To be able to sue a public entity for a personal injury, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 59:8-8, the injured party must file a notice of claim with that public entity within 90 days of the accrual of the cause of action or be barred from pursuing that claim. There are exceptions to that rule—if the discovery rule applies to delay the accrual date or extraordinary circumstances exist to justify the filing of a late notice of claim. But, the courts strictly construe this Tort Claims Act 90-day notice period and often deny motions for leave to file a late notice of claim by finding the circumstances inadequate to meet the high threshold of “extraordinary circumstances.”

However, the plaintiffs in Estate of Khiev v. South Jersey Transportation Authority, 2024 N.J. Super. Unpub. LEXIS 226 (App. Div. Feb. 14, 2024), met both of those exceptions. They were able to persuade both the trial court and, upon appeal, the Appellate Division that not only did the discovery rule apply to delay the accrual date of their claim but that they also had extraordinary circumstances to justify the filing of a late notice of claim.