Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 84, § 18 (2026)

Notice of injury; contents; limitation of action

✓ current as of July 2026

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Section 18. A person so injured shall, within thirty days thereafter, give to the county, city, town or person by law obliged to keep said way in repair, notice of the name and place of residence of the person injured, and the time, place and cause of said injury or damage; and if the said county, city, town or person does not pay the amount thereof, he may recover the same in an action of tort if brought within three years after the date of such injury or damage. Such notice shall not be invalid or insufficient solely by reason of any inaccuracy in stating the name or place of residence of the person injured, or the time, place or cause of the injury, if it is shown that there was no intention to mislead and that the party entitled to notice was not in fact misled thereby. The words ''place of residence of the person injured'', as used in this and the two following sections, shall include the street and number, if any, of his residence as well as the name of the city or town thereof. Failure to give such notice for such injury or damage sustained by reason of snow or ice shall not be a defense under this section unless the defendant proves that he was prejudiced thereby.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 95 cases, 1924–2019 · leading case: Gallant v. Worcester, 421 N.E.2d 1196 (Mass. 1981).

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Gallant v. Worcester, 421 N.E.2d 1196 (Mass. 1981). · cites it 5× “[2] *709 The plaintiff acknowledges that her suit was not timely under G.L.c. 84, § 18, as amended through St. 1973, c.”

Lavecchia v. Massachusetts Bay Transp. Auth., 804 N.E.2d 932 (Mass. 2004). · cites it 8× “On October 4, 1994, well within the thirty-day notice period prescribed by G. L. c. 84, § 18, the plaintiff notified the MBTA of her claim.”

Peters v. Haymarket Leasing, Inc., 835 N.E.2d 628 (Mass. App. Ct. 2005). · cites it 4× “The plaintiff did not give notice of his injury to the authority pursuant to G. L. c. 84, § 18. 7 2. Claims of error as to Haymarket.”

Wolf v. Boston Water & Sewer Comm'n, 561 N.E.2d 867 (Mass. 1990). · cites it 4× “The commission filed a motion to dismiss based on the plaintiffs failure to give it notice within thirty days of the injury as required by G. L. c. 84, § 18. 1 A judge in the Superior Court granted the mo *491 tion and reported the case to the Appeals Court.”

Ram v. Town of Charlton, 567 N.E.2d 208 (Mass. 1991). · cites it 3× “84, § 15, 2 and that her failure to give the notice required *484 by G. L. c. 84, § 18, 3 barred her action. The Commonwealth thereafter filed a similar motion for summary judgment asserting that the claims against it were barred by G.”

Baird v. Massachusetts Bay Transp. Auth., 591 N.E.2d 210 (Mass. App. Ct. 1992). · cites it 4× “Baird’s husband suffered a loss of consortium and that timely statutory notice pursuant to G. L. c. 84, § 18, was given to the city.”

Farrell v. Boston Water & Sewer Comm'n, 24 Mass. App. Ct. 583 (Mass. App. Ct. 1987). · cites it 3× “214, alleging that she had fallen and injured herself as a result of a defect in a way and that she had given the city *585 timely written notice of her injuries in accordance with G. L. c. 84, § 18, 4 as amended through St.”

Meyer v. Veolia Energy North Am., 121 N.E.3d 1221 (Mass. 2019). “He further concluded that Veolia was entitled to notice within thirty days from the date of Meyer's injury under G. L. c. 84, § 18 ( § 18 or notice statute), but that Meyer had not provided that notice.”

Trioli v. Town of Sudbury, 446 N.E.2d 92 (Mass. App. Ct. 1983). · cites it 2× “The allegations as to notice, the giving of which is required by G. L. c. 84, § 18, and which is not only a condition precedent to the bringing of the action but also “an essential ingredient indispensable to the existence of the cause of action,” Paddock v.”

Sloper v. City of Quincy, 16 N.E.2d 14 (Mass. 1938). · cites it 3× “It is therefore necessary to relate only such 'facts, as the jury could have found, which are pertinent to the consideration of the defendant’s contention that the plaintiff cannot maintain her action because she failed to give notice to the defendant of the time, place and…”

Weaver v. Commonwealth, 438 N.E.2d 831 (Mass. 1982). “See G. L. c. 84, § 18. In enacting the Act, the Legislature took pains to preserve the status and force of G.”

Fearon v. Commonwealth, 474 N.E.2d 162 (Mass. 1985). · cites it 2× “81, § 18, in which he alleges in particular detail that sufficient notice under G. L. c. 84, § 18, was given within thirty days after his appointment as executor, as required by G.”

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