Largest Personal Injury Settlements in New York

One of the benefits of working with a personal injury attorney is the opportunity to access greater resources and pursue maximum compensation allowable by law. Defendants are notorious for offering low-ball settlements, taking advantage of the plaintiffs’ desires to forego trial and speedily resolve the lawsuit.

Kantrowitz, Goldhamer & Graifman thrive on the fine art of practicing law, and we never let our clients settle for less. Our 35+ years of experience and in-depth understanding of personal injury settlements in New York guide us in knowing when it’s time to collect or when it’s time to fight.

For your reference, here are some of the largest personal injury settlements and verdicts in New York as of 2017:

$18M for amputee in medical provider negligence lawsuit

It was a long three-year battle for Tabitha Mullings, a Brooklyn mother of three sons, endured what the NY Daily News called a “shocking medical nightmare.” The 32-year-old presented to Brooklyn Hospital Center Emergency Room with illness in September 2008. Doctors diagnosed her with a kidney stone and sent her home with pain medication.

The next day, she called 911 with intolerable pain and numbness, but responders refused to take her back to the hospital. Mullings’ fiancé rushed her to Fort Greene Hospital the next day, but she had developed an advanced sepsis infection that had spread throughout her body. She lapsed into a coma for two weeks as gangrene spread to her extremities. When she came to, she found she had lost both hands, both feet, and was legally blind in one eye. She filed her lawsuit while still in recovery at the hospital.

Brooklyn Hospital and the city did not admit to liability, but agreed to split the cost of the lawsuit due to the severity of the woman’s injuries and their belief that a jury was likely to be sympathetic. Though she won nearly $18 million, Ms. Mullings told reporters her struggle would never be over, but added: “Now that the lawsuit is behind me, I look forward to going on with my life and caring for my children the best I can. I pray what happens to me never happens to anyone again.”

$22M for pedestrian in hit-and-run accident

Brooklyn Humane Society Veterinarian Shirley Miller was crossing Ninth Avenue at 48th Street on her 32nd birthday when she was struck by a Duane Reade Pharmacy delivery truck driver. Ms. Miller suffered severe injuries, including blindness, brain damage, and very limited communication skills. She will require medical care for the rest of her life.

The motorist “left her to die alone in the street,” according to the woman’s father. Duane Reader defense lawyers claimed the woman “slipped on ice” and fell beneath the truck’s rear wheel. Rather than call 9-1-1, the driver made calls to his bosses and union. Through strong investigative skills, as well as witness and medical testimony, attorneys were able to locate the driver to see that her medical expenses are covered and that justice has been served.

$35 million for construction accident

Maciej Sarata was working on a subway line rehabilitation project when a four-foot chunk of dislodged concrete hit a crossbeam, passed through netting in the controlled access zone, and struck him in the head. Mr. Sarata suffered a skull fracture and received treatment for head, brain, and spinal cord injuries. Lawyers were successfully able to argue that the defendants violated Labor Law § 240 — “the duty to provide safety devices necessary to protect workers from risks inherent in elevated work sites.” In addition to his personal injury lawsuit, his wife Magdalena filed a cause of action for loss of spousal services, which increased the settlement amount owed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and New York City Transit Authority to $35 million.

Million-dollar settlements in New York

We, too, have presided over some of the largest personal injury settlements in NY history, including:

$9.2 million to the families of two teenagers killed at a construction site.
$1.38 million to a man who fell down an interior stairway at a private home.
$1.1 million to a woman whose fetus went into distress when the medical team failed to order a timely cesarean.
$1 million to a pedestrian struck by a delivery van on the sidewalk.
$1 million to a worker who fell 15 feet from a ladder while performing repairs.

If you are looking for one of the toughest and most skilled teams of legal professionals NY State has to offer, look no further than Rockland County, NY and Bergen County, NJ attorneys at Kantrowitz, Goldhamer & Graifman. All personal injury cases are handled on a contingency basis, so you pay us nothing unless we win money on your behalf. We look forward to speaking with you in a free consultation.