Case Results
Verdicts + Settlements
We obtained a $2.2 million settlement for a client with gastric cancer who was improperly diagnosed, leading to a Stage 4 progression that has severely reduced her survival outlook.
We obtained a $1.75 million settlement for a United States Post Office letter carrier who sustained a significant ankle injury after he fell on ice on a homeowner’s driveway.
We obtained a verdict in favor of our client, a pregnant woman whose labor was determined to be mismanaged, causing her daughter to suffer severe physical and intellectual impairments. The parties had entered into a “high-low” agreement of $1.5 million to $8 million and the plaintiff was ultimately awarded $8 million.
Our client, a 34-year-old previously disabled man, suffered further disabling injuries after a fall in a nursing home facility. We argued that the rehabilitation facility did not do enough to prevent a fall in an individual who was at an extremely elevated risk of falling, and the defendant settled for $1.5 million.
More than 10,000 workers who sued New York City over health damages they claimed after the 9/11 recovery efforts have approved a settlement, clearing the way for payouts totaling $700 million – of which our clients received about $105 million
SPBMC was one of the firms chosen by the state of New York in the fight against big tobacco companies.
$925 million recovered in VCF awards for our clients, from both the first VCF (2002-2004) and since the VCF reopened in 2011.
The families of the deceased firefighters and the surviving firefighters brought lawsuits against the owner of a building for allowing the construction of illegal partition walls in the apartment, which blocked access to the fire escape. (more…)
Against the City and in favor of our client, a 17-year old boy who was shot by a police officer, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. This was a re-trial of a case which had resulted in a jury verdict of $41 Million. The policeman alleged that our client pointed his gun at the officer and was about to shoot him. But the young man claimed that he had already dropped his gun and was on his knees. The jury unanimously held that the policeman’s shooting of the plaintiff was not legally justified.
The MGM Grand Fire occurred on November 21, 1980 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Paradise, Nevada. The fire killed 85 people, mostly through smoke inhalation. The tragedy remains the worst disaster in Nevada history, and the third-worst hotel fire in modern U.S. history.
At the time of the fire, approximately 5,000 people were in the hotel and casino. In the early morning of the November 21, 1980, a fire broke out in a restaurant known as The Deli. It spread across the area of the casino in which no sprinklers were installed. A total of 85 people killed. Another 650 people were injured, including guests, employees and 14 firefighters. The fire was later found to be caused an electrical ground fault inside a wall socket.
MGM agreed to settle $ 75 million in damages for more than 1,300 victims and their families.
The Happy Land Fire was an act of arson that killed 87 people trapped in the unlicensed Happy Land social club at 1959 Southern Boulevard in the West Farms section of the Bronx in New York City on March 25, 1990. Most of the victims were young Hondurans celebrating Carnival. The unemployed Cuban refugee Julio Gonzalez, whose former girlfriend was employed at the club, was arrested soon afterward and ultimately convicted of arson and murder.
Aftermath
Sullivan Papain Block McGrath Coffinas & Cannavo, P.C. represented the families of several patrons who were killed in the fire. The action was brought against, among others, the owners of the building for various fire code violations which we claimed contributed to the spread of the fire and the inability of the victims to escape from the raging fire. We were also appointed to the plaintiffs’ committee which acted as counsel for all of the plaintiffs, including the family members of 87 patrons who died in the fire. Gonzalez was later charged with 174 counts of murder and was found guilty on 87 counts of arson and 87 counts of murder on August 19, 1991.
The Stouffer’s Inn was a luxury hotel and conference center located in Westchester, Connecticut. At about 10:20 a.m. on December 4, 1980, a flash fire quickly spread through the conference center’s top floor where several corporations were holding a meeting. A total of 26 people attending the breakfast meeting died, including 13 top executives of Arrow and and 11 employees of Nestle within minutes of the outbreak.
The family of the dead executives won $ 48.5 million from Stouffers and other corporations in the civil suit.
The firm represented a worker at JFK airport that was struck by a speeding port authority police vehicle the victim suffered catastrophic injuries including but not limited to traumatic brain injury, numerous fractures and internal injuries that required 16 surgeries.
The Gulliver’s nightclub fire occurred on the early morning of June 30, 1974 on the border of Port Chester, New York and Greenwich, Connecticut. The fire killed 24 patrons and injured 32, including 19 patrons and 13 fireman. The fire was caused by arson in an adjacent bowling alley that had been set to cover up a minor burglary close by.
Our client, a pedestrian on a park pathway, was struck down by a very large dead tree limb that fell some 35 feet resulting in severe brain injury and spinal cord damage with incomplete paraplegia (ASIA-C classification) along with multiple fractures of the spine and skull which required numerous surgical procedures, extensive hospitalization and ongoing rehabilitation. It was claimed that the tree branch, which was approximately 20 feet in length, should have been removed long before the accident because of its dead and hazardous condition, which was well known to park personnel responsible for the tree’s maintenance.
Our Firm represented Victims in the 1993 WTC Bombing.
We tried the case on behalf the victims and won. The jury concluded that The Port Authority was 68% responsible and the terrorist only 32% . As a result all of our claims were settled for a total of many millions of dollars.
The Walbaums’s Supermarket fire occurred on August 2, 1978. Six firefighters died in the line of duty when the roof of the burning supermarket collapsed, plunging 12 firefighters into the flames. The fire began in a hallway near the compressor room as crews were renovating the store and quickly escalated. Thirty four firefighters, one emergency medical technician and one emergency services police officer were injured in the fire and the tragedy is remembered as one of the worst disasters in New York City Fire Department’s 143 year history.
On May 3, 1972, seven people were killed when a high-pressure steam riser pipe exploded in the 36th floor offices of General Public Utilities Corporation at 80 Pine Street.
Sullivan Papain Block McGrath Coffinas & Cannavo, P.C. represented the victims of the Explosion on Anne Street.
On the afternoon of April 23, 1992, a car was driven by a 74 year old woman who lost control of her vehicle and plowed into crowds of people inn Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. Four people were killed and as many as 27 were injured.
The Father’s Day fire civil litigation was successfully concluded in early December after eight weeks of trial in the State Supreme Court in Queens. Denise Ford and Mary Fahey, two of the widows of the firefighters who lost their lives at the fire, issued a statement thanking the Uniformed Firefighters Association and the firm of Sullivan Papain Block McGrath and Cannavo, P.C. for their support and representation.
The case was a vivid example of why firefighters who are hurt in the line of duty should always consult with Sullivan Papain Block McGrath Coffinas & Cannavo, P.C. to determine if they may have the right to collect monetary damages as compensation for their injuries.
In the Father’s Day fire case, firefighters responded to a fire that started in the basement of a hardware store where flammable products were stored. During the course of the fire fighting operations, an explosion ensued resulting in the death of three firefighters and serious injuries to a dozen more.
We not only represented the widows, but also several firefighters who were seriously injured at the fire. Showing the true spirit of the Department, the injured men uniformly were more interested in making sure that the families of those who died were properly compensated than in their own claims.
Our client sustained a traumatic brain injury in a collision with a state-owned two truck.
For our client, who lost one leg below the knee and the other above the knee. Our client was involved in a fender-bender on a highway and was standing in front of her car when, we claimed, a tractor-trailer came to a sudden stop causing another car to swerve out from behind the jackknifed tractor-trailer and to strike our client’s car which in turn struck her. The key to our case was persuading the Jury that the tractor-trailer operator was at fault, which we successfully accomplished. The Jury also found our client to be free of any fault.
37-year-old married father of two was a passenger in back seat of his own car that went off the road and hit a pole which went through the front windshield of the car and fatally struck him
32-year-old motorcyclist struck a turning car in order to avoid an illegally parked truck, resulting in permanent spinal cord damage and paraplegia.
23-year-old female teacher passenger in a two-car collision resulting in complete paraplegia.
NYCTA bus failed to stop after 26-year-old bicyclist went through a red light and hit the side of a bus, causing the bus’s rear wheel to run over his leg, resulting in a below-the-knee amputation.
38-year-old man on a bicycle going to work was struck by a bus that crossed over three lanes of traffic. Injuries included multiple fractures of legs, pelvis, shoulder, ruptured spleen and crushed reproductive organs, resulting in multiple surgeries.
