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There is no escaping the clamor of New York City. Just ask Mike Edison.

He has been jolted awake before dawn by jackhammers and screeching delivery trucks. He asked politely for those responsible to stop. He dialed the city’s 311 hotline. He fired off letters to the police and other city agencies. Nothing.

So he single-handedly opened another front in the war against noise: He sued in small claims court.

And it worked.

Mr. Edison, who has no legal training, has sued a construction company, a real estate developer and the Rite Aid drugstore chain, claiming they were negligent in failing to keep their workers from being annoyingly loud. He has also threatened to sue a half-dozen other companies including Starbucks and Con Edison, the giant utility.