|
 |
It has been a busy winter for Schulman Blitz, LLP. We are pleased to report that we successfully resolved many of our client's cases since our last update. A sample of the types of cases that we resolved in the past six months include:
A 73 year old grandfather was driving his granddaughter home from ice skating class when a tanker trunk crashed into the rear of their car while traveling on Woodhaven Boulevard in Queens, causing our client to sustain serious back injuries. Schulman Blitz, LLP settled the case for our client at an out of court mediation for $300,000. Our client, a construction worker, was working on the Second Avenue Subway construction project. He was hundreds of feet underneath Second Avenue in Manhattan and he was standing on a scaffold while repairing a broken conveyor belt. Our client was not provided with adequate safety equipment, and as a result, he was caused to fall off the scaffold approximately 25 feet and landed at the bottom of the tunnel. As a result, he sustained injuries to his shoulder and foot. After the completion of depositions, Schulman Blitz, LLP settled the case for $245,000.
 A former Marine employed as a bike messenger was riding his bike on 44th Street and Lexington Avenue when his bike was struck by a vehicle who claimed to have his view obstructed by construction on the street. Our client was caused to miss over six months of work due to the injuries he sustained from the crash.
 A 28 year old statistician was walking to the subway on his way to work when a Con Ed vehicle struck him while crossing he was crossing Eighth Avenue. Our client's shoulder was injured and required surgery to repair the damage.
 A 27 year old father and husband living with his family in the Bronx was the victim of police brutality. A Police Officer whipped our client's face with his walkie-talkie, causing our client to have a severe laceration to his face requiring multiple staples and stitches and leaving a large scar. All charges against our client were dismissed, and we were able to successfully resolve his lawsuit against the NYPD for excessive force, false arrest, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution.
A married father of two children on his way to work as a teacher at a local college was riding his motorcycle on Webster Avenue in the Bronx when he was hit by a car who attempted to pass him. Our client sustained multiple injuries and Schulman Blitz, LLP was settled the case for the entire amount of available insurance within four months of the crash occurring.
Our client was visiting a relative at an apartment building in Brooklyn which was owned by the New York City Housing Authority. He was on his way down the stairs to exit the building when he tripped and fell on a broken, cracked and defective step. As a result, he injured his knee and his shoulder and required surgery. Justin Blitz, Esq. settled the case with the attorneys for the New York City Housing Authority shortly before the trial was scheduled to begin for $110,000.
Our client was sitting on the couch in the livin
g room of her apartment when all of a sudden and without warning, the ceiling collapsed. Parts of the collapsed ceiling struck her on her head and shoulders, causing her to sustain various injuries, including torn ligaments in her shoulder which required surgical intervention. The landlord, despite having been on notice that the ceiling had been leaking, failed to make the necessary repairs, thereby causing the ceiling collapse. Justin Blitz, Esq. settled the case at a mediation with the insurance company for the landlord for $150,000 shortly after depositions were completed.
MORE SCHULMAN BLITZ, LLP WINTER 2015 SETTLEMENTS
Our client, a fashion model, was crossing 13th Street and Eighth Avenue in Manhattan and was in the crosswalk when a truck making a left turn struck her causing her to sustain an ankle fracture. Stephanie Mastrocola, Esq. resolved the case shortly before the trial was scheduled to being.
A married woman with children was on her way to work and was injured when she was getting on a New York City bus. While she was in the process of boarding the bus, the bus driver began to move the bus, thereby causing our client to be dragged along the roadway. Justin Blitz, Esq. settled the case with the attorneys for the New York City Transit Authority on the day that jury selection was scheduled to begin.
____________
A college professor was walking home in the west village in Manhattan when she fell on garbage bags that had been dangerously and haphazardly placed on the sidewalk. She tripped and fell on these garbage bags and sustained injuries to her hand. We were able to successfully resolve the claim with the insurance company for the building adjoining the sidewalk prior to starting a lawsuit.
____________
A married father of three was riding his bike in Queens when he was struck by a car. He sustained a fracture to his leg which resulted in him having a surgery where a rod and screws were inserted into his leg. Justin Blitz, Esq. settled the case with the insurance company for the car that struck our client in the middle of jury selection.
|
We are always proud when our hard work results in a successful resolution to any of our client's cases. A client recently sent the below letters to Stephanie Mastrocola, Esq. and Justin Blitz, Esq. upon the recent successful settlement of her case:
|
Schulman Blitz, LLP News and Events
On October 23, 2014, Justin Blitz was an invited speaker at the Puerto Rican Bar Association and gave a lecture to their members titled "The Art and Nuances of Trying a Personal Injury Case to Verdict: From the Perspective of Plaintiff's and Defendant's Trial Attorney."

