Free Initial Consultation

(Main Office)

It is our strongly held conviction that all clients and their concerns are to be approached with absolute dedication and integrity. We thus make every effort to handle our litigation, opinion and counseling assignments in a competent, cost-effective and expeditious manner consistent with our goal to provide our clients at the earliest opportunity with a realistic evaluation and constructive recommendations so that they may make well-reasoned decisions regarding their potential liability and damage exposure. We are mindful too that unnecessarily prolonged litigation does not serve our clients' interests.

We practice daily in the trial courts within the five boroughs of New York City, on Long Island and in the four counties immediately north of New York City, and we are particularly active in the United States district courts for the Southern and Eastern districts of New York, in fact having offices in both districts. Our practice also involves us directly and through associate counsel in litigation in New Jersey and Connecticut as well as in supervisory capacity for a number of clients in litigation throughout the United States - an approach enabling us to bring our expertise to out-of-state matters without a duplication of effort by local counsel.

While our firm's practice has developed explosively over the past 25 years, our attorneys' experience, through their involvement with other firms, has evolved over more than 30 years.

We regularly represent a variety of national and multinational corporations in products liability litigation in areas including vehicle, appliance, power tool and machine design and manufacture, truck tire and rim failure, chemical contamination, pollution, environmental and asbestos. We also represent a number of retail premises operators and major hotel concerns in a wide variety of actions based on the multitude of claims inherent in the operation of such businesses. In areas of automotive liability, we have been involved in all aspects of automobile accident litigation including multi-vehicle accidents, pedestrian knockdowns, second collision damage enhancement, vehicle rollover problems, brake failure and other related issues. We have represented a number of interstate trucking interests in accident litigation involving vehicle operation and product failures. Our attorneys have been actively involved in aviation multidistrict disaster litigations. We regularly represent air carriers in turbulence, emergency evacuation, Warsaw Convention, hijacking/terrorism, false arrest, and discrimination litigations. We have represented owners and operators in midair collisions and fixed base operators, manufacturers and repair stations in general aviation litigation. In insurance coverage litigation and counseling matters, we have been involved in a wide range of issues arising under CGL policies, coverage disputes, reservation of rights and disclaimer issues.

We have also been actively involved over the years in literally hundreds of labor negotiations, in hundreds of labor arbitrations and have, as well, represented clients ranging in size from a mere handful to over 30,000 employees in substantial administrative agency and court proceedings. We have handled employment matters before the National Labor Relations Board, the New York State Labor Relations Board, OSHA, together with sex, race, national origin, religion and disability complaints before the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and state and local employment rights agencies throughout the country. We have stood on the front lines with our clients over the years to handle strikes, picketing, injunctions, lockouts, replacement workers, picket line misconduct and unfair labor practice proceedings.

In sum, we believe that we offer an expertise, an approach and a philosophy consonant with the sophisticated and increasingly high-stakes needs of clients exposed tort and insurance litigation as well as labor and employment law problems in the high exposure New York market.

Statement of Practice

General Civil Trial Practice. Commercial, Aviation and Products Liability Defense, Personal Injury, Premises Law, Labor, Employment, Real Estate and Criminal Law.

Representative Clients:

Ace USA
Admar of New Jersey d/b/a Tropicana Casino and Resort
American Airlines, Inc.
American Family Insurance Group
American Retail Group, Inc.
Axis Speciality Insurance Co.
Blackman Plumbing
Boston Properties, Inc.
Boy Scouts of America
Broadspire
Chrysler Insurance Company
Delta Air Lines, Inc.
Eastern Mountain Sports
Eckerd Pharmacy
F.K.I. Industries
Franke Commercial Systems, Inc.
Gallagher Bassett Services, Inc.
Hertz Claim Management Corp.
Katy Industries, Inc.
Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, P.C.
Liberty Mutual Insurance Co.
Lufthansa German Airlines
Lufthansa Cargo, A.G.
McDonald's Corp.
New York Organ Donor
OMI Corporation
Remington Arms Company, Inc.
Rite-Hite Corporation/Abrow Equipment Corp.
Ronald McDonald House of New York City
Sedgwick Claims Management Services
Sompo Japan Claims Services (America) Inc.
Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
SPX Corp.
St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Company
Steelcase, Inc.
Sturm Ruger & Co.
The Hertz Corporation
The Marlin Firearms Co.
The Stanley Works
The Thornton-Tomasetti Group, Inc.
The Travelers
Thrifty Auto Rental
TRW Automotive U.S.LLC
Tufts University
United Air Lines, Inc.
United Educators Insurance
United States Aviation Underwriters, Inc.
United States Can Company
Washington Group International
Woods Industries, Inc.
XL Insurance-Environmental, Inc.

