New York Personal Injury Laws

Maurer Law Firm

I’m Ira Maurer, founder of the Maurer Law Firm. Welcome to our website. I’ve been practicing serious personal injury law in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and throughout New England for over 30 years now.

When I decided to open the Maurer Law Firm, there were a few principles that were important to me. I wanted every client of this firm to know that they would be treated like family because that’s how I would want to be treated.

I restrict the number of cases that I handle so that I can devote my attention to each and every client and their needs. I explain all the important things that they need to know because they need to be educated, because my clients can make the best, most confident decisions about their case if they understand everything that goes on.

Working as a lawyer isn’t just a profession for me. It’s not just a career. It’s my life.

Slip Or Trip And Fall

I’m Ira Maurer with a public service law tip regarding slip and fall or trip and fall accidents in New York.

 Liability For The Fall

What exactly do you have to prove if you’re a victim of such an injury? Property owners in the state of New York are liable for injuries if they created a dangerous condition, or they knew about an unsafe condition and failed to take reasonable steps to fix the condition, or they should have known about the condition had they conducted reasonable periodic inspections.

Once you establish that the defendant created the condition, or knew or should have known about the condition, the next thing you have to prove is what actually caused your injury. Juries are not allowed to speculate as to the cause of an injury. If the plaintiff – the injury victim – cannot prove exactly what caused the injury, their case will be dismissed.

 Example

In a snowstorm, for example, property owners are entitled to have a reasonable amount of time to respond to a dangerous condition, clean up the mess – the snow and the ice – after the storm. There’s something called the Storm in Progress Rule. Basically the property owner is not expected to get rid of a slipping hazard while the storm is in progress. They’re entitled to a reasonable amount of time to pass after the storm for them to clear up the slipping hazard. However, if they don’t wait until after the storm and they actually engage in cleanup during the storm, if they create an unsafe condition in the process, or they exacerbate a naturally unsafe condition as a result of what they do, they may still be liable even though the storm wasn’t over yet.

So, if you’re a slip and fall victim and you’ve had an injury in New York, these are some of the basic things you need to know about. For more information, contact the Maurer Law Firm website at maurerlaw.net.

Boil Maker Vulnerable to Asbestos Exposure

Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City. I want to talk to you about a particular client I had and explain to you how he proved his exposures to asbestos. Now, this client, a former client of mine his name was Don and he was diagnosed with mesothelioma. He was a union boil maker who worked in the local power houses here in New York City for many decades. Through the course of his work he was exposed to all kinds of asbestos. Asbestos cement, asbestos block, asbestos pipe covering, asbestos refactoring. Now, the thing about Don that was very interesting is that Don was a brilliant guy. Don barely graduated high school, didn’t go to college, wasn’t a doctor or lawyer or any of those things. He was a union boiler maker. But boy, did he know what he was talking about. When it came time for him in the fight of his life and his deposition to talk about his exposures to asbestos he did a tremendous job of talking about all the ways that was was exposed to asbestos. He has an incredible memory and he was able to document through his great memory and his strong mind all the ways that he was exposed to asbestos. I have to say it was one of the great pleasures I’ve ever had working with such a knowledgeable and informed client. Don had a very successful and strong case and you may have a similar case. But every case is different. It’s depends on large part on the work up and effort that’s put into the case. To work on the case with the client to establish these exposures to asbestos so that we can prove them and resolve the case in a favorable way. Now, you have I’m sure many questions about how you prove that you were exposed to asbestos in the different ways you were exposed. We can answer those questions for you. I’m Joe Williams and at our firm we handle cases for mesothelioma victims everyday. Pick up the phone and call us at the number below and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you for listening.

Types of Injuries

At the Maurer Law Firm, I’ve had clients who’ve come to me as a result of many different types of injuries. They may have been injured in a car accident. They may have fallen at work. They may have been a victim of medical malpractice. Whatever the cause, they all have something in common – their lives have been turned upside down. They don’t know what’s going to happen next. They don’t know if they’ll ever return to work, or if they’ll be able to make their mortgage payments. These are serious issues that are taken very seriously here at the Maurer Law Firm.

The litigation process can be complex and overwhelming. My experience and dedication to your case will help educate you on the process

Medicare Reimbursement

If Medicare pays the bills for a mesothelioma victim’s treatment, will they seek to get that money back? Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City. I can tell you that the answer to that question is most probably yes. There are both federal and state laws that govern the procedures that are followed when dealing with Medicare and their pursuit of getting their money back in the form of a lien. Medicare generally puts both the mesothelioma victim and their attorneys on notice that they are seeking to get this money back. They assert what’s called a lien, and that’s just the legal process wherein an entity like Medicare asserts legal rights to the money.