65-year-old female passenger in multiple vehicle accident suffered severe head injuries resulting in her death 18 months later. She was survived by 3 adult children.
In favor of our client, one of nine passengers in a rental car that was only equipped with enough seatbelts for six passengers. Our client was one of the unbelted passengers seated in the cargo area of the car when it struck a disabled tractor-trailer on the roadway on a rainy night. Our client broke her neck as a result of the impact and wore a halo brace for several months and developed traumatic arthritis in the area of her neck. The jury found the rental car company 45% responsible (for not having seatbelts for all of the passengers), the tractor-trailer 45% responsible (for failing to properly warn oncoming vehicles that it was disabled on the roadway) and the driver of the rental car 10% responsible.
Our client was driving his vehicle in the left lane of traffic when he suddenly encountered a roadway maintenance vehicle stopped in front of his vehicle. There were no lane warnings or flagmen to indicate that roadwork was being performed. When he attempted to move around the maintenance truck his vehicle was struck by a tanker truck crushing his vehicle. He suffered an above the knee amputation and serious pelvic fractures that required multiple surgical procedures.
45-year-old motorcyclist hit and dragged by truck resulting in traumatic crush injuries to both legs and eventual amputation of one leg above the knee.
Reached at trial for our client, a child, who ran into the side of a moving Transit Authority bus and sustained brain damage. Our claim was that the bus driver could have avoided the accident had he operated his vehicle in a more careful manner.
57-year-old female pedestrian in crosswalk was run over by a NYCTA bus which failed to yield right of way, resulting in loss of both legs.
The firm represented a 51-year-old day laborer who was jack-hammering near a corroded structural column that sheared from its base causing part of the second floor to collapse and the laborer to fall more than eight feet to the cellar level, causing fatal injuries. The worker left behind a wife and four children. Claims were brought against multiple defendants under New York’s Labor Law for the lack of inspections and failing to protect against a foreseeable building collapse.
A 27-year-old bicyclist suffered severe damage to her left arm when she was dragged and run over by a NYCTA bus whose driver carelessly failed to see her. She suffered degloving injuries and multiple fractures to her left arm, which required several surgeries including the insertion of hardware and skin grafting.
A metal portion of a passing truck became unsecured and hit a 45-year-old motorist, causing several herniated discs in his neck which required multiple surgical procedures.
The defendant knowingly operated a sanitation truck with defective brakes that caused the truck to flip onto the decedent’s car, killing her. The victim was a married, 57 year old mother of two.
Was reached just prior to trial for our client, who sustained a serious back injury when a rented vehicle mounted the sidewalk and struck her. She required extensive hospitalization and rehabilitation and is now limited in the daily activities that she could perform.
In favor of our client, who suffered multiple bilateral leg fractures, requiring extensive hospitalization and surgery, when she was struck down by a car as she was crossing the street at the corner with a green light. The injuries left her with a one-inch shortening of the right leg.
For our client who was injured in a motor vehicle accident where the defendant had failed to cooperate with his insurance carrier. After an inquest, a settlement was reached with the defendant’s insurance company for more than the actual policy limits using a novel application of the bad faith doctrine against the insurance company.
55-year old female pedestrian in crosswalk run over by NYCTA bus which failed to yield right of way, resulting in below-the-knee amputation.
16-year-old bicyclist struck by car sustaining head injuries. Emergency room discharged him without proper treatment for head injury, resulting in brain damage.
A 61-year-old retired Fire chief while driving was struck by city owned van that ran red light causing brain trauma, coma and multiple neurological injuries.
50-year-old corporate recruiter was in his car when it was rear-ended by a box truck resulting in herniated discs to his lumbar and cervical spine that required multiple surgical procedures.
38-year-old Nassau County Police Officer was jogging and crossing the street when he was struck by a motor vehicle making a left turn, causing him to sustain an open, depressed comminuted skull fractures, epidural hematoma, subdural hematoma, requiring a right craniotomy.
In favor of our clients, the family of a pedestrian who was struck down by an SUV that ran a red light, which then crashed into a newsstand. A City Transit Bus operator, after seeing the SUV crash, proceeded into the intersection and ran over the victim. We proved that the Bus Operator was negligent in not stopping the bus and that our client’s husband was still alive when the bus ran him over. The Jury found both operators to be liable for his death, attributing the majority of the fault to the Bus Operator.
A 38-year-old married passenger in a taxi cab, which was struck by another vehicle, suffered a traumatic brain injury and internal injuries, requiring multiple surgeries.
Our client, a 79 year old man, was struck and killed when the driver of a van that was backing up and didn’t see him. His wife also received compensation as she was in the zone of danger when her husband was hit by the van.
28-year-old accountant was assisting his father with car repair in his parent’s garage when the father inadvertently caused car to accelerate pinning son between the car and garage wall. Injuries included fractures to both legs.
66-year-old motorist, and father of two, was struck by another motor vehicle which ran a stop sign forcing his vehicle into oncoming traffic, causing him to suffer a lacerated thoracic aorta, acute subarachnoid hemorrhage, blunt force trauma to the head and multiple fractures, which led to his death.
51-year-old was passenger in a motor vehicle hit by a tractor-trailer that ran a red light. Her injuries included closed head injury, fractures to her skull, jaw, both shoulders, nose and her right leg and hand.
24-year-old handicapped pedestrian crossing the street in her wheelchair when she was struck by a truck making a right turn. Injuries included amputated of three fingers of right hand, comminuted fracture of the right hip and leg with surgery.
20-year-old passenger in a vehicle struck in the rear by another vehicle which caused the passenger to be ejected from the car and thrown 40 feet. Injuries included open depressed skull fracture, right frontal with dural laceration, degloving of the right hand , cervical and thoracic fractures of the spine.
27-year-old female pedestrian was in crosswalk when she was run over by a MTA bus that failed to yield right of way, resulting in crushing soft tissue injuries to legs that led to Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD).
Our client was a passenger in an automobile that was rear ended when a motorcycle stopped suddenly in front of her car. She sustained fractured ribs, facial lacerations, two fractured vertebrae and internal bleeding.
In favor of our client, a laborer, and against the building owner and contractors involved in a construction project. Our client was in the process of assisting in the dismantling of a scaffold when the scaffold began to collapse causing him to jump and to suffer serious head injuries. We proved that our client was supplied with an unsafe scaffold and that he was improperly instructed as to how to dismantle it.
$24 Million Settlement – for construction worker run over by reverse-moving excavator resulting in the loss of one leg and multiple internal injuries. The operator could not see behind the machine and there was no spotter in position to guide the operator rearward or to ensure that no one was in its path of travel. Further, the machine was not equipped with a rearward visual aid, such as a rear-mounted mirror or camera, to provide the operator with a view behind the machine.
Two construction workers, ages 38 and 40, were killed, and a third worker, age 43, was seriously injured when a crane they were on collapsed.
A 38-year-old husband and father of three was killed when he was cleaning the back of his truck at a landfill and was buried alive by hot compost which was dumped on him by a careless town employee.
37 year-old crane operator was dismantling a construction bridge 25 feet above sidewalk when it collapsed causing him to fall to street, resulting in disabling fractures of L1 vertebrae, left elbow, left ankle, left wrist and of the right ankle, requiring surgery.
24-year-old construction laborer was seriously injured when a scaffold collapsed on him resulting in vision and hearing loss.
A 26 year old truck driver sustained numerous fractures when he fell from his truck because construction site personnel negligently misdirected him.
57 year-old was injured during demolition work when a beam fell on both his legs resulting in an above-the-knee amputation of the right leg and a below-the-knee amputation of the left leg.
A 42-year-old construction worker was walking along a 2-foot wide foundation wall carrying materials to the back of a construction site when he lost his balance and fell through an unguarded opening. He fell approximately 15 feet striking his head. The case settled at a mediation for $3,800,000.00.
38 year-old bridge painter fell 25 feet from man-lift when it rolled into an unguarded trench causing it to tip over, resulting in permanently disabling bilateral leg fractures, wrist fracture and herniated lumbar disc, requiring multiple surgeries.
Reached during trial for our client, a steamfitter who was rendered a paraplegic when he fell through a hole at a construction site which, we contended, was neither properly covered nor barricaded.