Rate Information

Fixed Hourly Rates
Fixed Fees Available
Free Initial Consultation

Address

1010 Franklin Avenue, Suite 400
Garden City, NY 11530-2927, (Nassau Co.)

Phone

Phone: 516-742-2500
Fax: 516-742-2516

Website

http://www.ggfc-law.com

Office Hours

Monday: 08:30 AM - 05:30 PM
Tuesday: 08:30 AM - 05:30 PM
Wednesday: 08:30 AM - 05:30 PM
Thursday: 08:30 AM - 05:30 PM
Friday: 08:30 AM - 05:30 PM
Saturday: By Appointment Only
Sunday: By Appointment Only

Firm/Affiliate Offices

MEMBERS OF FIRM

James A. Gallagher, Jr. (Member) born Flushing, New York, October 1, 1944; admitted to bar, 1970, New York; 1971, U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern District Courts of New York; 1976, Western District of New York; 1983, U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York; 1984, U.S. Supreme Court; 1988, U.S. Tax Court, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit and District of Columbia Circuit.. Education: University of Notre Dame (A.B., 1966); Georgetown University (J.D., 1969). Member: New York State (Member: Section on: Insurance, Negligence and Compensation Law) and American (Chair, Automobile Law Committee, 1994-1995) Bar Associations; International Association of Defense Counsel; Federation of Insurance and Corporate Counsel (Chair, Auto, Land, Air Transportation and Casualty Insurance Committee; Member, Products Liability Committee); Product Liability Advisory Council (Sustaining Member); Association of Defense Trial Attorneys; Defense Research Institution. Practice Areas: Premises Liability; Products Liability Law; Aviation Law; Automotive Law; Commercial Law.Email: James A. Gallagher, Jr.

Robert I. Gosseen (Member) born New York, N.Y., September 12, 1943; admitted to bar, 1968, New York; 1970, U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; 1985, Iowa. Education: Cornell University (B.S., 1964); New York University (J.D., 1967; LL.M., 1970). Adjunct Associate Professor of Law, New York University School of Law, 1975-1990. Lecturer: University of Iowa College of Law, 1975-1976. (Resident, New York City Office). Practice Areas: Labor and Employment Discrimination Law.Email: Robert I. Gosseen

Robert A. Faller (Member) born Mineola, New York, January 1, 1950; admitted to bar, 1975, Pennsylvania; 1977, New York and U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; 1983, U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York. Education: Boston College (A.B., cum laude, 1972); Hofstra University (J.D., with distinction, 1975). Member: Nassau County, New York State and American (Member, Section of Litigation) Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Product Liability; Aviation Law; Environment Law; Commercial Law.Email: Robert A. Faller

Michael J. Crowley (Member) born Bronx, New York, January 16, 1959; admitted to bar, 1985, New York and U.S. District Court, Eastern and Southern Districts of New York; 1990, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. Education: Fairfield University (B.A., 1981); Fordham University (J.D., 1984). Member: Nassau County, New York State and American Bar Associations; Nassau/Suffolk Trial Lawyers Association. Practice Areas: Commercial Law; Aviation Law; Product Liability Law; Premises Liability; Negligence.Email: Michael J. Crowley

Brian P. Morrissey (Member) born Rockville Centre, New York, July 1, 1959; admitted to bar, 1988, New York; U.S. District Court, Eastern and Southern Districts of New York. Education: Marist College (B.A., 1981); Brooklyn Law School (J.D., 1987). Member: Nassau County Bar Association. Practice Areas: Civil Litigation; Aviation Law; Appellate Practice; Commercial Litigation.Email: Brian P. Morrissey

ASSOCIATES

Michael Bojbasa (Associate) born Fresh Meadows, New York, 1980; admitted to bar, 2007, New York and U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. Education: Adelphi University (B.A., 2002); Hofstra University (J.D., 2006). Practice Areas: Aviation and Aerospace; Labor and Employment; Premises Liability; Products Liability.Email: Michael Bojbasa

James F. Gallagher (Associate) born Rockville Centre, New York, December 24, 1973; admitted to bar, 2003, New York. Education: Villanova University (B.A., 1996); St. John's University (J.D., 2002). Member: Nassau County and New York State Bar Associations; Defense Research Institute; The Copyright Society of the USA. Practice Areas: Litigation(100%).Email: James F. Gallagher

OF COUNSEL

John P. Coogan (Of Counsel) born Rockville Centre, New York, February 7, 1945; admitted to bar, 1971, New York; 1980, U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. Education: University of Notre Dame (B.B.A., in Accounting, 1966); Fordham University (J.D., 1969). Member: Nassau County and New York State Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Premises Liability; Real Estate; Banking Law; Criminal Law; Insurance Law.Email: John P. Coogan

Peter F. Vetro (Of Counsel) born New York, N.Y., September 2, 1946; admitted to bar, 1971, New York; 1972, U.S. District Court, Southern, Eastern, Northern and Western Districts of New York; 1983, U.S. Supreme Court. Education: St. John's University (B.A., 1969; J.D., 1971). Member: Nassau County (Member, Aeronautical Law Committee, 1976—) and New York State Bar Associations. Practice Areas: Commercial Law; Aviation Law; Real Estate Law.Email: Peter F. Vetro

William A. Bales, Jr. (Of Counsel) born New York, N.Y., May 15, 1957; admitted to bar, 1991, New York; 1992, U.S. District Court, Eastern and Southern Districts of New York. Education: University of Pennsylvania (B.A., 1980); Fordham University (J.D., 1990). Airline Transport Pilot's License, United States, 1982. Member, Airline Pilots Association. Member: Nassau County and New York State Bar Associations; Lawyer-Pilots Bar Association. Practice Areas: Aviation Law; Products Liability Law.Email: William A. Bales, Jr.