Were you seriously injured because of someone else’s negligence in Rochester, NY?

At Buttafuoco & Associates, we advocate for people across the Rochester area who have been seriously injured, whether in a crash, on a job site, in a hospital, or on someone else’s property, and pursue the recovery each claim allows.

If you have been seriously injured because someone else was careless, our Rochester, NY personal injury lawyer can establish who is responsible, document the full extent of your losses, and pursue the compensation the law provides. Personal injury is a broad area, but the same legal principle applies in every case: did another party fail to use reasonable care, and did that failure cause the harm. At Buttafuoco & Associates, our attorneys have handled the full range of these claims across New York since 1981, from medical errors to serious crashes. Understanding how a claim is built is the place to start.

Personal Injury Lawyer Rochester, NY

A personal injury claim is a civil case that seeks compensation when one party’s negligence causes another person harm. Monroe County injury data identify traffic crashes as the leading cause of injury-related death among county residents, but serious injuries in the Rochester area also come from falls, unsafe property, defective products, workplace accidents, and medical care that falls below accepted standards. Nationally, unintentional injury is the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 1 and 44. Whatever the cause, a claim rests on the same foundation: proving that another party’s failure to act reasonably caused the injury. How that is proven differs sharply from one case to the next, since a missed cancer diagnosis and a highway collision call for very different evidence, but the underlying legal test does not change.

Types of Personal Injury Cases We Handle in Rochester

Buttafuoco & Associates represents injured people across the Rochester area in cases that include:

Car accidents. Collisions caused by distracted, impaired, or careless drivers, including claims that reach an uninsured or underinsured driver’s coverage.
Truck accidents. Crashes involving commercial trucks, where the driver, the trucking company, and others may share responsibility for the injuries that result.
Medical malpractice and birth injuries. Harm caused when a doctor, hospital, or other provider delivers care that falls below accepted standards, including injuries to a mother or child during delivery. These claims require a review of the medical records by qualified professionals to determine whether the standard of care was met.
Slip and fall and premises liability. Injuries from dangerous property conditions, such as ice, wet floors, poor lighting, or hazards a property owner failed to address. Establishing that the owner knew or should have known about the danger is often the central issue.
Construction and workplace injuries. Falls, struck-by accidents, and other harm on job sites, where more than one contractor or company may be responsible. Identifying every party whose choices contributed to the injury is a central part of these cases.
Brain, spine, and catastrophic injuries. Serious injuries that require lifelong care and a claim built around their long-term medical and financial cost. Because the effects can be permanent, the claim must account for decades of treatment and lost earning ability.
Wrongful death. Claims brought by the family of a person killed by another party’s negligence, which can include the loss of financial support and the value of the care the person provided.

Why Choose Buttafuoco & Associates as Your Personal Injury Lawyer in Rochester, NY?

Matching the Right Experience to Your Case

Our firm’s work spans every kind of serious injury, and each partner brings experience suited to a different part of that range. Dan Buttafuoco founded the firm in 1981, has handled more than one hundred trials, is certified in trial advocacy, and holds one of the highest recorded personal injury settlements in New York State. Mark T. Freeley has litigated the firm’s motor vehicle and construction cases for more than twenty years and has taken close to a thousand depositions. James McCarthy concentrates on medical malpractice, including birth injury and obstetrical cases. Together they give a Rochester client access to experience across the full range of injury law. It also means a single firm can evaluate a claim that crosses practice areas, such as a crash that raises a question of later medical treatment, without sending the file elsewhere.

Recoveries in a Range of Injury Cases

Across four decades, our attorneys have recovered millions of dollars for injured New Yorkers in cases of many kinds. Recent results include:

$880,000 for a patient whose colon cancer was not diagnosed in time.
$500,000 for a construction worker struck by a falling steel beam.
$433,003 for a driver who suffered herniated discs in a rear-end collision.
$200,000 for a tenant injured in a fall on an icy walkway.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

What Is Important to Understand About a Personal Injury Case?

