Pedestrian Accident Complaint

PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT COMPLAINT — NEW JERSEY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption
2. Parties, Jurisdiction, and Venue
3. General Factual Allegations
4. Count I — Negligence (Against Defendant Driver)
5. Count II — Negligence Per Se (Crosswalk / Right-of-Way / Due Care) (Against Defendant Driver)
6. Count III — Negligent Entrustment / Vicarious Liability (Against Defendant Owner)
7. Count IV — Punitive Damages (Against Defendant Driver)
8. Damages
9. Comparative Fault, No-Fault/Threshold, and Insurance Allegations
10. Prayer for Relief
11. Jury Demand
12. Designation of Trial Counsel
13. Certification Pursuant to R. 4:5-1(b)(2)
14. Confidential Personal Identifiers Certification (R. 1:38-7(b))
15. Signature Block
16. New Jersey Practice Notes
17. Sources and References

1. CAPTION

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY

LAW DIVISION — [COUNTY] COUNTY

DOCKET NO. [L-________-____]

CIVIL ACTION

COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES (PEDESTRIAN COLLISION), JURY DEMAND, DESIGNATION OF TRIAL COUNSEL, AND RULE 4:5-1 CERTIFICATION

Plaintiff, [PLAINTIFF NAME], by and through undersigned counsel, by way of Complaint against the Defendants, alleges upon knowledge as to Plaintiff's own acts and upon information and belief as to all other matters, as follows:

2. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE

1. Plaintiff [PLAINTIFF NAME] ("Plaintiff") is an individual residing at [ADDRESS], in the County of [COUNTY], State of New Jersey, and at the time of the Collision described below was lawfully on foot as a pedestrian upon the public roadways of this State.

2. Defendant [DRIVER NAME] ("Driver Defendant") is, upon information and belief, an individual residing at [SERVICE ADDRESS] who, at all material times, operated a motor vehicle in New Jersey.

3. Defendant [OWNER / EMPLOYER NAME] ("Owner Defendant") is [an individual / a corporation / an LLC] with its principal place of business at [ADDRESS] that, at all material times, owned, maintained, controlled, and/or furnished the vehicle operated by Driver Defendant and/or employed Driver Defendant.

4. Fictitious Defendants John Does 1–5 and ABC Corps. 1–5 are persons or entities whose identities are presently unknown to Plaintiff and who negligently caused or contributed to the Collision and Plaintiff's injuries; Plaintiff will amend to substitute their true names when ascertained, pursuant to R. 4:26-4.

5. This action sounds in tort and arises from a motor-vehicle collision in which Plaintiff, a pedestrian, was struck, occurring in [MUNICIPALITY], [COUNTY] County, New Jersey, on [__/__/____].

6. Venue is proper in this County pursuant to R. 4:3-2 because the cause of action arose in [COUNTY] County and/or one or more Defendants resides or conducts business here.

7. This matter places the action on Track [II / III] pursuant to R. 4:5A-1, and the amount in controversy exceeds the threshold for the Special Civil Part.

3. GENERAL FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS

8. On [__/__/____] at approximately [TIME], Plaintiff was lawfully on foot, [crossing within a marked crosswalk / crossing within an unmarked crosswalk at the intersection / walking along the shoulder / SELECT AND DESCRIBE] on or across [ROADWAY] at or near its intersection with [CROSS STREET / LANDMARK / MILE MARKER], in [MUNICIPALITY], New Jersey (the "Collision").

9. At the same time and place, Driver Defendant was operating a [YEAR / MAKE / MODEL] [passenger vehicle / pickup truck / SUV / commercial vehicle] owned by Owner Defendant, traveling [northbound / southbound / etc.] on [ROADWAY].

10. Traffic, lighting, and weather conditions were [describe — e.g., clear, dry, daylight; or dusk with the pedestrian in a marked, signed crosswalk], and Plaintiff was plainly visible to any driver keeping a proper lookout.

11. The Collision occurred when Driver Defendant [SELECT / DESCRIBE THE MANNER OF COLLISION — e.g., failed to stop and remain stopped for Plaintiff in the marked crosswalk; failed to yield and struck Plaintiff in the unmarked crosswalk at the intersection; turned left or right across the crosswalk into Plaintiff's path; failed to keep a proper lookout and struck Plaintiff; was traveling at an excessive or unsafe speed; was distracted by a cell phone or other device; overtook and passed another vehicle that had stopped to allow Plaintiff to cross].

12. Driver Defendant failed to see what was plainly there to be seen, failed to stop and remain stopped or to yield for Plaintiff as New Jersey law requires, and/or failed to exercise the due care required for the safety of a pedestrian.