In favor of our client, a maintenance worker, who suffered brain damage and a badly fractured elbow when he fell some 20 feet off the roof of a supermarket. At the time, he was trying to replace a large piece of roofing that had been blown off by the wind when he himself was blown off the roof by a gust of wind. We proved that the building owner’s failure to furnish a safety harness to our client was in violation of New York’s Labor Law.
A freight elevator carrying construction workers malfunctioned and plummeted five stories before crashing into the sub-basement of a building under renovation – The impact caused severe back and neck injuries to our client.
We took the case to trial and secured a jury verdict of $3.475 million dollars for our client.
When an industrial roll of cable struck our client causing shoulder and brain injuries.
37 year-old landscaper, husband and father of a 6-year-old, was at landfill construction site when he was struck by a pay loader that backed up into him crushing him in between two trucks causing his death.
48 year-old truck driver sustained fatal crush injuries at construction site when the operator of an excavator attempted to use excavator to loosen material on his truck causing the truck to topple over on to him. He was survived by his wife and daughter.
27-year-old laborer jumped off an excavating machine into a pit when he thought it was going to tip over, causing him to suffer disabling back and left leg injuries with multiple fractures, requiring multiple surgeries.
33-year-old carpenter fell from an unsafe ladder at construction site resulting disabling injuries, including torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) of the right knee, wrist fracture and herniated discs requiring surgery.
A wall at a construction site fell and crushed the decedent
The decedent was pinned under a boiler door that collapsed.
After a Verdict on Liability in favor of the estate of our client’s husband who was electrocuted by a third rail while painting a viaduct. The proof showed that the victim had not been provided with the proper protection required for the work he was performing.
After a Liability Verdict in favor of our client, a laborer, and against the owner of a shopping center in Suffolk County. Our client fell twenty feet to the ground from the roof of a shopping center sustaining serious head and elbow injuries. We proved that he had not been provided with a required tending line and harness which would have prevented his fall.
A 46-year-old truck driver fell from the top of a cement truck at a construction site. He sustained a fractured ankle, which required surgery, and injured both knees resulting in multiple arthroscopic procedures and the possible need for future bilateral knee replacement surgery.
41-year-old carpenter fell through hole in platform he was standing on during building renovation resulting disabling neck, back, shoulder and hip injuries, with multiple surgeries.
48 year-old construction worker fell 35 feet into an excavation pit at a construction site and was then crushed by a boulder, leading to his immediate death. He was survived by his wife and two children.
41-year-old female sheet metal worker fell eight feet from an unsafe ladder sustaining a disabling radial head fracture of the right arm and injury to the radial nerve, requiring surgery.
For our client, a 50-year-old carpenter, who slipped and fell on plastic sheathing that was used to cover a recently poured concrete floor at a construction site. The fall exacerbated a pre-existing asymptomatic spinal condition which required that he undergo surgery to his cervical and lumbar spine. Our client has not been able to return to work. The case was settled while on the trial calendar in State Supreme Court in Nassau County.
For our client, a laborer, who sustained a severe amputation injury to his foot when a roadway plate was dropped from a hoist on a construction site. We claimed that the owner of the hoist failed to have required safety devices attached to the plate and the hoist to prevent the plate from falling.
Defective hi-lo supplied to 47 year-old construction worker caused him to fall and suffer multiple fractures to wrist and elbow and ulnar nerve damage, requiring multiple surgical procedures.
Following the conclusion of the VCF litigation, firefighters sickened by exposures at the World Trade Center continued to seek our help. We filed the first lawsuits against the City of New York and its contractors for their failure to provide respirators to rescue and recovery workers. Appointed co-liaison counsel, our firm assumed a leading role in a long, difficult fight to secure compensation for all of these brave individuals.
Our firm offered free legal services to the families of the firefighters killed, and those injured, at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. We represented 65 families of firefighters/fire officers who lost their lives and 297 firefighters who were injured and applied to the Victim Compensation Fund. While many lawyers requested fees to perform similar services, we always believed that it was appropriate for our firm to perform these services on a pro-bono basis. After two years of working on these claims, we were able to recover $260 million for our clients.
Since January 2013, when the first VCF awards were issued under the Zadroga Act, through March 31, 2017:
- SPBMC obtained 1,166 awards totaling $560 Million.
- SPBMC achieved the highest award to date –$4.133 Million – for a client whose cancer was linked to his exposure to toxins at the WTC Disaster Site.
- SPBMC’s average award was 280% greater than the average of all other VCF awards.
SPBMC’s success does not stop there. The firm has also been very successful in obtaining supplemental awards for its clients who, after receiving an award, were diagnosed with a new 9/11 illness or were subsequently found to be disabled by reason of their 9/11 illness.
On March 13, 2017, the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) issued its Fifth Annual Status Report and its findings confirm the great success Sullivan Papain Block McGrath Coffinas & Cannavo, P.C. (SPBMC) has achieved in maximizing awards for its clients.
UFA General Counsel and leading personal injury firm Sullivan Papain Block McGrath Coffinas & Cannavo, P.C. commend the passage of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Reauthorization Act. The Act extends the World Trade Center Health Program to the year 2090 with $3.5 billion in additional funding, which guarantees health care for first responders with chronic illnesses and extends the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) 5 years to Dec. 17, 2020, with $4.6 billion in additional funding.
For three Firefighters who were injured, and the families of two Firefighters who died, as a result of an apartment building fire in the Bronx. We brought suit against the building owner for building code violations, including the illegal partitioning of the fire apartment, and the City of New York for failing to provide its firefighters with personal safety ropes. After a six month trial, SPBMC won a $183 Million Verdict against both the City and the Landlord. It is the largest verdict ever obtained against the City of New York in a personal injury action.
Reached at trial for our clients, the widows of six firefighters killed, and several firefighters injured, at a supermarket fire when the roof from which they were fighting the fire suddenly and unexpectedly collapsed. We claimed that the building did not contain the proper fire-stopping walls in violation of the building code, causing the fire to spread much more rapidly and, in turn, for the roof to collapse prematurely.
41-year-old fire department captain, while working at scene of a fire, fell through an improperly supported floor resulting in burns over 75% of body and ultimately in his death.
A 30-year old firefighter was killed in a building fire due to the lack of a sprinkler system and other unsafe conditions.
A 27-year-old firefighter, married and soon-to-be father, succumbed to smoke in building when fire spread due to the improper removal of self-closing door mechanisms and because the standpipe had been turned off.
For a firefighter who was struck by a car while he was jumping off his fire truck. He was assisting in guiding the truck safely into the firehouse, when a car disregarded the lights on the truck and attempted to drive by the truck. The firefighter fractured his ankle, which resulted in surgery and an inability to continue his duties as a firefighter. The jury found the driver of the car to be 100% at fault.
For the family of a New York City Fire Department Lieutenant, who was killed when the floor collapsed as he was investigating the progress of a fire in a vacant dwelling.
For our client, a firefighter, who suffered a serious shoulder injury while fighting a fire. We successfully demonstrated to the jury that the vacant building was not properly secured, which allowed vandals to remove the doors, piping and structural components and which created an increased risk of harm to our firefighter.
We successfully represented the widows of firefighters killed and several firefighters who were seriously injured in the Father’s Day Fire.
Fire Engine runs over the foot of a 42-year old Fire Lieutenant, resulting in crush injuries to the foot requiring 8 surgeries.
43-year-old firefighter, while responding to a fire at a construction site, fell on debris herniating 2 discs which required surgery to fuse the discs.
Reached during trial for our clients, the family of a New York City Fire Department Lieutenant, who became lost and disoriented in a smoke-filled 2nd-floor storage room causing him to fall out a vented large floor-to-ceiling window to his death. We offered proof that the landlord had illegally converted the room into a storage room, which did not have the legally required 2nd means of egress or proper fire stopping material.
41-year-old firefighter was standing behind his double-parked fire truck when a taxi cab crashed into it, causing him to sustained permanently disabling fractures of the right tibia and fibula requiring multiple surgeries.
Fire engine backed up over a 41-year-old firefighter resulting in several serious fractures to his left leg and foot which required multiple surgeries.
