What did the court decide?

The appellate court affirmed the denial of defendants' motion to dismiss, ruling that the defendants cannot claim sovereign immunity because the controlling decisions held New Jersey Transit is not an arm of the State.

Who is affected by this decision?

The plaintiff (Edwards) and the defendants (NJTBO and the driver) are directly affected; the ruling also limits sovereign-immunity defenses by NJ Transit entities in similar cases.

What happens next in the case?

The litigation proceeds on the merits of the personal-injury claim in the trial court because the dismissal on immunity grounds was denied.

Can the defendants appeal further?

Defendants could seek further review only by petitioning the Court of Appeals or federal review where appropriate, but the Appellate Division's decision relied on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Galette.

Edwards v. New Jersey Tr. Bus Operations, Inc.

Docket Index No. 153876/16|Appeal No. 4970|Case No. 2023-00122|

Court of record · Indexed in NoticeRegistry archive · AI-enriched for research

CivilAffirmed

Filed: May 5, 2026 · yesterday
Jurisdiction: New York
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
Type: Opinion
Case type: Civil
Disposition: Affirmed
Citation: 2026 NY Slip Op 02777
Docket numbers: Index No153876/16Appeal No4970Case No2023-00122

Appeal from denial of defendants' motion to dismiss a personal-injury complaint for lack of jurisdiction based on sovereign immunity.

Summary

The Appellate Division, First Department affirmed a lower court order denying defendants' motion to dismiss a personal-injury complaint on sovereign-immunity grounds. Plaintiff was injured when a bus owned by New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc. (NJTBO) struck her vehicle. Defendants argued NJTBO is an arm of New Jersey and therefore immune, but the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Galette (which affirmed the New York Court of Appeals in Colt) held that New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT) is not an arm of the State. Because NJTBO's immunity claim depends on NJT's status, the court concluded immunity does not apply and affirmed the denial of dismissal.

Issues Decided

Whether New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc. may invoke sovereign immunity as an arm of the State of New Jersey to defeat a personal-injury suit.
Whether the lower court properly denied defendants' motion to dismiss based on the then-contested arm-of-the-state status of New Jersey Transit entities.
Whether plaintiff's opposition papers were fatally defective for including legal discussion in an attorney affirmation.

Court's Reasoning

The court relied on the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Galette, which affirmed the New York Court of Appeals in Colt that New Jersey Transit Corporation is not an arm of the State and therefore not entitled to sovereign immunity. Because NJTBO's asserted immunity depended on NJT's arm-of-the-state status, NJTBO cannot claim sovereign immunity. The court also held that any technical defects in plaintiff's opposition could be overlooked under the court rules and CPLR 2001, so dismissal was not warranted.

Authorities Cited

Galette v New Jersey Transit Corporation607 U.S. —, 146 S. Ct. 854 (2026)
Colt v New Jersey Transit Corporation43 NY3d 463 (2025)
CPLR 2001

Parties

Plaintiff: Geneithe I. Edwards
Defendant: New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc.
Defendant: Salvatore Vicari, Jr.
Appellant: New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc., et al.
Respondent: Geneithe I. Edwards
Judge: James G. Clynes (Supreme Court, New York County)

Key Dates

Decision date: 2026-05-05
Lower court order entered: 2022-07-08

What You Should Do Next

1
Proceed to discovery and trial
Plaintiff and defendants should continue litigation on the merits, completing discovery and preparing for motion practice or trial as appropriate.
2
Evaluate appellate options
Defendants should consult counsel to determine whether further appellate review is viable given the U.S. Supreme Court's controlling decision in Galette.
3
Address any pleading defects
Plaintiff should ensure opposition and pleadings comply with procedural rules, though the court indicated it may overlook minor defects.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did the court decide?: The appellate court affirmed the denial of defendants' motion to dismiss, ruling that the defendants cannot claim sovereign immunity because the controlling decisions held New Jersey Transit is not an arm of the State.
Who is affected by this decision?: The plaintiff (Edwards) and the defendants (NJTBO and the driver) are directly affected; the ruling also limits sovereign-immunity defenses by NJ Transit entities in similar cases.
What happens next in the case?: The litigation proceeds on the merits of the personal-injury claim in the trial court because the dismissal on immunity grounds was denied.
Can the defendants appeal further?: Defendants could seek further review only by petitioning the Court of Appeals or federal review where appropriate, but the Appellate Division's decision relied on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Galette.

The above suggestions and answers are AI-generated for informational purposes only. They may contain errors. NoticeRegistry assumes no responsibility for their accuracy. Consult a qualified attorney before relying on them.

Full Filing Text

Edwards v New Jersey Tr. Bus Operations, Inc. - 2026 NY Slip Op 02777

Edwards v New Jersey Tr. Bus Operations, Inc.

2026 NY Slip Op 02777

May 5, 2026

Appellate Division, First Department

Geneithe I. Edwards, Plaintiff-Respondent,

New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc., et al., Defendants-Appellants.

Decided and Entered: May 05, 2026

Index No. 153876/16|Appeal No. 4970|Case No. 2023-00122|

Before: Scarpulla, J.P., Pitt-Burke, O'neill Levy, Michael, JJ.

DeCotiis, Fitzpatrick, Cole & Giblin, LLP, New City (John A. Stone of counsel), for appellants.

Levine & Slavit, PLLC, New York (Ira S. Slavit of counsel), for respondent.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (James G. Clynes, J.), entered on or about July 8, 2022, which denied defendants' motion to dismiss the complaint against them for lack of jurisdiction on sovereign immunity grounds, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

In this action for personal injuries, plaintiff alleges that she was injured when a bus owned by defendant New Jersey Transit Bus Operations, Inc. (NJTBO), a wholly owned subsidiary of nonparty New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT), and driven by defendant Salvatore Vicari, Jr., struck the rear of her vehicle. Defendants' motion to dismiss is premised on NJTBO being an arm of the State of New Jersey that may invoke the doctrine of sovereign immunity. However, the Supreme Court of the United States recently determined that NJT, not a party in this case, is not an arm of New Jersey and therefore not entitled to invoke sovereign immunity (
see

Galette v New Jersey Tr. Corp.
, 607 US — , — , 146 S Ct 854, 871 [2026],
affg

Colt v New Jersey Tr. Corp.
, 43 NY3d 463, 476-477 [2025]). In its consolidated decision, the
Galette
Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' decision in
Colt
dismissing the remaining defendants' claims of sovereign immunity, which included NJTBO, "because these claims depend on NJT's status as an arm of New Jersey" (
Colt
, 43 NY3d at 477;
see

Galette
, 607 US — , — , 146 S Ct at 871). Accordingly, we find that Supreme Court properly denied defendants' motion and find it unnecessary to reach the additional arguments raised by the parties on this issue.

To the extent defendants assert that plaintiff's opposition was fatally defective because plaintiff set forth legal discussion in an attorney affirmation (
see
22 NYCRR 202.8 [c]), we note that the court may overlook such defects (
see
CPLR 2001;
Lagattuta-Spataro v Sciarrino
, 191 AD3d 1355, 1356 [4th Dept 2021]).

THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.

ENTERED: May 5, 2026