Cases of Interest

$220,000

A man tripped and fell on an unlevel section of sidewalk. The property owner moved to have the case dismissed claiming that they had no notice of the condition and that it was a trivial condition. Through Google photos we were able to show that the condition had existed for a long period of time and that it should have been discovered and corrected by the property owner.

$325,000

A woman slipped and fell on a temporary plywood ramp, which was improperly secured, going from the sidewalk to the roadway. Another firm turned down the case because they did not think they could prove who placed the ramp. We were able to identify the contractor who was working in the area and determine that they were required to place the temporary ramps during the construction project.

$90,000

A sunken section of brick sidewalk in Jamaica Queens, resulted in a metal water cap embedded in the sidewalk to be raised met. Our client tripped and fell over the raided cap. We were able to show that the condition existed for a long period of time and that the property owner and business improvement district were previously sued when someone else had tripped and fallen due to the dangerous brick sidewalk.

$100,000

Our client was making a left hand turn across three lanes, and was struck by a car driving straight. Our client claimed that she had time to safely turn, but the other driver sped up, changed lanes, and hit the back of her vehicle as she was almost through the intersection. Pictures showed that the vehicles ended up on the far side of the intersection, after our client had almost completely crossed all three lanes. After depositions the defendant driver’s insurance company paid their full policy to settle the case, even though they originally claimed our client was at fault for making an unsafe turn.

$200,000

A woman slipped and fell on slushy snow and steps between an elevated subway and the street.  The New York City Transit Authority claimed the steps had been cleaned after the last snowstorm, but records showed that all of the cleaners were sent to busier stations to clean snow, and that no one was left to clean the station where the incident happened

$385,000

A woman was involved in a car accident while working for Lyft. Our client was making a left-hand turn from one one-way street to another one-way street. A truck to her right was also turning left, and turned into her. The driver of the truck claimed our client tried to sneak past him on the shoulder, but pictures revealed there was no shoulder and our client was in the proper turning lane.

$160,000

Our client, fell when his toe tripped on a brick which was partially in a tree pit, and partially jutting into the sidewalk. The dirt around the tree was filled with random bricks and stones. Through discovery we found that the contractor which enlarged the pit around the tree created and left a brick border at the location, which was contrary to the work they were supposed to perform. Though the tree contractor denied installing the brick border, the pictures they took as proof of the work they did, showed that the brick border present at the completion of their work.

$295,000

A gentleman tripped and fell in a parking lot due to a pothole, landing on his face and suffering a broken nose and lacerations. At issue was whether he also suffered a brain injury. Records showed that before the accident he had prior falls and was seen by doctors for memory loss and other issues. We claimed that the fall in the parking lot aggravated and exacerbated any prior issues.

$460,000

While walking his dog, a gentleman tripped on the sidewalk, half a block from his home. The sidewalk was raised from tree roots. The Town of Islip, where this occurred, could only be held liable if it could be shown that they created the condition, or had prior written notice of the condition. Through our investigation we discovered that a young girl had previously tripped and fallen over the same section of sidewalk, and instead of completely replacing the sidewalk the Town had applied a cement patch to create a “ramp.”  Further, the Town later had a contractor remove the tree, noting that “the tree is breaking up sidewalk”, and the contractor noted in its paperwork, filed with the Town, that the sidewalk was uplifting. Despite the tree being removed, and the notations about the sidewalk uplifting, the sidewalk was not repaired. We then successfully moved for summary judgment and the Honorable Court ruled that the Town was liable as a matter of law for the injuries suffered, as: 1) a dangerous condition existed on the sidewalk, and 2) The Town had prior written notice of the condition.

$450,000

A young woman was a passenger in the front seat of a car stopped at a red light when it was struck from behind by a distracted driver. She died instantly, and three other people were seriously injured in the crash. We fought to obtain the full policy limits of all available insurance and got the owner of the car to pay an additional $50,000 out of their own pockets in addition to the insurance money. The Estate of the young woman recovered $450,000 which was a significant sum considering there was no evidence of conscious pain or suffering, and she had no dependents.

$135,000

A construction worker was injured when a wall, next to a trench he was digging in a basement, collapsed, causing injury to his foot. The property owner was sued, and we alleged the property owner failed to provide the proper safety devices required by law. The property owner moved to dismiss the case claiming that he could not be sued because a two-family home was being built at which he intended to live. Thus, he claimed he was entitled to an exemption from being sued by construction workers, which is afforded to the owner of one- or two-family homes which are owner occupied and not used for commercial purposes. At trial we convinced the jury that the property was being used for commercial purposes since the owner intended to rent out half of the property, and placed the ownership of the property into a Limited Liability Company (LLC) for liability purposes.