For our clients, the family of a New York City Fire Department Lieutenant, who died when he was misintubated by ambulance personnel after he collapsed at the scene of a fire.
On September 30, 2004, Merck withdrew the painkiller Vioxx from the market. The drug has been found to have cardiovascular side-effects which can include heart attacks and strokes. The Firm is currently handling cases in the State and Federal Courts for some 165 clients who sustained injuries or died as a result of its use.
We represented 14 victims, whose mothers took this pregnancy drug which caused infertility and cancer in their offspring.
In the mid-1960’s, Ford Motor Corporation dumped paint sludge and other waste materials from its assembly plant in Mahwah, NJ on a 900-acre site. The site was designated a Superfund site in the 1980s. In 2005 public agencies advised homeowners of the area that properties were contaminated. Currently, the firm is co-lead counsel in a mass-claim suit against the auto manufacturer, representing over 600 members of a New Jersey Native American Indian Tribe for exposure to toxic chemicals and property damage.
66-year-old retired man died of kidney failure as a result of taking prescription drug that was later recalled. He was survived by his wife and three adult children.
We represented over 25 hemophiliacs (or their family members) who we claimed received HIV-contaminated blood clotting factor causing them to become infected with the deadly virus, in actions against the companies who were responsible for processing the contaminated blood products
We have represented over 100 victims who received breast implants claimed to have caused various injuries and illnesses in a class action against the various manufacturers.
Following the conclusion of the VCF litigation, firefighters sickened by exposures at the World Trade Center continued to seek our help. We filed the first lawsuits against the City of New York and its contractors for their failure to provide respirators to rescue and recovery workers. Appointed co-liaison counsel, our firm assumed a leading role in a long, difficult fight to secure compensation for all of these brave individuals.
The Firm served as lead trial counsel in the 1993 WTC bombing case, representing all victims of the attack. A Manhattan jury found the Port Authority negligent for not taking adequate security measures in the underground garage, a finding that the appellate division has affirmed on appeal. Reports dating as far back as 1985 predicted bombing via car bombs, cited the World Trade Center as a highly attractive target, and warned the Port Authority to take action – specifically in the parking garage.
For our clients, the families of several patrons of a social club who were killed in a fire that was intentionally started. The action was against, among others, the owners of the building, for various fire code violations which we claimed contributed to the spread of the fire and the inability of the victims to escape from the raging fire. We were also appointed to the plaintiffs’ committee, which acted as counsel for all of the plaintiffs, including the family members of 87 patrons who died in the fire.
The Firm represented a number of Queens, New York families whose homes were severely damaged when a water main broke and flooded their houses. The case was settled 13 weeks into trial for $4,075.000.
We represented the families of several victims of the October 2001 airplane crash of an American Airlines plane that had just taken off from JFK International Airport en route to the Dominican Republic.
In favor of our client, an injured twin (Twin “B”), who was delivered 42 minutes after his brother, (Twin “A”) without being continually monitored for fetal distress. Twin “B” suffered asphyxia shortly prior to birth. We proved to the Jury that proper monitoring would have revealed signs of oxygen deprivation, which would have warranted an earlier delivery via cesarean section. Twin “B”, now age 6 is intelligent, but requires the assistance of a walker or wheelchair and has difficulty with his speech. His brother, Twin “A”, is fine.
The jury deliberated for eight hours and returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff, awarding more than $26 million for the child’s past and future pain and suffering. The jury also awarded $500,000 for the wrongful death of her twin sister, who died 28 days after birth.
In favor of our client, a young girl, and against the hospital, which failed to promptly diagnose and treat the effects of head trauma that she suffered after she was hit by a car while crossing the street. As a result, the child lost all vision and remains permanently blind. We proved that the emergency room should have taken cat scans which would have revealed that there was pressure on the child’s brain, requiring emergency surgery. Had the surgery, (placement of a shunt) been performed, the child’s vision would have been spared.
In favor of our client, a Director of Nursing, who had a mammogram/sonogram of her left breast. The sonogram revealed three small cysts. Our proof was that the Doctor did not follow up on that finding over the next two years and that he was obligated to make sure the patient had additional mammograms and sonograms. When the patient felt a lump in that same breast, for the first time, (about two years after her last visit with the Doctor), she went for another mammogram and cancer was discovered shortly thereafter. The Doctor’s negligence caused the cancer to spread to the bones and then to the lungs, making the disease terminal and depriving the patient of any chance of cure or recovery.
In favor of our client, a newborn, and against the hospital which failed to render treatment to the infant who was having breathing difficulties. The infant had a normal delivery but developed problems breathing in the nursery despite observations by the nurse which indicated respiratory problems. No doctor arrived to assist the child, resulting in a mild case of cerebral palsy. The jury held that the child’s brain damage was a result of medical malpractice.
For our clients, the family of a 38-year old woman who suffered brain damage and total disability after the surgical removal of her thyroid gland. We demonstrated that our client suffered brain damage after a cardiac arrest caused by the failure of hospital and medical personnel to anticipate, recognize and treat hypocalcemia, a known complication of thyroidectomy which can cause the muscles in the throat to constrict.
Reached at trial for our client, the plaintiff was five months pregnant with twins when a sonogram showed signs of an increased risk for pre-term labor. The doctor did not recommend treatment and the next day, the plaintiff went into pre-term labor and delivered the twins, who could not survive.
Obtained on eve of trial for our client, an infant, who suffered permanent brain damage as a result of deprivation of oxygen, which, we asserted, was caused by the failure of the medical providers to recognize the need for a Cesarean Section in lieu of a natural delivery.
Reached at trial for our client, a one-month old baby, who was operated on for heart surgery. We claimed that during the surgery the hospital physicians negligently impaired the circulation in the infant’s leg and thereby caused it to be amputated.
Plaintiff was a 30 year old single mom with two children who presented to the Emergency Room at Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center in January of 2014 and diagnosed with symptoms consistent with asthma exacerbation including wheezing and coughing (plaintiff had prior hospitalizations for asthma). Plaintiff was admitted into the hospital from the ER and when her symptoms were not getting better, defendants failed to appreciate that she did not only have asthma, but had an infectious process going on, did not get the proper treatment or consultations (including pulmonary – although one was ordered and infectious disease), was allowed to become septic and died in February of 2014.
Obtained on eve of trial for our client, a 16-year old infant, with a below the knee amputation. The client sustained a broken ankle while playing football. The hospital failed to recognize the symptoms of vascular compromise and perform a prompt surgical procedure, resulting in the loss of the infant’s leg.
Reached at trial for our client, an infant twin, who suffered brain damage. We claimed that a hospital and the infant’s doctor were negligent in not properly diagnosing a baby’s meningitis. Had it been promptly diagnosed and treated, we alleged that brain damage would not have occurred.
Sullivan Papain Block McGrath & Cannavo represented a patient in a medical malpractice case whose proactive steps helped saved her life at a time when her radiologist acted negligently.
Delay in diagnosing breast cancer for one year (missed on mammogram studies), 64 year old retired school teacher with one adult daughter resulting in Stage 2A when diagnosed (spread to one lymph node) Plaintiff underwent bilateral mastectomies, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, reconstruction with complications of infections requiring removal of implants, failed implants and disfigurement.
Reached during trial for our clients, the family of a 43 year-old homemaker with Stage I Breast Cancer who died suddenly after being administered Chemotherapy drug. We contended that, based upon her prior adverse reactions to Chemotherapy, the treating doctor should have known that the patient had developed a potentially fatal hypersensitivity to the drug and thus should have discontinued the Chemotherapy.
In favor of our client, an infant, and against an obstetrician for failing to anticipate or recognize shoulder dystocia during delivery, and then applying excessive force on the baby’s head, causing an injury to the nerves in the baby’s arm.
Physician negligently delivered a baby girl resulting in Erbs Palsy and a permanent limited use of her left arm.
In favor of our client, who sustained a simple fracture of his elbow following a fall. He sought treatment from the defendant orthopedist who, rather than cast the arm, simply splinted the plaintiff’s elbow. As a result, there was a non-union of the elbow, which resulted in a disfiguring mal-alignment. The jury agreed that the doctor’s failure to follow up closely with the client resulted in the deformity and it unanimously found in his favor.
