Pawel P. Wierzbicki

Pawel P. Wierzbicki joined Block O’Toole & Murphy as an Associate in 2019, adding yet another young, talented and hard-working trial attorney to the firm. In June 2023, he was named as a Partner at the age of 32, becoming the youngest partner in the firm’s history. Mr. Wierzbicki was born in Chicago and raised in Poland, where he first received his J.D. from the University of Warsaw in 2014. He then began studying at the University of Florida’s Fredric G. Levin College of Law, where he went on to receive his Master of Laws (LL.M.). Mr. Wierzbicki is bilingual in Polish and English.

Mr. Wierzbicki has years of experience as a successful New York personal injury lawyer and specializes in catastrophic injuries resulting from work accidents (especially construction), premises liability cases and motor vehicle accidents. He has also handled many Workers’ Compensation trials and has a thorough understanding of how those Workers’ Compensation claims fit in with the larger picture of third-party personal injury lawsuits. In his time as an attorney, Mr. Wierzbicki has secured numerous substantial Section 32 settlements for construction workers who have been injured on the job.

2024 . . . $10,000,000 secured for an asbestos abatement worker who was injured in a wall collapse accident
In 2024 Partner Pawel P. Wierzbicki co-handled a construction case leading to a $10,000,000 settlement for an asbestos abatement worker who sustained serious and permanently disabling injuries when a large wall collapsed on him at a Manhattan construction site.

2023 . . . $9,750,000 secured for a carpenter who fell off a scaffold
In 2023 Partner Pawel P. Wierzbicki co-handled a construction case leading to a $9,750,000 settlement for a Polish-American carpenter who fell off a 6-foot baker scaffold and sustained permanent injuries to his cervical and lumbar spine.

2022 . . . Top 1 Construction Accident Settlement Result in all of New York State
In 2022 Partners Pawel P. Wierzbicki and Daniel P. O’Toole secured a settlement in the amount of $8,750,000 which is believed to be the highest reported construction accident settlement result obtained in 2022 in all of New York State. This $8,750,000 resolution was hardly fought by Mr. Wierzbicki and Mr. O’Toole in a very challenging case for an undocumented immigrant from Poland who fell three feet from a ladder at a renovation site in Manhattan. This case required proving that head trauma, brain damage and other injuries sustained by the plaintiff caused deterioration of his health condition and activated an antiphospholipid syndrome, a genetic and quiescent blood condition.

2022 . . . Top 3 Construction Accident Settlement Result in all of New York State
Mr. Wierzbicki has shown dedication, hard work, and an unremitting devotion for his work. This was never more evident in 2022 when VerdictSearch recognized his efforts in their publication on verdicts and settlements in 2022. The publication delineates the top published results in a particular practice area. Mr. Wierzbicki was recognized for securing a $4,500,000 settlement for a plumber who tripped and fell on a construction site and injured his knee, which was ranked the 3rd highest construction accident settlement result in the entire State of New York.

2022 . . . Top 3 Motor-Vehicle Accident Settlement Result in all of New York State
In 2022 Mr. Wierzbicki together with his colleague Mr. O’Toole secured a $4,300,000 settlement for a Local 78 member injured in a motor vehicle accident, which is believed to be the 3rd highest reported settlement result in the motor vehicle accident category.

Mr. Wierzbicki’s work has been recognized by the organization Super Lawyers; in 2021, 2022, and 2023 he was selected as a “Rising Star,” an accolade reserved for less than 2.5% of attorneys in New York State. Likewise, he was recognized by The National Trial Lawyers Top 40 Under 40 in 2020 and 2021, a distinction for attorneys under the age of 40 that exemplify superior qualifications, trial results, and leadership.”

Experience:

