Practice Areas

Municipal tort and Liability involves cases and claims against a state, city, town, or county. Originally, these municipalities possessed sovereign immunity, and could not be sued, however, these immunities have been waived, with a caveat; the state, city, town, and county may be sued within a unique set of rules.

Car accident claims may fall under municipal liability cases, where the road construction is a factor, such as construction sites that are not clearly marked, absent or ineffective roadside barriers, or other dangerous road hazards like uneven roadways which may cause accidents resulting in serious personal injury or wrongful death. If you or a loved one has been involved in a vehicle accident, and the municipality where it occurred exhibited negligence there may be a municipal liability claim available to help your recovery.

Additionally, where an accident involves premise liability due to negligent maintenance or unsafe conditions upon property owned by a municipality, a municipal liability case may arise. Property owners and business establishments have a duty to provide a safe environment for individuals and their premises, and municipal governments are no exception.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed due to negligence related to municipal liability law, the attorneys at Conway & Kirby want to help.

Unfortunately, many people who drive a car will at some point in their life be involved in an automobile accident. Serious car accidents are a leading cause of traumatic brain injuries, fractures, and severe spinal injuries. These injuries could be debilitating or deadly and may lead to permanent disability, mental and physical impairments, and long-term financial and emotional turmoil.

Long-term physical injuries sustained in a car accident might not fully present themselves immediately. What appear to be minor personal injuries or insignificant pain may lead to permanent back or neck pain, herniated disks, radiating nerve pain, or more devastating internal organ or brain injuries. Those involved might have long-term or permanent pain that is difficult to quantify.

Types of Car Accidents

Car accidents are classified by the mechanism or manner of collision. Mechanisms of collision include rollovers, rear-end impacts, head-on crashes, side or T-bone collisions, and off-road collisions. Although each can be dangerous or fatal, rollovers, head-on collisions, and side collisions are the most lethal.

Head-on collisions involve two vehicles driving towards each other from opposite directions and colliding front to front. Side impact collisions most often occur at intersections where one car is turning and another car fails to yield to the right-of-way at a stop sign or a red light. Off-road collisions usually involve one vehicle which either swerves off the road or is knocked off the road by another object. Off-road collisions can lead to rollovers or steep drops, both of which are highly fatal. Fortunately, off-road crashes account for only 16% of all car accidents.

Rear-end collisions are usually caused by failing to maintain a safe distance from the car ahead in combination with distracted driving and/or speeding. The most common type of car accident, these collisions range from simple taps to very serious depending on the speed at which the vehicles were traveling. Rear-end collisions are under-represented statistically as many drivers do not report minor collisions in order to keep their insurance premiums down.

Damages

As the victim of an automobile accident, you may be entitled to be compensated for your pain and suffering, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, disability, inconvenience, medical bills, and lost wages.

If you have been injured or lost a loved one in a car accident in New York State, no amount of money can ever replace what has been taken. However, we can help start your healing process by recovering money for the injuries and damages suffered.

You have a limited amount of time to take action, so it is important to request legal help immediately. The attorneys at Conway & Kirby, PLLC have the experience to maximize your financial recovery and get you the money you deserve. 

The loss of a loved one is always a very painful experience. That pain is compounded when it is the result of someone else’s negligence or wrongful conduct. Our attorneys have the knowledge, skill, and experience in handling wrongful death cases to help you during this extremely difficult and emotional time, so you to focus on everything else.

Wrongful Death is a type of injury that may have been caused by an accident.  Some of the more typical sources of this injury are:

• Auto Accidents
• Medical Malpractice
• Nursing Home Abuse
• Defective Products
• Construction Accidents
• Trucking Accidents

If you believe you have lost a loved one as the victim of a wrongful death, contact the attorneys at Conway & Kirby, PLLC. 

Every year, thousands of motorists and pedestrians are catastrophically injured or killed in trucking accidents as a result of the negligence of truck drivers and trucking companies.

In an attempt to increase their profits, drivers of 18-wheelers sometimes do things that endanger public safety. They speed, skip required rest breaks, or  even use stimulants or illegal drugs to stay awake.

However, the causes of these accidents may not lie with the truck drivers alone. To cut corners, companies will hire unqualified drivers, fail to perform required inspections or maintain equipment to specifications.