Obtained immediately before trial in the Court of Claims for our client, an infant, who lost her foot as a result of repeated IV infiltrations from the placement of IVs in her ankle.
In favor of our clients, the family of a patient who sustained a year of pain and suffering after severe loss of tissue following the improper administration of blood thinners. We demonstrated to the jury that the nursing staff administered the dosage inappropriately, which resulted in a condition known as skin necrosis. Our client ultimately died a year later of unrelated causes, but the jury nevertheless compensated him for the pain and suffering that he endured prior to his death.
Obtained for our client only a few months after a lawsuit was filed against a doctor who carved his initials on the patient’s lower abdomen following a Cesarean Section, leaving her with a permanent scar.
Reached on the eve of trial for our client, a government-employed architect, and against the hospital where he was treated for injuries he suffered in a motor vehicle accident. We claimed that our client suffered permanent brain damage as a result of the delay in treatment.
Obtained for our client, whose treating pulmonologist we claimed failed to properly diagnose her lung cancer. The patient had complained of the recent onset of asthma during pregnancy. Over the course of approximately one year, the doctor failed to diagnose the fact that she had a cancerous tumor in her lungs. The doctor claimed that the patient simply had asthma and that there were no signs of lung cancer.
Gynecologist failed to refer a 58 year old Brooklyn woman for cancer treatment after hysterectomy where the pathology showed a finding of an early stage of uterine cancer. As a result of the 10 month delay, our client’s cancer advanced to Stage 4 disease.
Doctor failed to address symptoms that suggested that clients bladder cancer had not been eradicated.
Hospital physicians failed to properly deliver a baby boy resulting in birth asphyxia and permanent brain damage.
A delay in delivering infant plaintiff and inadequate monitoring of fetal monitoring strips resulted in an emergency C-section the infant having substantial neurological problems, including the inability to walk and talk.
Medical providers failed to properly perform a timely c-section.
Obtained on eve of trial for our client, an infant, who suffered permanent brain damage as a result of deprivation of oxygen, which, we asserted, was caused by the failure of the medical providers to recognize the need for a Cesarean Section in lieu of a natural delivery.
Brain damage suffered by a 3-day-old baby when physicians and hospital staff did not properly treat symptoms including a distended stomach.
A 38-year-old firefighter died from a ruptured aorta after he was improperly released from a hospital even though he had continuous chest pains.
Reached at trial for our client, an infant twin, who suffered brain damage. We claimed that a hospital and the infant’s doctor were negligent in not properly diagnosing a baby’s meningitis. Had it been promptly diagnosed and treated, we alleged that brain damage would not have occurred.
Death of a 26-year-old married father of two because his condition of diabetes was not recognized or investigated by the doctors treating him.
Death of a 48-year-old man, married with one child, when his primary care physician failed to follow up and refer the patient to a cardiologist even though several prior EKGs showed that he had suffered a silent heart attack.
A 44-year-old, married and father of four, died after his primary care physician failed to work up the signs and symptoms of deep vein thrombosis after he suffered an ankle injury resulting in the development of a pulmonary embolism causing his death.
A 59 year old man’s primary care physician failed to recognize the signs of an impending hemorrhagic stroke leading to a debilitating brain bleed. The decedent then died of sepsis through the negligence of a rehabilitation facility to which he was subsequently admitted.
Physicians at an ophthalmology clinic were negligent in failing to timely diagnose and properly treat an eye infection resulting in the loss of a 40-year-old man’s eye. The delayed diagnosis and treatment allowed the infection to spread to such extent that the affected eye could not be saved.
64-year-old man suffered irreversible and extensive brain damage as a result of a delay in responding to cardio respiratory arrest following surgery for a bilateral knee replacement.
A 51 year old woman suffered sepsis and the loss of a significant portion of her large and small intestines due to surgical errors that took place during surgery for an intestinal obstruction. She now suffers from small bowel syndrome.
Reached at trial for our client, a one-month old baby, who was operated on for heart surgery. We claimed that during the surgery the hospital physicians negligently impaired the circulation in the infant’s leg and thereby caused it to be amputated.
An orthopedic surgeon failed to properly treat a labral tear and biceps tendon tear resulting in shoulder damage.
When physicians punctured the mother’s uterus and failed to timely deliver the baby.
A 38 year old man suffered a perforated stomach when his surgeon negligently performed a laparoscopic banding operation and installed the wrong sized banding device.
Hospital’s failure to properly treat pre-eclampsia in pregnant woman resulting in seizure causing loss of oxygen to baby in utero. As a result the baby was born with severe brain damage.
A 70-year-old man became a paraplegic when his surgeon injured the patient’s pancreas during the surgery and didn’t diagnose and treat the complications but instead went on a vacation.
Newborn baby fell in the delivery room floor as a result of physician’s failure to pay appropriate attention during the delivery. As a result of the fall, the newborn suffered extensive neurological injuries for which she would require life-long care.
A 31-year-old woman suffered the amputation of one of her arms and a stroke affecting the other arm due to the negligence of the hospital staff in failing to provide appropriate thrombolytic and anticoagulation therapy.
Death of a 27-year-old woman as a result of the failure on the part of her doctors to treat deep vein thrombosis and a pulmonary embolism.
A 35-year-old patient who was blind in one eye had his functioning eye examined by a hospital doctor who carelessly put his contact lens into the wrong solution, blinding his sighted eye.
Hospital’s negligent assembly of a heart lung bypass machine resulted in a 3-year-old boy suffering a stroke while undergoing surgery. As a result, the child suffered left sided paralysis, seizures, gross developmental delays and cognitive and perceptual disability.
Hospital and its medical personnel were negligent in failing to properly monitor a newborn infant who suffered a cardio respiratory arrest and did not receive timely intervention resulting in severe neurological injuries.
Hospital emergency department’s delay in treating 58-year old patient’s head injury resulted in her death.
Failure to diagnose and treat kidney disease in 30-year-old man resulted in need for kidney transplant and a shortened life expectancy.
A 44 year old woman acquired an infection in her jaw from an injection used to help open her mouth in order to fit a prosthetic device used to treat TMJ. Her dentist failed to appreciate her complaints over the next few days leading to the spread of the infection and permanent jaw damage.
Failure to properly treat and administer emergency care resulted in death of 38-year-old mother of four.
Loss of three fingers on the right hand of a pre-mature baby because physicians in the hospital negligently inserted an IV, causing an IV infiltrate.
Obtained for our client only a few months after a lawsuit was filed against a doctor who carved his initials on the patient’s lower abdomen following a Cesarean Section, leaving her with a permanent scar.
50-year-old firefighter died when hospital doctors who knew that he had been bleeding internally failed to give him a transfusion and when his surgeon who was five minutes away didn’t come to the hospital. He was survived by his wife, two adult children and a 17-year-old son.
Against the City and in favor of our client, a 17-year old boy who was shot by a police officer, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. (more…)
Against the City Of New York for the negligent operation of a police car that struck down a pedestrian crossing in the middle of the block resulting in permanent and disabling brain damage. The Jury found the police officer to be 100% at fault.
Against the Transit Authority and in favor of our client, a 36-year old woman, who lost part of her hand and received serious skull fractures when she was hit while on the subway tracks. We proved that the train operator had been warned of her presence but he nevertheless failed to bring the train to a safe stop.
Against the Transit Authority and in favor of our clients, the family of a 56-year old man who died when he was struck by a train. He had been standing on a subway platform when he became dizzy, collapsed and fell on the subway tracks. We proved to the jury that the train operator was negligent in not noticing the plaintiff on the tracks in time to bring the train to a safe stop.
Our client was injured when she walked into a pothole that had been created as a result of defective roadway repairs. She severely injured her shoulder which required surgery. The jury agreed that the defective repairs had been negligently made.
Reached during trial for our client, who sustained serious head injuries when her vehicle left the road surface and struck a tree adjoining the road. It was successfully demonstrated that a guardrail should have been installed along the road surface to prevent vehicles from striking the trees, which were set too close to the road. We demonstrated that the placement of trees two feet from the side of a major cross street was an improper design and that it was the cause of our client’s injuries.
