Case Results

$700m 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.

$925m $925 million recovered in VCF awards for our clients, from both the first VCF (2002-2004) and since the VCF reopened in 2011.

$183m 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. They also sued the City of New York for failing to provide firefighters with personal safety ropes, which would have enabled the men to safely self-evacuate from the burning building. Five years earlier, the City had removed the personal safety ropes from FDNY gear and never replaced them. $183 Million Verdict – Black Sunday Fire.

$92m 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.

$75m 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.

$ Multi-million 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 & 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.

$48.5m 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.

$28m 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.

$16m 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.

$11.5m 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 & 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 & 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.