13. At all material times, Plaintiff was crossing or proceeding with the right-of-way and in a lawful, prudent, and careful manner, and did not leave a curb or place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle so close that it was impossible for the driver to yield or stop.

14. As a direct and proximate result of the Collision, Plaintiff — an unprotected and vulnerable road user with none of the structural protection, restraint systems, or crumple zones of a motor-vehicle occupant — was struck with great force and sustained severe, painful, catastrophic, and permanent bodily injuries, including but not limited to [LIST INJURIES — e.g., traumatic brain injury, displaced orthopedic and pelvic fractures, spinal injury, internal organ injury, degloving and road rash, and significant disfigurement and scarring].

15. Plaintiff received emergency care at [HOSPITAL / EMS PROVIDER] and has since undergone [SURGERIES / HOSPITALIZATION / REHABILITATION / ONGOING TREATMENT], and will require future medical care.

16. All injuries and damages alleged were the foreseeable, natural, and probable consequence of Defendants' conduct.

4. COUNT I — NEGLIGENCE (Against Defendant Driver)

17. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 16 as if fully set forth herein.

18. Driver Defendant owed Plaintiff, a pedestrian lawfully using the roadway, a duty to exercise reasonable care in the operation of a motor vehicle, to obey New Jersey's motor-vehicle statutes and regulations, to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians, to stop and remain stopped or yield the right-of-way where required, and to refrain from conduct endangering others.

19. Driver Defendant breached that duty by, among other things:

• Failing to keep a proper and careful lookout for Plaintiff, a plainly visible pedestrian;
• Failing to stop and remain stopped for Plaintiff in a marked crosswalk, and/or to yield the right-of-way to Plaintiff in an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection;
• Failing to exercise due care for the safety of a pedestrian;
• Turning across or into the path of Plaintiff when it was unsafe to do so;
• Overtaking and passing a vehicle stopped to allow Plaintiff to cross;
• Operating the vehicle at an excessive or unsafe speed for the conditions;
• Driving while distracted or inattentive; and
• Failing to maintain proper control of the vehicle so as to avoid striking Plaintiff.

20. Each of the foregoing acts and omissions, separately and in combination, was a direct and proximate cause of the Collision and of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

21. As a direct and proximate result, Plaintiff has sustained the damages described in Section 8 below.

5. COUNT II — NEGLIGENCE PER SE (CROSSWALK / RIGHT-OF-WAY / DUE CARE) (Against Defendant Driver)

22. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 21 as if fully set forth herein.

23. New Jersey's motor-vehicle statutes impose specific duties on Driver Defendant for the protection of pedestrians such as Plaintiff. These include, as applicable to the manner of the Collision:

• N.J.S.A. 39:4-36 — the driver of a vehicle shall stop and remain stopped to allow a pedestrian to cross within a marked crosswalk when the pedestrian is upon, or within one lane of, the half of the roadway upon which the vehicle is traveling or onto which it is turning, and shall yield the right-of-way to a pedestrian crossing within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection; a driver shall not overtake and pass a vehicle stopped to permit a pedestrian to cross; nothing therein relieves a driver from the duty to exercise due care for the safety of any pedestrian; and, in the event of a collision between a vehicle and a pedestrian within a marked crosswalk, or at an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, there is a permissive inference that the driver did not exercise due care for the safety of the pedestrian (N.J.S.A. 39:4-36(d));
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-66 and 39:4-66.1 — a driver entering or exiting a driveway, private road, alley, or building shall yield the right-of-way to pedestrians on a sidewalk and to traffic when entering a highway;
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-97 (careless driving) and/or N.J.S.A. 39:4-96 (reckless driving) — prohibitions on driving in a manner so as to endanger persons or property; and
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-98 — prohibition on driving at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent.

24. Plaintiff is within the class of persons (pedestrians) the foregoing statutes were enacted to protect, and the Collision is the type of harm those statutes were designed to prevent.

25. Driver Defendant violated [CITE THE SPECIFIC SECTION(S) APPLICABLE], and was cited for [TRAFFIC CITATION, IF ANY].

26. Such statutory violation(s) constitute evidence of negligence, and the permissive inference of N.J.S.A. 39:4-36(d) applies; the violation(s) were a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

6. COUNT III — NEGLIGENT ENTRUSTMENT / VICARIOUS LIABILITY (Against Defendant Owner)

27. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 26 as if fully set forth herein.

28. Owner Defendant owned the subject vehicle and entrusted it to Driver Defendant when Owner Defendant knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known, that Driver Defendant was an incompetent, inexperienced, reckless, or otherwise unfit driver.

