The Importance of Hiring Experienced Lawyers

Well, in New York, we have very unique laws that were specifically written to protect workers who are injured on construction sites. Section 240 of the labor law provides that owners and general contractors are responsible when someone suffers from what’s called a gravity-related injury, meaning a worker falling from a height or some sort of construction material falling and striking a worker. In those circumstances, property owners and general contractors are responsible.

There are very unique defenses to those cases as well. Lawyers who don’t have an understanding of the law, the nuances involved in proving a case, pitfalls that can occur in litigating these types of cases, not understanding the day-to-day dealings of what occurs on a construction site can only diminish clients’ recovery.

So, here at Hack and Rose, we have attorneys — my partner Greg Hack, David Shaffer II — who grew up in the construction industry. Greg, as an operating engineer, David as a laborer. We have personal knowledge of what occurs on construction sites. We know the intimate details of how to prove what happened, the types of records that are generated that help us prove those things.

I personally teach lawyers how to handle, to litigate these types of cases. So, it’s something that we do every day here. And unless you have that type of intimate knowledge of both the law and the dealings of what happens on construction sites, a client will be handicapped in fighting with these big insurance companies and large construction companies. And when that happens, the value of their case is diminished, or it could be dismissed altogether.

We’re in a position of power because it’s something that we do every day. We understand the nuances, the differences between what makes a good case and what can happen to make a case weaker. And so, when someone comes to us, they’ll know that they’ll be in good hands, that the value of their case will be maximized.

We know the proper experts, people who are appropriate to explain things to a jury if need be, in circumstances where personal knowledge, where expertise is required, so that our clients’ recovery is maximized.