The 2025 Year in Review documents another extraordinary year for the NYC personal injury law firm of Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf, marked by record-setting verdicts, precedent-shaping settlements, and litigation that advanced safety and accountability across New York. Throughout 2025, the firm secured results in cases involving catastrophic injury, wrongful death, medical malpractice, construction accidents, transportation disasters, premises liability, and sexual abuse, many of which rank among the most significant outcomes in New York State history.Record-Setting and Notable 2025 Results
Among the year’s most significant matters:
- $272.5 million settlement – Tribeca Crane Collapse, the largest known construction accident settlement in New York State and the United States, holding multiple defendants accountable for catastrophic failure at a Manhattan construction site.
- $80,544,818 settlement arising from the Metro-North Valhalla train crash, the single largest recovery ever for a commuter rail crash in New York State, on behalf of a married father of three who was killed.
- $34 million settlement after trial in the same Metro-North litigation, representing a biochemist dedicated to lifesaving medical research.
- $60 million+ unanimous jury verdict in Nassau County for catastrophic paralysis caused by a negligently performed epidural injection, believed to be the highest medical malpractice verdict ever in that county.
- $17.5 million settlement for the deaths of a three-year-old child and her 72-year-old grandmother struck by a sanitation truck while walking together.
- $7.5 million settlement in Kings County for the wrongful death of a 13-year-old autistic child killed in a residential fire, advancing claims for zone-of-danger damages.
- Confidential settlement expanding New York’s “zone of danger” law, formally recognizing grandparents as immediate family members eligible to recover for negligent infliction of emotional distress after witnessing the death of a grandchild.
Impact Beyond Individual Cases
The 2025 results reflect more than financial recoveries. Through litigation led by Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf, construction sites became safer, transportation systems were forced to confront operational failures, hospitals were held accountable for preventable medical errors, and property owners faced consequences for dangerous conditions.
In multiple matters, defendants challenged causation, minimized injuries, or blamed pre-existing conditions. The firm overcame those defenses through meticulous investigation, expert testimony, and trial-ready advocacy, securing outcomes that reshaped legal standards and reinforced public safety obligations.
A Continuing Mission
For more than a century, Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf has represented individuals and families whose lives were permanently altered by negligence. The 2025 Year in Review stands as a record of that work—and as a reaffirmation of the firm’s mission to pursue justice relentlessly and to make communities safer through the law.
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