Before reduction for comparative fault of our client, who was crossing the Cross-Bronx Expressway at night when he was struck by a New York City Department of Parks vehicle. He suffered permanent brain damage and had no recall of the incident. The jury found that the accident was caused, in part, by the negligence of the driver of the City vehicle even though our client was crossing a major highway in the dark.
In favor of our client, a police officer, who was injured in an intersection collision between two police cars that were each responding to emergency calls. Our client sustained a fractured jaw requiring open reduction and internal fixation and a fracture of the cervical spine.
In favor of our client, a truck driver, who was beaten by police and who sustained a fracture of the skull and a hearing loss in one ear. The jury found, unanimously, that the police officers used excessive force and then tried to cover up what they had done.
For our client, a third grade student on a school trip, who was struck by a taxi. The student’s shoelace became untied and when she reported it to the school aide, she was not permitted to stop and tie it. Rather, she was told to keep moving so that they would not lose the rest of the group. When she got to the intersection, someone stepped on her untied shoelace, causing her to fall and roll on the street where she was hit by a taxi. The student suffered from multiple fractures to her right leg. The jury found the Board of Education 85% liable and the taxi 15% liable.
Against Foster Care Placement agency and in favor of our client, a 10-year old child, who was repeatedly molested by her foster father during a four-month foster care placement. The jury found the placement agency liable for their failure to provide warranted therapeutic care which would have disclosed the ongoing abuse.
In favor of our client, a young boy, who was playing in the street with his friends when he was struck by a stolen car that was being pursued by a police car. We proved that the police conducted a negligent chase at a dangerous rate of speed. Our client suffered from a head injury and a broken leg. The jury found the City of New York 100% liable.
Our client suffered a badly fractured elbow, requiring surgery, when he was walking down the street and tripped on a raised portion of the subway grating on the sidewalk. We demonstrated that the Transit Authority failed to inspect and repair the subject area and that Transit Authority personnel were supposed to check each subway grating on a monthly basis. The jury agreed that the failure by the Transit Authority to correct the defect resulted in our client’s fall.
For our client, a City Sanitation Worker, who suffered a crushed pelvis when a garbage truck he had brought to a stop and just exited suddenly began to roll down a hill and ran over him as he attempted to jump back into the cab. We demonstrated that the truck’s transmission shifter was defective and our expert asserted that this defect caused the truck to go out of neutral and into drive thereby causing the accident. *Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Against the New York State Thruway Authority and in favor of our clients, a passenger and family of a driver of a car struck by a boulder during the course of a rock slide on the State Thruway. The driver was killed and the passenger sustained post-traumatic stress disorder. We discovered documents from 1957 which revealed that the State’s own engineer recommended, on the basis of a recent rockslide, that the face of the mountain bordering the Thruway be removed to avoid future rockslides. Ignoring it’s own engineers’ recommendation, the State instead merely “bolted and strapped” boulders in the area of the rock slide.
51-year-old pedestrian and father of two was struck by a bicycle going the wrong way on a one-way street, causing him to sustain a head injury which ultimately resulted in his death.
Our client, a pedestrian on a park pathway, was struck down by a very large dead tree limb that fell some 35 feet resulting in severe brain injury and spinal cord damage with incomplete paraplegia (ASIA-C classification) along with multiple fractures of the spine and skull which required numerous surgical procedures, extensive hospitalization and ongoing rehabilitation. It was claimed that the tree branch, which was approximately 20 feet in length, should have been removed long before the accident because of its dead and hazardous condition, which was well known to park personnel responsible for the tree’s maintenance.
Tree planted too close to road was struck by vehicle operated by 30-year-old doctor causing permanent brain damage.
Our client was injured when she walked into a pothole that had been created as a result of defective roadway repairs. She severely injured her shoulder which required surgery. The jury agreed that the defective repairs had been negligently made.
Against the New York State Thruway Authority and in favor of our clients, a passenger and family of a driver of a car struck by a boulder during the course of a rock slide on the State Thruway. The driver was killed and the passenger sustained post-traumatic stress disorder. We discovered documents from 1957 which revealed that the State’s own engineer recommended, on the basis of a recent rockslide, that the face of the mountain bordering the Thruway be removed to avoid future rockslides. Ignoring it’s own engineers’ recommendation, the State instead merely “bolted and strapped” boulders in the area of the rock slide.
Our client, a plumber’s assistant, was punched in the face by a police officer. He fell backward and sustained a fracture of the skull. He was then arrested and handcuffed, which is a gross violation of police conduct. Hospital doctors later induced our client into a coma due to the severity of his injuries, but he unfortunately died eight days later. Ten days into trial, we negotiated a settlement behalf of the client’s widow for wrongful death, economic loss, and pain and suffering.
In favor of our client, a truck driver, who was beaten by police and who sustained a fracture of the skull and a hearing loss in one ear. The jury found, unanimously, that the police officers used excessive force and then tried to cover up what they had done.
An 18-year-old student while leaving the subway dropped her Bible and when she leaned over to pick it up she was caught by the subway door which dragged her and badly damaged her left leg. She fractured her pelvis and leg in multiple places and severed a main artery. Much of the skin of her leg was torn off. She required multiple surgeries to insert hardware in her leg and hip, and to graft the skin that she had lost.
A 39-year-old female pedestrian in a cross-walk was struck by a bus making a right turn. She sustained crushing injuries to her right leg which may ultimately result in the loss of her leg.
A 12-year-old pedestrian was struck down by a New York City Transit Authority bus. He suffered crushing injuries to his left foot and a closed head injury which resulted in mental deficits including impairments to his ability to concentrate, memory, and verbal skills.
A 27-year-old bicyclist suffered severe damage to her left arm when she was dragged and run over by a NYCTA bus whose driver carelessly failed to see her. She suffered degloving injuries and multiple fractures to her left arm, which required several surgeries including the insertion of hardware and skin grafting.
55-year old female pedestrian in crosswalk run over by NYCTA bus which failed to yield right of way, resulting in below-the-knee amputation.
A 89-year-old pedestrian was crossing 1st Avenue at its intersection with East 23rd Street in Manhattan when he was struck down by a NYCTA bus making a right turn. Plaintiff sustained severe crush injuries to his left foot and lower portion of his left leg, resulting in a below-the-knee amputation. He also sustained a fractured right hip and suffered aggravation of a pre-existing mild cognitive impairment.
56-year-old husband and father of one fell on the subway tracks and was killed when the subway operator failed to properly react and stop his train in time.
72-year-old male pedestrian in crosswalk was struck down by a NYCTA bus which failed to yield right of way, resulting in head injury with cognitive deficits, and injuries to his back, left shoulder and wrist requiring surgery.
A 43-year-old man and his two-year-old daughter suffered 70% and 50% total body surface burns, respectively, when a gas explosion occurred in their apartment. The father died from his burns and was survived by his wife and three children.
In favor of our client, whose 4-year old daughter died in an apartment fire but only after she frantically tried to save her. The verdict was against the building owner which improperly installed the wrong circuit breakers in the apartment building. As a result, heat which was generated from an overloaded circuit caused a fire in the apartment. Expert testimony demonstrated that the fire would have been prevented had the appropriate circuit breakers been installed to shut down the electrical source of the heat, which ultimately resulted in the fire. Jury unanimously held that the owner was negligent in failing to have adequate circuit breakers and rendered one of the largest awards ever for the death of an infant.
33-year-old intoxicated tenant tripped on a defective metal door sill as he was leaving his building, causing him to fall over parapet wall and down cellar steps, rendering him a paraplegic.
51-year-old housewife sustained 3rd degree burns to 70% of her body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors.
Our client, a telephone lineman, was rendered a paraplegic when the telephone pole he had climbed fell over. The pole had previously been cut by his employer. We proved that the Utility Company was negligent in failing to maintain the pole or in not warning our client of the danger.
Our client, a 2-year-old girl, nearly drowned in an improperly installed above-ground pool. In addition to obtaining contributions from the pool owner, the pool seller, the pool installer and the filter manufacturer, we defeated a specific policy exclusion and recovered $1,000,000 from the insurance carrier for our client’s own parents.
Our client, a deliveryman, tripped and fell over a concrete footing that was being constructed. The major injury claimed was exacerbation of underlying multiple sclerosis. Defendant argued that such a condition could not be aggravated by trauma. We successfully proved to the Jury otherwise.
