Under General Municipal Law §50-e, a party suing a municipality must serve a notice of claim within 90 days after the claim arises. The §50-e requirement applies where a plaintiff seeks to bring false arrest and false imprisonment claims against a municipality under state law. The 90-day period within which the notice of claim must be served for false arrest and false imprisonment claims commences on the day plaintiff is released from custody. Gen. Mun. Law §50-e(1)(a). The notice of claim requirement does not apply to claims for false arrest and false imprisonment brought against a municipality under 42 U.S.C. §1983, and dismissal of state law claims on the grounds of late notice would not affect the validity of these federal civil rights claims.

If plaintiff fails to timely serve a notice of claim, the court can exercise its discretionary powers and extend the time to serve a notice of claim. Gen. Mun. Law §50-e(5). In exercising its discretion, a court must consider certain statutory factors, including the following: (1) whether the municipality acquired actual knowledge of the essential facts constituting the claim within 90 days or a reasonable time thereafter; (2) whether granting the petition to file a late notice of claim would substantially prejudice the municipal defendant; and (3) whether the plaintiff offered a reasonable excuse for the delay. See Gen. Mun. Law §50-e.