Liability, Damages, and the Compensation Available

Every personal injury claim begins with liability: showing that another party owed a duty of care, failed to meet it, and caused the injury as a result. New York law then allows an injured person to recover for medical expenses, lost earnings, future care, and pain and suffering. A claim’s value depends on the severity of the injury and its effect on a person’s health and livelihood, and the full extent of an injury should be documented before any settlement is considered. Documenting damages means gathering medical records, bills, proof of lost income, and, in serious cases, an assessment of the care a person will need for years to come. If you are found partly at fault, your recovery is reduced by your share of responsibility but is not eliminated.

The Deadline to Bring a Claim

New York generally gives an injured person three years to act, though some claims carry much shorter deadlines. A case against a public entity, for example, can require a notice of claim within ninety days, and medical malpractice claims run on a different, shorter clock. Because physical evidence and witness memory fade, it is wise to speak with a lawyer well before any deadline approaches. A case in the Rochester area is generally filed in Monroe County’s civil court, which sits within the Seventh Judicial District. Filing in the correct court and meeting every deadline is a basic part of protecting a claim.

Building the Evidence a Claim Requires

Strong claims are built on evidence gathered early: the incident or crash report, photographs, medical records that connect the injury to the event, and statements from witnesses. Proving what happened, and what an injury will cost over a lifetime, often depends on testimony from physicians, engineers, or economists. Our attorneys work to preserve that proof before it is lost and to document the long-term consequences of a serious injury. Waiting allows records to disappear and memories to fade, so an early investigation often shapes what a claim is later able to prove.

What to Bring to Your Consultation

The first meeting is free, and what to bring is straightforward: any incident or police report, photographs, your medical records and bills, insurance information, and the contact details of any witnesses. That review costs nothing and carries no obligation. If the facts do not support a claim, we will tell you so directly rather than pursue a case that cannot succeed.

Reach Out to Buttafuoco & Associates for a Free Consultation

When a serious injury upends your life, the decisions you make in the first weeks can affect the outcome of a claim for years. Our Rochester personal injury lawyer can review what happened, explain your options, and pursue the compensation you are owed. The attorneys at Buttafuoco & Associates offer a free consultation and an honest assessment of your case, so contact us to get started.

Personal Injury Statistics in Rochester, NY

Serious injuries are far more common than most people realize, and they arise from many different kinds of negligence. The figures below show the scale of the problem nationally, and every category behind them, from falls to motor-vehicle crashes, produces claims our Rochester personal injury lawyers handle for injured people across Monroe County.

Preventable injuries are now the third leading cause of death in the United States, behind only heart disease and cancer, and in 2024 about one in five people, roughly 54.5 million, sought medical attention for an injury, according to the National Safety Council.
Falls are the leading cause of nonfatal preventable injuries. More than 10 million people were treated in emergency departments for fall-related injuries in 2024, per NSC injury data.
After poisoning, falls and motor-vehicle crashes are the leading causes of preventable-injury death nationwide, two of the most frequent sources of personal injury claims, according to NSC state data.

Behind each of these numbers is a person whose life changed in a moment. When another party’s carelessness caused the harm, our Rochester personal injury attorneys work to prove responsibility and recover the full cost of the injury.

Who Can Be Held Responsible in a Rochester Personal Injury Case

Personal injury is a broad field, and the party who must answer for an injury changes with the circumstances. Identifying every responsible party matters, because it determines how much insurance coverage is available to pay for your losses. A Rochester personal injury lawyer commonly pursues claims against the following:

Negligent drivers. Distracted, impaired, or careless motorists are responsible for a large share of serious injuries on Monroe County roads, and their liability coverage is the usual source of recovery.
Property owners and landlords. An owner who ignores a known hazard, such as ice, a broken stair, or poor lighting, can be liable when a visitor is hurt. A landlord’s negligence can support a claim when an unsafe condition causes injury.
Employers and contractors. On a job site, more than one company may share responsibility for an injury, and identifying each one is often the central task. Where a project involves multiple contractors, several parties may be liable at once.
Government and those responsible for unsafe roads. A dangerous roadway or a missing sign can contribute to a crash, and poor road design can create liability beyond the drivers involved.
Product manufacturers. A defective vehicle part, tool, or consumer product that causes injury can make the manufacturer responsible under product liability principles.
Medical providers. When a doctor or hospital delivers care that falls below accepted standards and a patient is harmed, the provider can be held accountable through a malpractice claim.