Results

• $10,000,000 for an asbestos abatement worker who sustained serious and permanently disabling injuries when a large wall collapsed on him at a Manhattan construction site;
• $9,750,000 for a Polish-American carpenter who fell off a 6-foot baker scaffold and sustained permanent injuries to his cervical and lumbar spine;
• $8,750,000 resolution for an undocumented immigrant from Poland who fell three feet from a ladder at a renovation site in Manhattan who sustained head trauma, brain damage and other injuries which caused deterioration of his health condition and activated an antiphospholipid syndrome, a genetic and quiescent blood condition;
• $5,050,000 for a carpenter who fell off a ladder at work and injured his lumbar spine;
• $4,700,000 for a 64-year-old undocumented construction worker from Poland who sustained neck, low back and right ankle injuries as a result of a trip and fall accident on a scaffold;
• $4,500,000 for a union plumber who underwent two surgeries for his knee and will require lifelong medical treatment after he fell as a result of a tripping hazard;
• $4,300,000 for an asbestos abatement worker who was hit by a van on his way to work and sustained fractures of the left forearm and right ankle requiring surgeries and a meniscal tear in the right knee which was treated with physical therapy;
• $4,000,000 for a Local 1 bricklayer who injured his back requiring a single level laminectomy procedure when he fell from a permanent unguarded platform while lowering scaffolding on a rooftop in Manhattan;
• $3,000,000 for a 45-year-old union carpenter who fell off a 6-foot ladder and exacerbated a significant pre-existing lumbar spine condition which was eventually treated with a laminectomy at L2-L5;
• $2,500,000 settlement for a Local 78 union worker who fell five feet from scaffolding after he was hit by a falling object;
• $2,500,000 for an asbestos abatement worker who fell off a scaffold and injured his lumbar spine and left knee;
• $2,700,000 for a union plumber who tripped at a construction site and injured his right knee and the right shoulder;
• $2,000,000 for a 35-year-old electrician who fell off a ladder and sustained non-displaced calcaneus fracture which did not require surgery;
• $2,000,000 for a 51-year-old Local 1 union plumber who got injured on a bicycle and sustained right foot crush injuries;
• $1,750,000 for a union glazier who tripped and fell on a construction site and sustained injuries to his neck and shoulder;
• $1,750,00 for a 37-year-old client union carpenter who was injured on a construction site while transporting sheetrock on a cart that tipped over because one of its wheels locked while contacting construction debris;
• $1,700,000 for a 62-year-old non-union carpenter who fell off a ladder and sustained injuries to his neck and shoulder;
• $1,500,000 for a 76-year-old female pedestrian who was crossing the street where the defendant had a green light and the plaintiff was jaywalking. As a result of the accident, our client sustained head trauma and multiple fractures;
• $1,300,000 for a worker who suffered near blindness when a piece of a screw from a screw gun struck his eye on the job;
• $1,225,000 for a 60-year-old man whose vehicle was rear-ended by a 2008 Toyota sedan on Brooklyn Queens Expressway, as a result of which he sustained exacerbation of pre-existing cervical spine injury requiring a surgery and left shoulder injuries requiring laparoscopic surgery;
• $1,000,000 for a 52-year-old Polish construction worker who fell off a ladder and injured his knee;
• $1,000,000 for a painter who fell off an unguarded loading dock in Suffolk County and sustained right foot injury;
• $1,000,000, representing full available insurance coverage, for a 41-year-old union glazier who sustained soft tissue injuries when his vehicle was rear-ended by a box truck in Queens. Our client had to undergo L5-S1 discectomy procedure;
• $1,000,000 for the estate of a victim in a successfully plead negligent entrustment action involving a compact track loader rented by a general contractor from a third-party company;
• $950,000 for a female client who suffered lacerations to the face while she was working as a plumbing apprentice;
• $950,000 for a 65-year-old construction worker who sustained soft tissue injuries at a sidewalk and curb replacement project in Manhattan. Our client underwent multiple sessions of physical therapy. He did not undergo any surgeries;
• $941,065 for a maintenance worker who fell from a height at work and injured his left humerus and left knee;
• $935,000 for a 52-year-old union sanitation truck driver who sustained soft tissue spine injuries when he was directed by his employer to pick up dumpster filled with debris from a renovation site in Manhattan. Defense also asserted that the surveillance video depicting the aftermath of the accident showed that our client did not look injured;
• $925,000 for a contractor who fell off a scaffold at one single family house construction project in Ulster County;
• $900,000 for a Polish truck driver who sustained exacerbation of pre-existing low back injury;
• $877,850 for a victim of a car crash who sustained exacerbation of pre-existing lumbar spine injuries requiring a surgery;
• $850,000 for an asbestos foreman who sustained a hand injury on the job;
• $850,000 for an elderly woman who slipped and fell in the lobby of a residential building and suffered injuries to her right ankle and right shoulder;
• $725,000 for a 72-year-old woman who tripped over raised sidewalk flag and injured her shoulder and knees;
• $600,000 for a 72-year-old woman who tripped and fell over a raised sidewalk and sustained injuries to her left knee and left shoulder requiring arthroscopic injuries;
• $500,000 for a scooter operator who was hit by a turning van;
• $500,000 for our client who injured his neck when he was clotheslined by a construction component while riding his bicycle on a sidewalk near a construction zone. He treated his neck pain with physical therapy and injections. He returned to work in construction about two weeks after the accident;
• $500,000 for a 62-year-old client who slipped on a recently mopped floor in a residential building and fractured his wrist which required surgical intervention;
• $485,000 for a 60-year-old plumber who underwent knee and shoulder surgeries after a motor vehicle collision.

As a fluent speaker of English and Polish, Mr. Wierzbicki will allow Block O’Toole & Murphy to continue providing the best legal representation and client experience for people of all different cultures and backgrounds. Mr. Wierzbicki carefully prepares Polish-speaking clients for upcoming examinations before trial (EBT’s) to assure they are provided accurate translation so that they can feel comfortable throughout the process. Mr. Wierzbicki takes a hands-on approach with all the clients he represents and is always available to answer questions that his clients may have about the status of their case.

Mr. Wierzbicki is highly motivated to do everything he can to help injured clients who come to him in their time of need. Through hard work, a keen understanding of the legal system, and experience dealing with a wide variety of people, Pawel is dedicated to do everything he can to secure the maximum amount of money available to the people he serves.

Mr. Wierzbicki was also awarded the Pulaski Scholarship for Advanced Studies (from the American Council for Polish Culture) in recognition of his academic excellence. He is a proud member of the Pulaski Association of Business & Professional Men, Inc.