29. Alternatively, at the time of the Collision, Driver Defendant was operating the vehicle as the agent, servant, or employee of Owner Defendant and within the course and scope of that agency or employment, rendering Owner Defendant vicariously liable under the doctrine of respondeat superior.

30. Owner Defendant's negligent entrustment and/or vicarious liability was a direct and proximate cause of Plaintiff's injuries and damages.

7. COUNT IV — PUNITIVE DAMAGES (Against Defendant Driver)

31. Plaintiff realleges and incorporates Paragraphs 1 through 30 as if fully set forth herein.

32. Driver Defendant's conduct, including but not limited to [e.g., operating the vehicle while intoxicated; driving at a grossly excessive speed; aggressive or intentional maneuvers; leaving the scene after striking Plaintiff], exhibited actual malice and/or a wanton and willful disregard for the safety of others.

33. Plaintiff is therefore entitled to punitive damages pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.12 to -5.14, in an amount permitted by law.

8. DAMAGES

34. As a direct and proximate result of Defendants' conduct, Plaintiff has suffered and seeks recovery of the following:

• Past and future medical expenses — emergency, ambulance, hospital, surgical, diagnostic, rehabilitative, pharmaceutical, and physician care (subject to any applicable PIP/collateral-source rules);
• Future medical and life care — anticipated surgeries, therapy, assistive devices, and long-term care, to be proven at trial;
• Lost wages and diminished earning capacity — past lost income and the permanent impairment of Plaintiff's ability to earn;
• Physical pain, suffering, disability, impairment, and mental anguish — past and future;
• Permanent injury, physical impairment, and disfigurement, including scarring from road rash and surgical intervention;
• Loss of enjoyment of life; and
• Property damage to clothing, mobility aids, electronics, and personal effects.

35. Plaintiff pleads each category of damage separately and in the alternative, together with pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as allowed by R. 4:42-11.

9. COMPARATIVE FAULT, NO-FAULT/THRESHOLD, AND INSURANCE ALLEGATIONS

36. Plaintiff was free from comparative negligence; alternatively, any negligence attributable to Plaintiff was not greater than the combined negligence of the Defendants under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1, and any award shall be reduced only by Plaintiff's percentage of fault, if any, as determined under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.2.

37. Plaintiff was at all material times a pedestrian and was not the owner, registrant, operator, or occupant of an "automobile" at the time of the Collision. To the extent Plaintiff is not a "named insured" (or qualifying family member) under a New Jersey automobile policy on which the limitation-on-lawsuit ("verbal threshold") option of N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8 was elected, that threshold does not apply to Plaintiff, and Plaintiff may recover for noneconomic loss without satisfying it. In any event, Plaintiff's injuries satisfy the threshold categories of N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a).

38. Plaintiff has complied with, or will comply with, all conditions precedent applicable to any uninsured/underinsured-motorist claim and reserves all rights against the applicable UM/UIM carrier under N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.1.

10. PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Plaintiff demands judgment against Defendants, jointly and severally, as follows:

• A. Compensatory damages (economic and noneconomic) in an amount to be determined by the trier of fact;
• B. Punitive damages on Count IV, consistent with N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.14, where supported by the evidence;
• C. Pre-judgment and post-judgment interest under R. 4:42-11;
• D. Costs of suit and statutory fees; and
• E. Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and equitable.

11. JURY DEMAND

Plaintiff hereby demands a trial by jury on all issues so triable as of right, pursuant to N.J. Const. art. I, ¶ 9 and R. 1:8-1.

12. DESIGNATION OF TRIAL COUNSEL

Pursuant to R. 4:25-4, [ATTORNEY NAME], Esq., is hereby designated as trial counsel for Plaintiff.

13. CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO R. 4:5-1(b)(2)

I certify that, to my knowledge and belief, the matter in controversy is not the subject of any other pending or contemplated action in any court or arbitration proceeding, nor is any other party or non-party known who should be joined in this action at this time, except as may be set forth herein. I recognize the continuing obligation to file and serve an amended certification if circumstances change.

14. CONFIDENTIAL PERSONAL IDENTIFIERS CERTIFICATION (R. 1:38-7(b))

I certify that confidential personal identifiers have been redacted from documents now submitted to the court and will be redacted from all documents submitted in the future in accordance with R. 1:38-7(b).

