Accidents involving automobiles, buses, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles and certain other vehicles are covered under laws that apply to motor vehicle accidents. Of course, sometimes pedestrians are involved in these accidents. In certain cases, medical benefits and a certain portion of other lost benefits are paid to them regardless of who is at fault.
Vehicle Accidents
Bus Accidents
Car Accidents
Distracted Driving Accidents
Drunk Driving/Dram Shop
Motorcycle Accidents
Negligent Truck Maintenance
Rideshare Accidents
Rollover Accidents
School Bus Accidents
Truck Accidents
People can be injured in slip-and-fall accidents and trip-and-fall accidents when they're inside a building. People can be attacked by assailants in a building due to a negligent lack of security. Tenants can be injured due to the landlord failing to repair and maintain the building properly. Children can sustain lead poisoning from old paint in a building.
Slip-and-fall injuries
Broken staircases
Cluttered walking paths
Injuries resulting from negligent security
Tripping hazards like unsecured floorboards, carpets, stairs, or steps
Ice and snow accumulation
Unmarked wet floors
Damaged thresholds
Sinkholes
In New York State there is a complex set of laws, rules and regulations applying to injuries on construction sites. The way in which the accident occurs determines which part of the law applies. The compensation provided to the injured person under these statutes is in addition to the compensation benefits that usually apply to people who are injured on the job.
Construction Accidents
Crane Accidents
Scaffolding Accidents
Individuals are protected by certain sections of the U.S. Constitution as well as by other laws against improper actions by police officers and other people charged with enforcing the law. Encounters with police officers can lead to false arrest, the use of excessive force, the negligent use of firearms or tasers, harassment, physical assault, stop-and-frisk and even death while in police custody. People involved in such altercations can sustain very severe mental and physical injuries - such as injuries to the eye from Mace or OC spray, neck and back injuries from the use of excessive force, fractures etc....
Educational institutions are duty-bound to ensure the safety of their students, a responsibility that is both crucial and legally binding. Unfortunately, hazards within schools can sometimes lead to severe injuries or even tragic fatalities. In cases where a school's failure to implement necessary safety measures leads to harm or death of a child, the affected child is entitled to seek legal compensation. It's a common belief that schools are safe spaces for learning and development, but the reality of potential dangers cannot be ignored.
There are special laws that apply to those who are injured by trains, by airliners, and while on ships. Often these accidents are covered by federal laws rather than local state laws. Injuries range from food poisoning to wrongful death. If you or a loved one has sustained serious injury or wrongful death due to a train, an airliner or a ship. Schmelkin Associates, P.C. can assist you.
Many people who are injured on the job can obtain benefits under the Worker’s Compensation Laws. These benefits are obtained directly through the worker's employer. However, the worker who is seriously injured on the job may file a separate lawsuit against a third party who caused the injury. This may be, for example, an injury caused by a ramp improperly placed by a delivery company, an injury sustained due to a defective machine, or an injury sustained due to defects in a building caused by negligence.
Owning a dog is a rewarding experience. With owning a dog you carry responsibility for its actions. It is not uncommon for a dog bite to cause serious injury. If you are a victim of a dog bite due to a negligent owner, you might you have the right to compensation for your injuries, medical costs, and damages.
When a doctor, hospital or other medical provider fails to provide a patient with treatment within the proper standard of care, that provider may be found liable for medical malpractice if the failure causes injury to the patient. Medical malpractice may take many forms, such as failure to diagnose a condition, a surgical error, birth injuries or improper doses of medication. If these departures from good and accepted medical practice cause injury to the patient, they are actionable.
Anesthesia Errors
Birth Injuries
Brachial Plexus Injury
Cancer Misdiagnosis
Cerebral Palsy
Defective Medical Devices
Erb’s Palsy
Eye Injuries
Misdiagnosis
Medication Errors
Surgical Errors
Nursing homes are charged with providing proper care to their patients. Unfortunately, they sometimes put profit above care. Patients suffer as a result. Improper staffing levels and overworked attendants are often the cause of injuries to our loved ones in a nursing home. Some of the serious injuries that can occur are fractures resulting from falls, bedsores leading to ulcers and possibly fatal infection, injuries caused by dehydration or malnutrition, and injuries caused by physical and sexual abuse.
