Practice · Personal Injury

Long Island Personal Injury Lawyer

The Toner Law Firm represents people seriously injured in Nassau County and across Long Island: car and truck collisions, construction accidents, premises liability, fire, and theft of wages and overtime. James E. Toner has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients, including an appellate result that changed New York agency law. There is no fee unless there is a recovery.

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A case that changed the law

Filsaime v. Ryder Trs., Inc.

Civil · Appellate

Brain injury

Recovery in the millions

A Cornell University student was driving donated laboratory equipment from Long Island to Ithaca when he caused the crash that left Betina Filsaime with a brain injury. The defense argued the student was a volunteer, not an agent of anyone, and that no institution was answerable for what he did behind the wheel.

Mr. Toner recovered millions of dollars for Ms. Filsaime. On appeal, he successfully argued that New York agency law reaches students performing volunteer work on behalf of their colleges. The decision expanded who can be held responsible when a volunteer driver causes serious harm, and it applies well beyond this one case.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Every case turns on its own facts, and this result does not predict or promise the result of any other matter.

After an accident

What to do, and what not to do.

The insurance company will contact you quickly, and it will be friendly. Its job is to close your claim for as little as possible, ideally before you know what your injuries are worth.

01
Get treated, and keep treating
See a doctor even if you feel able to walk away. Head, neck and back injuries frequently present days later, and a gap between the accident and your first treatment is the first thing an insurer will use to argue you were not really hurt. Follow the treatment plan and keep every record.
02
Report it, and preserve what proves it
Make sure there is a police or incident report. Photograph the scene, the vehicles, the hazard, your injuries, and anything that will be cleaned up or repaired within days. Get names and numbers for witnesses. Evidence in premises and construction cases disappears fastest.
03
Do not give a recorded statement
The other side's adjuster will ask for one early, while you are still in pain and do not yet know the extent of your injuries. You are not required to give it. Anything you say about how you feel that day can be used to cap what your claim is worth months later.
04
Do not accept the first offer
Early offers arrive before anyone knows whether you will need surgery, how long you will be out of work, or whether the injury is permanent. Accepting one usually means signing a release that ends the claim for good, including for consequences that have not appeared yet.
05
Watch the clock
New York sets deadlines for bringing a claim, and some are far shorter than people expect. Claims against a municipality or public authority generally require a formal notice of claim within a very short window, measured in days rather than years. Missing it can end an otherwise strong case.

Cases

Injuries the firm handles.

Vehicle

Premises and property

Work

Serious harm

Why this firm

A trial lawyer on the other side of the table.

Insurance companies settle differently with lawyers who try cases. The offer on your claim is shaped by whether the carrier believes the file will ever see a jury.

James Toner has spent more than thirty years in courtrooms, most of them defending criminal cases in front of Nassau County juries. That is the same skill an injury case needs when an insurer decides your claim is worth less than it is. He has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients and argued the appeal that extended New York agency law to college volunteer drivers.

Full biography

Fee Contingency. No fee unless there is a recovery, and no cost for the initial consultation.
Recovered Millions of dollars for accident victims, including a brain-injury recovery in Filsaime v. Ryder Trs., Inc.
Appellate Extended New York agency law to students performing volunteer work on behalf of their colleges
Also recovered for Bullying, theft of wages and overtime, premises liability, construction accidents and fire

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Questions

What injured people ask first.

What does it cost to hire a personal injury lawyer?

Nothing up front. Injury cases are handled on a contingency fee, which means the firm is paid a percentage of what it recovers and is paid nothing if it recovers nothing. The initial consultation is free. The fee percentage and how case expenses are handled are explained and agreed in writing before the firm starts work.

How long do I have to bring a claim in New York?

It depends on the type of claim and who the defendant is, and some deadlines are much shorter than people assume. Claims against a city, county, school district or public authority generally require a formal notice of claim within a very short period after the incident, well before the ordinary deadline to sue. Because a missed deadline can end a strong case outright, the safe approach is to have the dates checked immediately rather than estimated.

The insurance company already called me. Should I talk to them?

You can report the accident, but you are not required to give a recorded statement to the other side's insurer, and you generally should not do so before speaking with a lawyer. Adjusters call early on purpose, while injuries are still developing. A casual "I'm okay, just sore" recorded in week one becomes the centerpiece of their argument in month eight.

What if I was partly at fault for the accident?

You may still recover, though the rule now depends on the type of case. In most New York injury claims, being partly responsible reduces a recovery in proportion to your share of the fault rather than barring it. Motor vehicle claims brought since a 2026 amendment are different: there, a claimant more at fault than the other side recovers nothing. Insurers routinely overstate a claimant's share of fault, which is exactly why the allocation is worth contesting.

What is my case worth?

Any lawyer who answers that at a first meeting is guessing. Value depends on the severity and permanence of the injury, medical costs, lost earnings, the effect on daily life, available insurance coverage, and how liability is likely to be decided. Some of that is not knowable until treatment progresses, which is exactly why early offers tend to be low.

Reviewed by James E. Toner, Esq.

Last reviewed August 2026

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Primary sources

Deadlines in New York injury cases vary by the type of claim and by who the defendant is, and some are far shorter than the general rule. These links go to the official statutes so you can check, but the only reliable way to know your deadline is to have it checked against your facts.

Free case review

Find out what your claim is actually worth.

The review costs nothing, and there is no fee unless there is a recovery. The phone is answered around the clock.

(516) 294-1133

Toner Law Firm
100 Garden City Plaza, Suite 400
Garden City, New York 11530

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Attorney Advertising. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.