$100,000

The City of New York milled a roadway in preparation for resurfacing. The milling left uneven walking surfaces, including dips in the roadway which were obscured by water after it rained. Our client was crossing the street when she tripped and fell due to a dip or pothole caused by the milling, before the road was resurfaced.

$100,000

A mother and adult daughter was injured in a car accident when the adult daughter’s husband negligently entered an intersection. The husband/son-in-law was sued, and the insurance company for the family’s car paid the compensation.

$250,000

A woman tripped and fell on the remnant of a balustrade on the sidewalk. Investigation showed that the remnant was part of gate system used by the New York City Housing Authority to keep public vehicles from traveling on a closed off roadway between two of their buildings, which was repurposed for pedestrian traffic. The case settled after our office moved the court to determine that the New York City Housing Authority was liable as a matter of law for creating a dangerous condition on a pathway open to pedestrians.

$150,000

Three occupants of a car were compensated for damages suffered when the car they were in were struck from debris, from a construction site, which blew off of a nearby building. The building, general contractor and scaffolding company were sued and contributed to the settlement of the case.

$7,200,000

A College student was an unbelted passenger in a van which rolled over. She suffered serious injuries resulting in paraplegia.

$6,000,000

A Hospital worker was severely burned in an electrical explosion resulting from a faulty switch. The case settled during trial against the manufacturer.

$3,000,000

A Resident of YMCA suffered third degree burns in a fire. The door to his room did not conform to the requirements of the New York City Building Codes in that it had louvers which allowed smoke and air to pass through, and allowed the fire to spread more rapidly.

$2,375,000

A woman was crossing the street in the crosswalk when she was struck by a van. The insurance company for the driver and the van argued that the pedestrian didn’t look before crossing, and that the driver could not see her because she emerged from a shady section of the sidewalk. The defendants also argued that the pedestrian made a good recovery, despite suffering a head injury, multiple broken bones, and undergoing multiple surgeries. We countered such arguments with a detailed investigation including obtaining the police investigation reports, interviewing witnesses, retaining accident reconstruction experts, having illustrations created of the incident scene and the various injuries, and working with treating medical doctors who were willing to testify at trial. Through our efforts, we were able to counter the defendant’s allegations and obtain a significant compensatory award for our client.

$2,100,000

A Sanitation worker fractured his leg when he was struck by a vehicle. Our client was alighting from a garbage truck when he was struck by the private vehicle. Both the car that hit our client and The City of New York were held liable. The City was held liable for failing to properly supervise its workers and provide a safe work environment. The City of New York paid the bulk of the award as the private vehicle only had the minimum amount of insurance required by the State.

$1,900,000

A Motorcyclist was traveling straight at a high rate of speed in Queens when a New York City Sanitation Truck made a left hand turn in front of him. The motorcyclist tried to avoid the truck but went into a slide and was crushed and killed by the truck’s front tire. Our investigation revealed that the incident was captured by a nearby surveillance camera. The victim, a laborer, was survived by his wife and infant child.

$1,900,000

A Construction worker fractured both knees in fall resulting in a permanent injury. The claim was brought against the general contractor for having an unsafe workplace.

1,500,000

A gentleman slipped and fell on ice suffering a serious leg fracture, requiring surgeries. He was unable to return to work as a real estate broker. The defendants claimed that they had properly cleaned the sidewalk following the last snowfall, and regularly inspected and salted the sidewalk for any slippery conditions. It was our position that if the defendants had properly cleaned the and inspected the sidewalk there would not have been ice. The case was bifurcated for trial, and was settled after the trial on liability was completed.

$1,500,000

A 92 year old man was crossing the street in Manhattan on his way to work when he was struck by a New York Times delivery truck. The defendants originally argued that any compensation should be limited due to the advanced age of the plaintiff, and even though he was in a coma for weeks after he was struck, their was no evidence of pain or suffering during that time. We showed with the help of an economist that the gentleman had been working and and earning an income. Further with the help of a forensic pathologist we were able to show that despite being in a coma he was responsive to pain and touch. The victim was survived by his wife whom he supported, and his granddaughter.

$1,500,000

A Construction worker was involved in asbestos removal. He lost the use of one eye when he was struck by a piece of equipment.

$1,250,000

A Female van passenger was injured in Queens when an oncoming car crossed over the center line, striking the vehicle she was in. The host van flipped over causing fractures and a de-gloving injury to her hand.