No matter the cause of a trucking accident, Conway & Kirby, PLLC, has the resources to help victims of truck accidents throughout New York State.

Personal injuries that happen on the property of another person or corporate entity may be eligible for legal recourse. When property owners fail to keep their premises safe for the public, they may be held accountable.

Premise Liability involves accidents that occur due to negligent maintenance, or unsafe conditions on property owned by someone other than the accident victim. Property owners and businesses have a duty to provide a safe environment for individuals who enter their premises.

Types of Situations that give rise to Premise Liability. 

• Inadequate security
• Inadequate Lighting
• Slips, Trips, and Falls
• Fires
• Explosions
• Lead Poisoning
• Animal Bites
• Exposure to hazardous materials

One of the most common types of premise liability claims involves individuals who have been injured as a result of a slip and fall on property that has not been maintained. Injuries in these cases can be serious and even fatal. Many of these injuries will leave permanent scars or disabilities, and impact the victim’s ability to work and care for their families.

Common Causes of Slip and Fall/Trip and Fall Injuries

• Icy sidewalks
• Snow not shoveled
• Broken Pavement
• Uneven Curb
• Potholes
• Uneven steps
• Spills on a supermarket floor
• Poor Lighting
• Broken Stair rails
• Deteriorated Steps
• Slippery Wooden Ramps

Contact our skilled Premises Liability Injury Attorneys at Conway & Kirby, PLLC without delay for your evaluation.

In a “negligent security” case, the plaintiff claims that he or she was the victim of a crime–usually rape or other assault–as a result of inadequate security by the landowner. Security could mean such things as the door locks to the building were broken, the intercom didn’t work, or a customer of a store is attacked in a parking lot. Apartment managers, retailers, malls, office building security, and parking garage owners all share a responsibility to take all reasonable measures to prevent accidents that may cause injuries to people who come onto their property.  If they fail to do so, they can be held liable for injuries that result from physical attacks that happen on their property. The law requires property owners to take the necessary steps to ensure a safe environment for those persons who are on their property.  Whether those steps are hiring security, placing security cameras, or installing locks, a landowner has an obligation to protect people against known dangers.

Causes of Negligent Security and Negligent Sexual Assaults include:

• Inadequate fencing
• Inadequate locks
• Inadequate lighting
• Negligent hiring
• Sexual Assault
• Assault and Battery

Many victims of these violent crimes endure suffering that far outlasts their physical injuries. Many victims suffer from significant depression and post-traumatic stress disorders that leave them unable to attend to their daily activities for extended periods of time. 

If you or a loved one has been the victim due to negligent security, it is important to get legal assistance as soon as possible to begin an investigation. We recognize this is a difficult time, but it is urgent that victims consult an attorney before the statute of limitations expires.

Doctors and other medical professionals have a duty to their patients to protect them from harm. Although not all outcomes may meet desired expectations, if the failure to achieve optimal results stems from a medical professional’s departure from accepted medical standards, they may bear negligence for the outcome. Such negligence within a professional context is referred to as malpractice. It is important to note that malpractice does not necessitate intentionality, as it can arise from an inadvertent error. Nonetheless, medical mistakes can carry significant consequences with far-reaching implications. Some examples of medical malpractice are:

• Failure to Diagnose
• Medication Errors
• Surgical Errors
• Emergency Room Errors
• Dental Errors
• Obstetrical Malpractice

At Conway & Kirby, our medical malpractice lawyers pride themselves on helping families uncover whether medical errors, negligence, or failure to act are responsible for injuries or wrongful death. While no amount of compensation can recover for loss or lessen the pain of added injury, our experienced attorneys will fight for you and your family to receive the compensation you deserve.

Each year, thousands of defective products are reported to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and many more go unreported. Often, these defective products cause serious injury. The companies that make these products have a social and legal responsibility to sell safe products, and when they fail to do so they can be held accountable.

Some common examples include but are not limited to 

• Children’s Car Seats and Toys
• Medical Devices
• Drug Recalls
• Food

This type of litigation can be a long complicated process, but the Defective Products lawyers at Conway & Kirby, PLLC have the knowledge and experience to fight for the rights of the injured against the companies who harmed them.