester NY Medical Malpractice attorney Jeffrey Weiskopf explains the statutory trap most patients never hear about

In the wake of two of the largest medical malpractice results in Westchester County history, both involving Westchester Medical Center, The Law Office of Jeffrey Weiskopf, P.C. is issuing a public reminder to injured patients and their families: claims against WMC are not governed by the same deadlines as claims against private hospitals, and missing the difference can permanently bar a case before it begins.

In November 2023, a Westchester County jury returned a $120 million verdict against the hospital in Lee v. Westchester County Healthcare Corp. - the largest medical malpractice verdict in county history. In October 2024, on the fifth day of a separate trial, the hospital paid $35.6 million to settle the brain-injury claim of a teenage patient, reported as the highest pre-verdict medical malpractice settlement in New York State history.

"What concerns me about these cases is not the dollar figures," said Jeffrey Weiskopf, founding attorney of the firm and an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. "It is the fact that for every family that recovered, there are families who never got past the first 90 days. The clock at Westchester Medical Center is brutal, and almost nobody outside the malpractice bar knows it exists."

A Public Hospital on a Public-Hospital Clock
Westchester Medical Center is operated by the Westchester County Health Care Corporation (WCHCC), a New York State public benefit corporation created under Public Authorities Law § 3303. Unlike White Plains Hospital, Northern Westchester Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian Lawrence, Phelps Memorial, and Montefiore New Rochelle, which are private hospitals on the standard 2.5-year malpractice timeline under CPLR § 214-a, WMC is governed by Public Authorities Law § 3316, which imports the strict municipal framework of General Municipal Law § 50-e.

Under that framework, an injured patient must serve a formal Notice of Claim within 90 days of the malpractice event. The lawsuit itself must be filed within one year and 90 days. WCHCC also has the statutory right to demand a sworn examination of the claimant before suit can proceed.

"Patients walk out of Westchester Medical Center thinking they have two and a half years to figure things out, the same as any other hospital in the county," Weiskopf said. "They do not. They have ninety days to put the hospital on formal written notice, and that document has to meet specific statutory requirements. A poorly drafted notice can be challenged and thrown out."

The Late-Notice Door Is Narrow
General Municipal Law § 50-e(5) permits courts to grant leave to serve a late Notice of Claim, but the standard is demanding. Courts evaluate whether WCHCC had actual knowledge of the essential facts within 90 days, the reasonableness of the patient's delay, and the prejudice to the hospital's defense.

"I tell every family the same thing when they call us late," Weiskopf said. "Do not assume your case is dead, but do not assume it is alive either. The standard for late notice has gotten tighter, not looser, and WCHCC's defense team treats every one of these motions as a fight worth having. The only way to know where you stand is to get the records reviewed quickly."

What Patients and Families Should Do
The Law Office of Jeffrey Weiskopf, P.C. urges anyone who suspects serious harm from care received at Westchester Medical Center, MidHudson Regional Hospital, or any other WCHCC-affiliated facility to consult with a New York medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible - ideally within days of the suspected error, not weeks.

"The hospitals at the center of the Lee and Zemon cases are the same hospitals where patients are walking through the door right now," Weiskopf said. "The standard of care issues do not disappear because a verdict made the news. What protects future patients is the next family that meets the deadline."

Contact: Jeffrey Weiskopf
The Law Office of Jeffrey Weiskopf, P.C.
Phone: (914) 350-5175
Address: 30 State St Suite 2B, Ossining, NY 10562
Website: https://weiskopflaw.com/

About The Law Office of Jeffrey Weiskopf, P.C.

The Law Office of Jeffrey Weiskopf, P.C. is a Westchester County personal injury and medical malpractice firm based in Ossining, New York. Founded by Jeffrey Weiskopf, a trial attorney with nearly 20 years of experience and an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, the firm has recovered more than $20 million for injured New Yorkers. The firm offers free, confidential case evaluations and operates on a contingency-fee basis.

This release was published on openPR.