People can be injured by products they use in their normal daily activity or by tools they use at work. This is a very complex area of law. Some of the legal theories that may be used to obtain compensation for injuries due to a defective product are negligence, "tortious misrepresentation", and breach of warranty.
Product Liability
Amusement Park Accidents
Automobile Defects
Dangerous Toys & Playpens
Stryker Hip Implants
Unsafe Household Products
Individuals are protected by federal, state, and local laws from discrimination in various aspects of life, including employment, housing, education, and public accommodations. Discrimination occurs when someone is treated unfairly or denied opportunities based on characteristics such as race, gender, age, religion, disability, national origin, sexual orientation, or other protected statuses. These unlawful actions can take many forms, including denial of employment or promotions, wage disparities, wrongful termination, unequal access to housing or services, and harassment. Victims of discrimination often suffer significant emotional distress, financial hardship, and damage to their personal and professional lives. Legal remedies are available to ensure accountability and to help individuals secure justice and fair treatment under the law.
was awarded to a 13 year old boy who fell while attempting to board a bus and was run over due to the bus driver’s inattention. He had suffered multiple fractures, skin graphs with resulting surgery. Our team was able to successfully litigate, negotiate, try the case, and defend attempts to reduce the verdict, on appeal.
awarded to a 27-year-old model who was slashed and assaulted in a building where several violent crimes had occurred.
settlement for an 11-year-old girl rendered learning disabled, as a result of a hospital’s failure to interpret vital signs on a fetal monitor strips during labor.
following settlement, paid out over time for a seven-year-old child who sustained lead poisoning due to his landlord's negligence in failing to remove chipping and peeling lead paint from the walls of his apartment.
awarded to out client, a New York City welfare inspector, who was attacked while on the job by the defendant's vicious pitbulls, causing scarring and loss of earnings.
was awarded to our client, a 37 year old obese man, who died, after being chased by police/security, and suffered a fatal asthma attack. He was not provided his inhaler, nor given the proper medical attention by the defendants
was awarded to a police officer, with a history of knee problems, who was injured in the line of duty, while running up a defective staircase, to help a fellow officer in need. He injured his knee requiring two additional surgical procedures.
awarded to a three-year-old girl who became learning disabled as a result of sustaining lead poisoning due to lead paint in the walls of her apartment.
awarded (including a waiver of worker's compensation lien), to a construction worker who fractured his femur and tore ligaments in his knee as a result of using a defective saw.
verdict to a teacher who suffered a fractured toe requiring surgery after tripping over a loose wire on the floor of her office.
settlement (including a waiver of worker's compensation lien) to a 58-year-old construction worker who sustained a herniated disc as a result of falling from a pipe in a construction trench.
awarded to an unemployed 60-year-old woman who sustained a fractured hip after allegedly walking into the path of a motor vehicle.
settlement to a site flag person who was hit by a car sustaining a fracture of her hip and humerus.
verdict to a 27-year-old home care attendant who sustained a torn meniscus after being struck by a car while exiting a bus at an improper location.
settlement to a 46-year-old nurse who sustained a herniated disc and fractured foot after being struck by a car as she was crossing mid-block, looking in the opposite direction.
settlement for a 44-year-old carpenter who suffered a fractured hip and a knee injury after cutting himself with a saw that lacked the proper guards.
settlement for a 39-year-old laborer who sustained a two herniated discs as the result of twisting his back on debris on the floor of a construction site.
settlement (including a waiver of worker's compensation lien) for a 38-year-old mason who fell through a hollow shaft on the sidewalk, sustaining a herniated cervical disc and a laceration of a tendon.