There are rules governing the disclosure to Medicare of certain settlements. We make sure that Medicare is paid back, and importantly, there’s an entire disputes and appeals process under these federal laws that allows us to dispute certain liens and lien amounts if they’re not appropriate. There’s a process in place, and at my office, we have a process in place to scrutinize the lien and the bills that Medicare asserts that they are owed. We take care of evaluating any of those bills and checking them to make sure that they’re appropriate, and in many circumstances we get them reduced.

You’re watching this video because you have questions about mesothelioma and potential Medicare liens. We have answers. I’m Joe Williams, and at my office we deal with these claims everyday. We represent mesothelioma victims everyday. I encourage you to call my office at the number below and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Plumbers Exposed to Asbestos

Did you know that plumbers were exposed to asbestos during the construction of the World Trade Center? Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney here in New York City, and I can give you some information about the types of exposures to asbestos that plumbers faced during the construction of the World Trade Center site.

Large Quantities of Exposure

The World Trade Center site, composed of seven different buildings, was a massive construction project, and the plumbers union had a very large presence during the building of the seven buildings. The buildings at this site required massive quantities of water, hot water and cold water piping running throughout the site. The plumbers’ work at the World Trade Center site exposed them to asbestos in the form of asbestos pipe covering, asbestos gaskets, asbestos insulation that covered the equipment that the plumbers worked with on a daily basis at the World Trade Center site. In addition to their own work, the plumbers who worked at the World Trade Center site could have also been exposed to the work of other trades – trades who are working with asbestos-containing floor tile, or asbestos-containing joint compound, or asbestos-containing fireproofing – exposed as bystanders to the work of others.

You have questions about mesothelioma and exposures to asbestos at the World Trade Center. I’m Joe Williams, and at our firm we handle cases everyday for mesothelioma victims and their families. I invite you to give our office a call. We can answer your questions. Thank you.

No-Fault Law

If you’ve been injured in an auto accident in New York, you need to know that under the no-fault law, there are reporting requirements that are essential to your claim being paid. First, you should know under the no-fault law, your own insurance company is going to be paying the bills for your treatment and your wage loss, not the other car’s insurance company. You need to report the accident promptly and your doctors who treat you have to submit their bills in a timely manner; otherwise, those bills won’t be paid. I can help you with your insurance questions when you’re involved in a car accident.

Talcum Powder Usage Can Cause Harm

What you’re about to hear may seem unbelievable. We need to get the word out so we can protect our women today and our children tomorrow from this dangerous product. Ovarian Cancer, the eighth most common cancer in the U.S., and the fifth leading cause of Cancer death. Each year, nearly 20,000 women in the U.S. get Ovarian Cancer.

A common everyday product is estimated to contribute to approximately 10% of Ovarian cases each year. 40% of us women are estimated to use this product. People might say, “Everybody everywhere uses this product. How can it be connected to Ovarian Cancer?” The label carries no warning. No one would expect this product to have such a severe side effect. People consider it so harmless, they use it on their children. Manufacturers are not likely to warn consumers unless they are forced to by the government.

By: Steven Gacovino

Boiler Makers Exposed to Asbestos

You’re a boiler maker, and you built boilers and powerhouses in large industrial and commercial buildings. Now, you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma and you’re trying to figure out all the ways that you could have been exposed to asbestos.

Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City, and I can answer questions about the ways that boiler makers were exposed to asbestos.

A union boiler maker built the boilers in the powerhouses, built the boilers in the largest structures in the cities in America. I can talk to you about one particular client of mine who was a union boiler maker, who worked in the local powerhouses here in New York City. His work involved construction and erecting huge multistory boilers, in some circumstances ten stories high, in powerhouses, in power generating stations. This work involved working with and sawing with a saw asbestos block, mixing asbestos cement and applying it to different parts of this boiler apparatus, using this mixed asbestos cement and applying it to steam pipes and hot water pipes, working with flange gaskets, cutting asbestos-containing gaskets to put between metal flanges on pipes, working with packing inside of valves and inside of pumps. This boiler maker that I’m speaking of, this former client of mine, was exposed to asbestos in all of these ways.

These are just some of the exposures that a boiler maker would have. You have questions about how a boiler maker was exposed to asbestos? We can answer those questions. I’m Joe Williams. At our office, we represent victims of mesothelioma everyday. I invite you to call our office at the number below and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.