New Mexico Tort Claims Act Lawyer

What Is the New Mexico Tort Claims Act?

The New Mexico Tort Claims Act (NMSA 1978, Chapter 41, Article 4) is the law that gives you a limited right to sue a governmental entity. Without it, sovereign immunity would bar the case entirely.

“Governmental entity” is broad — it includes the State of New Mexico and its agencies, counties, municipalities, school districts, public hospitals, and their employees acting within the scope of their duties. But the Act only waives immunity in specific situations, and it limits how much you can recover.

When Can You Sue a Government Entity in New Mexico?

The Act waives immunity for the negligence of public employees acting within the scope of their duties in a defined list of situations, including:

• Operation or maintenance of motor vehicles, aircraft, and watercraft
• Operation of buildings, public parks, and public utilities
• Maintenance of highways, streets, and roadways
• Health care provided in public hospitals and medical facilities
• Law enforcement conduct in certain circumstances

Common examples include a city bus or government vehicle collision, a fall caused by a hazard at a public building, a dangerous road condition, and negligence at a public hospital.

The 90-Day Notice Requirement

This is where most claims are lost. Under NMSA §41-4-16, written notice of the claim must be given to the appropriate governmental entity within 90 days after the occurrence. The notice must state the time, place, and circumstances of the loss or injury.

No lawsuit for which immunity has been waived may proceed, and no court has jurisdiction, unless this notice is given — the only exception is where the entity already had actual notice of the injury. A separate two-year statute of limitations (NMSA §41-4-15) also applies to suits against governmental entities, which is shorter than the ordinary three-year personal-injury deadline. Because both clocks run fast, these claims must be reviewed immediately.

Damage Caps Under the Act

Even when immunity is waived, NMSA §41-4-19 limits what you can recover. The caps are:

• $400,000 to any person for all damages other than property and medical expenses (this includes pain and suffering and lost income)
• $300,000 for all past and future medical and medically related expenses arising out of a single occurrence
• $200,000 for damage to or destruction of real property

Punitive damages are not recoverable against a governmental entity. Because the caps are firm, building the strongest possible case for the damages that are available matters enormously.

How Law Giant Injury Lawyers Handle These Cases

These cases turn on procedure as much as proof. We identify every responsible entity, prepare and serve the required 90-day notice well inside the deadline, and preserve evidence — dispatch and maintenance records, incident reports, and video that public entities routinely overwrite.

We also look past the government entity. A contractor, maintenance company, or equipment manufacturer may share responsibility and may not be protected by immunity or subject to the caps at all. With over $1 Billion recovered for injury victims, Law Giant Injury Lawyers has the resources to take these cases on. Call 505-900-0000 — you pay nothing unless we win.