One of the Key Trial Lawyers at New York Personal Injury Law Firm
Cyril Baines heads the law firm's appellate practice, writing briefs and arguing appeals, as well as handling case coordination and trial-level work as a personal injury lawyer in more than 30 years of experience, Cyril Baines ranks amongst the most seasoned trial lawyers in New York. He has tried more than 200 cases to verdict, taken dozens of others up on appeal, and had several groundbreaking decisions to his credit including several medical malpractice claims.
As a personal injury lawyer, Mr. Baines prepared the legal briefs for the plaintiff in the trial of Iazzetti v. City of New York and argued before the New York State Court of Appeals- the state's highest court which held that under New York's collateral source rule, injured employees of the City of New York will not have their future pensions offset against a jury verdict that awards future loss of earnings. This decision is considered monumental, even for the most experienced trial lawyers in This decision was a major victory for injured city employees such as firefighters and police officers, potentially saving them hundreds of millions of dollars in pension monies. Another case handled by Mr. Baines, Spiros v. St. Clair's Hospital, was the first case in in which the plaintiff won summary judgment on liability in a medical malpractice claim. The decision on this New York City medical malpractice case made the front page of the New York Post, with the headline, Clair's Hospital Had a Bad Day in Court Today. Mr. Baines also won what was at the time the largest verdict in New York Civil Court, with a $1.8 million verdict in Rivera v. Garrity, a case the judge had originally estimated was not worth more than $25,000.
Throughout his long career as a trial lawyer, Mr. Baines's passion for his work and compassion for his clients have never diminished. Ninety percent of my clients are in dire financial straits and they're up against a system that's fully financed, he says. I'm the lawyer who can make the playing field even.
Mr. Baines is a member of the bars of state, and the U.S. District courts of the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. He is a 1974 graduate of Hofstra University School of Law and a 1971 graduate of the Cyril Baines heads the firm's appellate practice, writing briefs and arguing appeals, as well as handling case coordination and trial-level work. With more than 30 years of experience, Cyril Baines is among New York's most seasoned personal injury lawyers. He has tried more than 200 cases to verdict, taken dozens of others up on appeal, and had several groundbreaking decisions to his credit. Mr. Baines prepared the legal briefs for the plaintiff in Iazzetti v. City of New York, argued before the New York State Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, which held that under New York's collateral source rule, injured employees of the City of New York will not have their future pensions offset against a jury verdict that awards future loss of earnings. This decision was a major victory for injured city employees such as firefighters and police officers, potentially saving them hundreds of millions of dollars in pension monies. Another case handled by Mr. Baines, Spiros v. St. Clair's Hospital, was the first case in Manhattan in which the plaintiff won summary judgment on liability in a medical malpractice claim. The decision made the front page of the New York Post, with the headline, St. Clair's Hospital Had a Bad Day in Court Today. Mr. Baines also won what was at the time the largest verdict in New York Civil Court, with a $1.8 million verdict in Rivera v. Garrity, a case the judge had originally estimated was not worth more than $25,000. Throughout his long career, Mr. Baines's passion for his work?and compassion for his clients?has never diminished. Ninety percent of my clients are in dire financial straits and they're up against a system that's fully financed, he says. I'm the lawyer who can make the playing field even. Mr. Baines is a member of the bars of New York state, and the U.S. District courts of the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. He is a 1974 graduate of Hofstra University School of Law and a 1971 graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he earned his MBA, M.S. and B.S. |