On December 2, 2014 Schulman Blitz, LLP associate Thomas Schiro, Esq. was admitted as a member of the New Jersey Bar and on January 23, 2015 Mr. Schiro was admitted to the New York Bar. To read more about Mr. Schiro on the Schulman Blitz, LLP website, click here.
On April 1, 2015, Justin Blitz gave a live Continuing Legal Education webinar titled 'Tips and Techniques for Personal Injury Lawyers in New York."
To purchase and view this lecture for CLE credit
Click Here
To view a list of other available CLE accredited lectures by Justin Blitz to view and purchase Click Here
Upcoming Lectures by Justin Blitz include:
On April 16, 2015 , Justin Blitz will be lecturing via a live webinar on lawline.com on "Effective Cross Examinations".
On June 9, 2015, Justin Blitz will be a speaker on a panel of lecturers at The New York State Trial Lawyers discussing the topic "Technology in the Courtroom and the Office."
On July 7, 2015, Justin Blitz will participate on a panel of lecturers at the Practicing Law Institute discussing 'The Successful Solo/Small Firm Practice 2015: The Tools You Need to Succeed in Today's Economy." Click Here to Register for Course
A Sample of Responses from viewers of Justin Blitz's Lectures:
|
Fred Schulman and Justin Blitz are both members of the board of directors of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and Mr. Schulman is also a member of NYSTLA'S executive committee. The mission of NYSTLA is to assure access to the civil justice system by those who are wrongfully injured.
Mr. Schulman is also the co-chair of NYSTLA's Bar Liaison committee. In that capacity, on February 19, 2015, Mr. Schulman represented NYSTLA at the Defense Association of New York's Diversity Initiative, a 10-month program providing women and minority attorneys with training in leadership and rainmaking skills. Mr. Schulman was proud to provide the viewpoint of a plaintiff's lawyer to an audience of defense attorneys.
Fred Schulman also will be updating his well attended CLE accredited lecture on the "Procedural Pitfalls of New York Practice" this coming spring
If you are an attorney in need of CLE credit, feel free to to
click here and watch Fred Schulman's lecture on "The Procedural Pitfalls of New York Practice."
Click here to purchase a copy of Fred Schulman's renowned treatise "
The Preparation and Trial of Medical Malpractice Cases."
|
What is SUM and UM Automobile Insurance?
All automobile insurance policies in New York come with Uninsured Motorist (UM) and Supplemental Underinsured Motorist (SUM) coverage. We encourage you that own automobiles to raise the limits of the UM/SUM coverage on your automobile insurance policies. We have seen too many catastrophically injured clients who would have received appropriate compensation had they purchased this additional coverage.
So what exactly is UM/SUM insurance and what do you need to know about them in order to protect you and your loved ones?
If you, or someone else in your car, is injured in an accident with another car that has no insurance, a claim can be made to the Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage portion of your car's auto insurance policy. Because the other car is uninsured, your auto insurance will not only pay your medical bills and lost wages under the "no-fault" portion of your policy, but will also compensate you for your pain and suffering under the Uninsured Motorist coverage portion of your policy. Similarly, if you (or a member of your household) are a pedestrian or bicyclist and are struck by a car that has no insurance, you can make a claim for your pain and suffering to the Uninsured Motorist coverage portion of your auto policy.
Likewise, if you
, or someone else in your car, is injured in an accident with another car that has a limited amount of insurance, after that car's insurance has been exhausted to resolve your claim, you can then make a claim for additional compensation to the Supplemental Underinsured Motorist (SUM) coverage portion of your car's auto insurance policy. The same is true if you are a pedestrian or bicyclist
and are struck by a car that has limited insurance.
Supplemental Underinsured Motorist (SUM) insurance provides additional insurance coverage designed to provide an extra layer of protection to you in the event the person who caused your accident does not have sufficient insurance to compensate you for your injuries.
For example, Schulman Blitz, LLP recently settled a case for our client who was a pedestrian struck by a car. Our client was badly injured in this accident. The car that struck our client had $100,000 in insurance coverage through Travelers Insurance Company. Travelers tendered their entire policy limits of $100,000. Fortunately for our client, she had good UM/SUM insurance on her own vehicle's insurance policy through Chubb Insurance Company. After we collected the $100,000 from Travelers, we then collected an additional $200,000 from the SUM portion of her own insurance company through Chubb.
We firmly believe that UM/SUM insurance is the most important insurance you can have on your vehicle. We recommend that you increase the limits of your UM/SUM coverage to get as much coverage as possible. Increasing your UM/SUM coverage will not increase your insurance premiums by that much, and it is well worth the additional money in premiums that you pay to get the additional UM/SUM coverage.
Contact us if you would like a further explanation of how the different automobile insurance coverages work. If you would like us to review your current automobile insurance policy, we would be glad to take a look at it for you.
|
Schulman Blitz, LLP are proud supporters of
|
|
|
|
980 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10018
212-871-1300
 
|
|
|
|
 |
|