15. SIGNATURE BLOCK

Respectfully submitted,

Dated: [__/__/____]

/s/ [________________________________]

[ATTORNEY NAME], Esq. (NJ Attorney ID No. [________])

[LAW FIRM NAME]

Attorney for Plaintiff

[STREET ADDRESS]

[CITY, NJ ZIP]

Telephone: [NUMBER]

Email: [EMAIL]

16. NEW JERSEY PRACTICE NOTES

• Statute of limitations. Personal-injury actions must be commenced within two years of accrual. N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2. Claims against public entities require a notice of claim within 90 days under the New Jersey Tort Claims Act (N.J.S.A. 59:8-8).
• Modified comparative negligence. Under the Comparative Negligence Act (N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1 to -5.3), the plaintiff recovers only if the plaintiff's negligence is "not greater than" the combined negligence of the defendants; 50% or less recovers (reduced proportionally), 51% or more is barred. In pedestrian cases the defense will press the pedestrian's own duties — chiefly N.J.S.A. 39:4-36(a)(2) (not leaving a curb/place of safety into the path of a vehicle too close to yield or stop) and 39:4-36(a)(4)/39:4-32–34 (yielding/signal duties when crossing outside a crosswalk) — and may argue distraction, dark clothing, or intoxication.
• Crosswalk right-of-way and the statutory inference. N.J.S.A. 39:4-36 requires drivers to stop and remain stopped for a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk and to yield in an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. Subsection a.(5) preserves the due-care duty, and subsection d. creates a permissive inference that the driver did not exercise due care upon a collision with a pedestrian in a crosswalk — a meaningful pleading and trial advantage. Drivers entering/exiting driveways must yield to pedestrians on the sidewalk (N.J.S.A. 39:4-66/-66.1).
• NO-FAULT / VERBAL THRESHOLD — the central distinction for a struck pedestrian. The limitation-on-lawsuit ("verbal") threshold of N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8 is elected by a "named insured" of an "automobile" policy. A pedestrian who has no NJ auto policy (and is not a covered resident relative of one) is generally not bound by the threshold and may sue for noneconomic loss without a threshold certification. If the pedestrian did elect the threshold on their own auto policy, it attaches to them, and they must plead/prove a threshold-category injury and serve the physician certification under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a) within 60 days of the answer. Catastrophic injuries satisfy the threshold regardless. Confirm coverage, the tort-option election, and current AICRA case law.
• PIP for a struck pedestrian. PIP medical coverage follows the priority of N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4/-4.2: the pedestrian's own auto PIP first, then a resident relative's, then the striking vehicle's PIP, with the Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund available in limited circumstances. This is a coverage question separate from the lawsuit threshold; protect against PIP liens/subrogation.
• UM/UIM and hit-and-run. Where liability coverage is absent or inadequate, the pedestrian's own (or a household) UM/UIM coverage under N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.1 may respond; an unidentified hit-and-run/phantom driver is generally treated as an uninsured motorist subject to corroboration and policy/notice conditions. Preserve and timely notice these claims.
• Punitive damages. Governed by the Punitive Damages Act (N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.9 et seq.); require clear and convincing evidence of actual malice or wanton and willful disregard, capped by N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.14 (generally the greater of five times compensatory damages or $350,000; verify).
• Procedure. A Law Division complaint must include the R. 4:5-1(b)(2) certification, R. 1:38-7(b) redaction certification, and designation of trial counsel (R. 4:25-4). Track assignment is governed by R. 4:5A-1; venue by R. 4:3-2; fictitious-party practice by R. 4:26-4. Service follows R. 4:4 (and out-of-state motorists may be served consistent with long-arm principles).

17. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• New Jersey Statutes (Title 2A — Administration of Civil and Criminal Justice; Title 39 — Motor Vehicles) — https://law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/
• N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 (two-year limitations)
• N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1 to -5.3 (Comparative Negligence Act)
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-36 (driver to yield/stop for pedestrians; permissive inference) — https://law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/title-39/section-39-4-36/
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-32, 39:4-33, 39:4-34 (pedestrian crossing/signal duties); 39:4-66, 39:4-66.1 (yield to pedestrians; entering highway)
• N.J.S.A. 39:4-97 (careless driving); 39:4-96 (reckless driving); 39:4-98 (speed)
• N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2 ("automobile" definition), 39:6A-4 / -4.2 (PIP; priority), 39:6A-8 (tort options / verbal threshold) — https://law.justia.com/codes/new-jersey/title-39/section-39-6a-8/
• N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.1 (uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage)
• N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.9 to -5.14 (Punitive Damages Act and cap)
• New Jersey Court Rules (R. 1:8-1, R. 4:3-2, R. 4:4, R. 4:5-1, R. 4:5A-1, R. 4:25-4, R. 4:26-4, R. 4:42-11, R. 1:38-7)
• New Jersey Model Civil Jury Charges (Motor Vehicle; Comparative Negligence; Pedestrian Right-of-Way; Statutory Violations as Evidence of Negligence)

Disclaimer: This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. An attorney licensed in New Jersey must review and customize this document before filing. Laws, citations, and court rules change frequently; verify all authorities before use.