Reached during trial for our client, a deliveryman, shot by two unknown assailants who were able to gain entry through the unattended front door of an apartment building. Our client was left paralyzed below the waist. We claimed that the building’s security was inadequate in not having a guard posted at the entrance at all times in light of the history of crime in the building area, according to records we obtained.
35-year-old motorist was impaled by a rotted tree limb that broke off a diseased tree during a storm causing fractured pelvis and internal injuries requiring multiple surgical procedures.
Death of 66-year-old father and of a 68-year-old mother of three adult children, with two of the adult children, ages 42 and 45, sustaining 16% and 25% total surface body burns when their building caught fire because of the improper discarding of paint supplies which acted as an accelerant when negligently placed together with the daily garbage.
48-year-old building porter fell down stairs due to defective handrail resulting in permanently disabling back, neck and shoulder injuries, with multiple surgeries.
13 Year old girl prevented safe entry into building and sexually assaulted by an intruder who entered into building due to long broken front door intercom buzzer system.
Demolition caused building facade to collapse on top of 50-year-old grandmother walking on sidewalk resulting in bilateral leg fractures requiring surgery which left terrible scarring.
For our client, a third grade student on a school trip, who was struck by a taxicab. The student’s shoelace became untied and when she reported it to the school aide, she was not permitted to stop and tie it. Rather, she was told to keep moving so that they would not lose the rest of the group. When she got to the intersection, someone stepped on her untied shoelace, causing her to fall and roll on the street where she was hit by a taxicab. The student suffered from multiple fractures to her right leg. The jury found the Board of Education 85% liable and the taxicab 15% liable.
Malfunctioning elevator caused a 39-year-old tenant to fall two stories, resulting in hip and pelvic fractures requiring surgery.
31-year-old restaurant worker sustained 3rd degree burns to 50% of his body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors. He died 13 days after the incident.
For our client, a man who was left in a persistent vegetative state after electrocuting himself on a machine he had hot-wired to move under its own power, rather than push. We successfully argued that the machine had a defective safety switch which, if operating properly, would have prevented electrocution.
In favor of our client, a pasta chef who got his hand caught in a pasta-making machine, which the Jury found to have been defective. Our client sustained a partial amputation of four fingers which had to be reattached by microsurgery.
Reached during trial for our client, a wood finisher, who, we contended, was caused to suffer permanent disabling damage to his central nervous system as a result of his use of certain spray and padding lacquers. According to our expert, the labels on these wood finishing products did not properly warn him of the health hazards associated with exposure nor properly advise him of the need for proper ventilation and masks.
Reached against auto manufacturer and driver during Trial in which we were lead plaintiffs’ trial counsel for over 20 victims struck down, some fatally, by an out-of-control car. We claimed that the operator had inadvertently pressed down on the accelerator, instead of the brake, as she shifted from “park” into “drive”, causing the car to suddenly accelerate, which in turn caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle. We contended that the vehicle was defectively designed for not having a brake shift interlock to prevent the operator from shifting into gear unless the operator’s foot was on the brake pedal.
Reached shortly before trial against the automobile manufacturer and offending driver, and for our client, a driver who suffered paralyzing neck injuries when his stopped car was rear-ended by another. The claim was that, due to its defective design, the driver’s seat-back collapsed rearward in this low-speed impact causing our client’s neck to hyperextend and for his head to strike the rear seat seat-back thereby causing his injuries.
Our client’s wife was killed when she was ejected from the motor vehicle she was operating went off the road and subsequently crashed. We claimed that she was wearing her seatbelt but because the belt was attached to the door, and not the door frame, when the door opened it extended the belt so that she was, in effect, no longer restrained by it. We argued that to have the belt attached to the door was a defective design because of the risk of ejection even when belted once the door opened.
In this case, a young girl was severely burned while reaching across her kitchen stove to turn off one of the burner controls located in the back of the stove. Her shirt caught on fire when it came in contact with one of the burners. The action was brought against the manufacturer of the stove for the improper placement of the controls, and against the manufacturer of the shirt which we claim was highly flammable. The case resulted in a confidential settlement.
48-year-old laborer suffered 3rd and 4th degree burns over 50% of his body when a defectively designed dump truck tailgate opened and buried him up to his waist in hot asphalt.
A 46-year-old metal worker lost non-dominant arm while using buffing lathe designed and manufactured, sixty years earlier, without guards.
Our client, a 38-year-old banker had his left leg amputated as a result of a shark attack. An action was brought against the resort because it allowed swimming at its beach despite its proximity to a shark feeding area.
15-year-old female shot in the eye with a BB gun by another teenager, resulting in a ruptured globe and scleral lacerations requiring multiple surgeries and residual limited vision.
17-year-old high school student was at a beach party when one of the attendees threw a gas canister into a bonfire which exploded and cut the left side of her head. Injuries included a skull fracture with open reduction and internal fixation.
30-year-old expectant father driving home from gym was struck by a city ambulance that failed to slow down at intersection, resulting in paraplegia.
A 38 year old painter died as a result of a scaffold collapse. He was survived by a wife and three children.
Physicians at a hospital negligently delivered a baby boy resulting in injury to the brachial plexus, Erb’s Palsy and permanent damage to the arm.
Reached during trial for our client, a newborn. Approximately 45 minutes prior to delivery, a hospital resident determined that the delivery should be performed via cesarean section and called the attending physician (since the resident was not allowed to perform a cesarean section). The attending physician denied ever receiving the call. The infant was delivered vaginally and during the delivery, the baby’s shoulder became stuck. We claimed that excessive traction (pulling) was used to deliver the infant, resulting in an injury to her brachial plexus. She now suffers from Erb’s Palsy and has limited use of her arm.
An infant was injured at birth when a hospital doctor carelessly damaged some of her nerves causing the baby to have Erb’s Palsy.
Hospital’s failure to properly treat pre-eclampsia in pregnant woman resulting in seizure causing loss of oxygen to baby in utero. As a result the baby was born with severe brain damage.
Physicians failed to recognize fetal distress resulting in brain damage at birth.
Baby boy was born with brain damage due to negligence by the hospital physicians in failing to perform an emergency cesarean section when there were signs of fetal distress.
Hospital employees and obstetrician failed to deliver a baby after there were signs of distress resulting in oxygen deprivation and permanent brain damage.
Hospital employees and obstetrician failed to promptly deliver a baby causing the baby to become oxygen deprived resulting in permanent brain damage.
Brain damage in a newborn baby boy due to the negligence of hospital physicians during his delivery.
Hospital’s failure to react to signs of fetal distress resulted in baby suffering permanent brain damage.
Cerebral Palsy and brain damage suffered by a twin boy at birth because the doctors delivering him did not perform a cesarean section when they became aware of fetal distress.
Emergency cesarean section performed on a woman who was discharged from the hospital one day earlier with vaginal bleeding, resulting in brain damage to her newborn son.
Obstetrician’s failure to diagnose pre-term labor in woman who presented to hospital with complaints of contractions and abnormal findings on sonogram showing signs of cervical shortening, resulted in baby’s premature birth and an intracranial hemorrhage requiring surgical shunt placement with numerous revisions, hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy.
Physician delivering twins failed to recognize that the second baby was in fetal distress resulting in oxygen deprivation and permanent brain damage.
Hospital’s failure to perform emergency c-section delivery resulted in permanent neurological injury to newborn.
Brain damage suffered by a newborn baby because the hospital doctors who delivered him did not perform an emergency cesarean section despite warning signs.
Newborn with permanent and devastating brain damage because his mom did not receive appropriate pre-natal care and he was not delivered timely via emergency cesarean section.
Physicians failed to perform an emergency cesarean section delivery of a baby girl, resulting in brain damage.
In favor of our client, a young girl, and against the hospital, which failed to promptly diagnose and treat the effects of head trauma that she suffered after she was hit by a car while crossing the street. As a result, the child lost all vision and remains permanently blind. We proved that the emergency room should have taken cat scans which would have revealed that there was pressure on the child’s brain, requiring emergency surgery. Had the surgery, (placement of a shunt) been performed, the child’s vision would have been spared.
Hospital doctors failed to properly investigate symptoms of a newborn baby including rapid breathing and fevers resulting in a delay in diagnosing meningitis and permanent brain damage.
Reached on the eve of trial for our client, a government-employed architect, and against the hospital where he was treated for injuries he suffered in a motor vehicle accident. We claimed that our client suffered permanent brain damage as a result of the delay in treatment.
Death of a 42-year-old married father of one child due to his primary care physician’s failure to follow up on complaints of chest pain and signs of an impending heart attack.
49-year-old, married woman and mother of two, died as a result of the hospital’s failure to diagnose the signs and symptoms of a pulmonary embolism.
Hospital’s failure to properly treat and diagnose complaints of a 30-year-old married patient and father of one, of difficulty breathing and chest pain, resulted in his arrest due to pulmonary embolism, minutes after discharged from hospital as “stable”.
Hospital was negligent in failing to diagnose and treat post-operative complications of a 50-year-old patient’s thyroid removal causing her to lapse into a coma and suffer permanent brain damage.
A 20-year-old woman undergoing a cesarean section delivery of her baby was negligently given anesthesia resulting in oxygen deprivation and permanent severe brain damage.
For our clients, the family of a 38-year old woman who suffered brain damage and total disability after the surgical removal of her thyroid gland. We demonstrated that our client suffered brain damage after a cardiac arrest caused by the failure of hospital and medical personnel to anticipate, recognize and treat hypocalcemia, a known complication of thyroidectomy which can cause the muscles in the throat to constrict.
When performing an outpatient laparoscopic procedure, the surgeon negligently lacerated a young woman’s blood vessels resulting in injuries to internal organs and extended hospitalization.
A 27-year-old married mother bled to death shortly after the birth of her second child because the hospital doctors performed a hysterectomy causing a hemorrhage.
In favor of our clients, the family of a patient who sustained a year of pain and suffering after severe loss of tissue following the improper administration of blood thinners. We demonstrated to the jury that the nursing staff administered the dosage inappropriately, which resulted in a condition known as skin necrosis. Our client ultimately died a year later of unrelated causes, but the jury nevertheless compensated him for the pain and suffering that he endured prior to his death.
Death of a 37-year-old married father of three after spinal surgery resulting from the hospital staff’s failure to diagnose the signs and symptoms of pulmonary embolism.
56-year-old husband and father of three died after a benign polyp was removed from his colon because the hospital doctors failed to diagnose and treat his post-operative complications.
42-year-old married mother of two had an unnecessary right breast mastectomy when her pathology after a biopsy was negligently read incorrectly.
During an unnecessary procedure to remove pelvic adhesions, a doctor carelessly perforated a 31-year-old patient’s colon causing her to need a colostomy.
A 48-year-old married father of two died as a result of being prematurely extubated following surgery. In addition, the anesthesiologist was not equipped to re-intubate when the decedent suffered respiratory distress soon after the pre-mature removal of the ventilator.
A plastic surgeon, who was not board certified, performed liposuction on a 37-year-old patient’s thighs so incompetently that she was permanently scarred and almost died.
A 27-year old man, single, who was born with his heart’s major vessels reversed suffered a respiratory and cardiac arrest during a routine cardiac catheterization due to the negligence of the attending physician who administered an excessive amount of anesthetic resulting in his death. He was survived by his parents.
Diabetic woman in her mid 60’s suffered a below-the-knee amputation after a surgical incision in her lower leg became infected and was not treated properly.
43-year-old man, who had a laparoscopic banding procedure, suffered from an infection resulting in a massive hernia in his abdomen due to sepsis caused by bowel injuries during the procedure that were not diagnosed.
A 53-year-old mother of three, caring for a son with multiple sclerosis died because of negligently performed gall bladder surgery.
39-year-old mother of two died shortly after the birth of her baby because hospital doctors caring for her did not properly treat hypertension and pre-eclampsia.
A 35-year-old married mother died 6 days after the birth of her second child because physicians failed to properly treat pre-eclampsia around the time of childbirth.
47-year-old, married and mother of two, suffered brain damage when a urinary tract infection was improperly treated causing her to have an extremely high fever and seizures that caused brain damage.
Negligent I.V. placement for surgery in a 2-week-old baby resulted in an I.V. infiltrate and loss of parts of her fingers of her right hand.
Premature baby boy suffered a burn to his hand due to an IV infiltrate at the hospital where he was born resulting in skin graft surgeries and therapy.
Reached during trial for our client, who sustained serious head injuries when her vehicle left the road surface and struck a tree adjoining the road. It was successfully demonstrated that a guardrail should have been installed along the road surface to prevent vehicles from striking the trees, which were set too close to the road. We demonstrated that the placement of trees two feet from the side of a major cross street was an improper design and that it was the cause of our client’s injuries.
Against the City Of New York for the negligent operation of a police car that struck down a pedestrian crossing in the middle of the block resulting in permanent and disabling brain damage. The Jury found the police officer to be 100% at fault.
Before reduction for comparative fault of our client, who was crossing the Cross-Bronx Expressway at night when he was struck by a New York City Department of Parks vehicle. He suffered permanent brain damage and had no recall of the incident. The jury found that the accident was caused, in part, by the negligence of the driver of the City vehicle even though our client was crossing a major highway in the dark.
In favor of our client, a police officer, who was injured in an intersection collision between two police cars that were each responding to emergency calls. Our client sustained a fractured jaw requiring open reduction and internal fixation and a fracture of the cervical spine.
In favor of our client, a young boy, who was playing in the street with his friends when he was struck by a stolen car that was being pursued by a police car. We proved that the police conducted a negligent chase at a dangerous rate of speed. Our client suffered from a head injury and a broken leg. The jury found the City of New York 100% liable.
Against the City and in favor of our client, a 17-year old boy who was shot by a police officer, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. This was a re-trial of a case which had resulted in a jury verdict of $41 Million. The policeman alleged that our client pointed his gun at the officer and was about to shoot him. But the young man claimed that he had already dropped his gun and was on his knees. The jury unanimously held that the policeman’s shooting of the plaintiff was not legally justified.
Against the Transit Authority and in favor of our clients, the family of a 56-year old man who died when he was struck by a train. He had been standing on a subway platform when he became dizzy, collapsed and fell on the subway tracks. We proved to the jury that the train operator was negligent in not noticing the plaintiff on the tracks in time to bring the train to a safe stop.
57-year-old female pedestrian in crosswalk was run over by a NYCTA bus which failed to yield right of way, resulting in loss of both legs.
27-year-old female pedestrian was in crosswalk when she was run over by a MTA bus that failed to yield right of way, resulting in crushing soft tissue injuries to legs that led to Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD).
7-year-old child sustained 3rd degree burns to 50% of her body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors.
3-year-old toddler sustained burns to 18% of her body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors.
4-year-old toddler sustained 3rd degree burns to 30% of her body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors.
36-year-old housewife sustained 3rd degree burns to 32% of her body as a result of a building fire where there were no self-closing doors.
Our client, a 2-year-old girl, nearly drowned in an improperly installed above-ground pool. In addition to obtaining contributions from the pool owner, the pool seller, the pool installer and the filter manufacturer, we defeated a specific policy exclusion and recovered $1,000,000 from the insurance carrier for our client’s own parents.
For our client, a woman who was rendered a paraplegic after falling from the upper deck to the lower deck of a cabin cruiser. We successfully argued that the hatch, like any opening in a well-traveled floor, should have a cover or guard around it if it is left open.
Reached during trial for our client, a wood finisher, who, we contended, was caused to suffer permanent disabling damage to his central nervous system as a result of his use of certain spray and padding lacquers. According to our expert, the labels on these wood finishing products did not properly warn him of the health hazards associated with exposure nor properly advise him of the need for proper ventilation and masks.
For our client, a man who was left in a persistent vegetative state after electrocuting himself on a machine he had hot-wired to move under its own power, rather than push. We successfully argued that the machine had a defective safety switch which, if operating properly, would have prevented electrocution.
In favor of our client, a pasta chef who got his hand caught in a pasta-making machine, which the Jury found to have been defective. Our client sustained a partial amputation of four fingers which had to be reattached by microsurgery.