Sorting out which of these parties bears responsibility, and in what share, is the work that determines what a claim can recover.

Rochester, NY Personal Injury Lawyer FAQs

How much does it cost to hire a Rochester personal injury lawyer?

We handle personal injury claims on a contingency basis. Our fee is a percentage of the recovery and is owed only if we obtain compensation for you. No attorney fee is payable in advance, and the first consultation is free. This arrangement lets an injured person pursue a well-funded insurer without paying legal fees out of pocket.

How do you prove the other party was at fault?

Fault is established with evidence gathered early: the incident or crash report, photographs, medical records that tie the injury to the event, and witness accounts. Modern cases often turn on electronic proof as well, and cell phone data or surveillance video can confirm what happened when accounts conflict. We work to preserve that proof before it disappears.

How long does a personal injury case take?

The timeline depends on the severity of the injury and the number of parties involved. A straightforward claim can resolve once treatment stabilizes and a demand is presented. Cases with several defendants, or an insurer that disputes fault, often require a lawsuit and the discovery that follows. We do not rush a claim to settlement before the full extent of an injury is known.

Will my personal injury case go to trial?

Most do not. The majority of claims settle before trial, though a claim prepared as though it will be tried tends to settle on stronger terms. We prepare every case for court, and we are ready to try it when an insurer will not offer a fair resolution.

Should I give the insurance company a recorded statement?

Proceed with caution. The adjuster represents the insurer, not you, and an early recorded statement is often used to reduce or deny a claim. You are not required to provide one. Report the incident to your own insurer, and direct the other party’s representatives to your attorney.

What if I cannot afford treatment while my case is pending?

Tell us early. There are often ways to continue necessary medical care while a claim is pending, and keeping up with treatment also protects the claim, because a gap in care is used to argue that an injury was not serious. Consistent treatment records connect the injury to the event that caused it.

What if the at-fault party has no insurance?

A recovery may still be possible. Your own policy may include uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage, and in some cases more than one party shares responsibility, which opens additional coverage. Identifying every source of recovery is part of the investigation.

How do I know if I have a personal injury claim?

A valid claim generally requires four things: another party owed you a duty of reasonable care, they failed to meet it, that failure caused your injury, and you suffered real losses as a result. If a careless driver, property owner, employer, or medical provider caused harm that led to medical bills, lost income, or lasting pain, you likely have a claim worth reviewing. The only way to know is to have the facts evaluated, and that review costs nothing.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a personal injury claim?

In most serious cases, yes. Insurers rely on adjusters whose task is to limit what the company pays, and an unrepresented claimant is at a disadvantage. A lawyer investigates the claim, documents the full extent of the harm, handles the adjusters, and files suit when a fair settlement is not offered. Because we work on contingency, there is no fee unless we recover, so representation carries no upfront cost.

Important Resources for Rochester Personal Injury Victims

Local Resources for Rochester Personal Injury Victims

After a serious injury, the right local contacts can matter in the first hours and the weeks that follow. The following Rochester resources may assist:

Strong Memorial Hospital: 585-275-2100. The Greater Rochester region’s only Level I trauma center, for the most serious injuries.
Rochester Regional Health: 585-368-3000. Rochester General Hospital and affiliated care across the Finger Lakes region.
Rochester Police Department, Accident Records: 585-428-7493. For copies of accident and incident reports needed to support a claim.

Buttafuoco & Associates provides these listings for convenience only. We do not endorse, and are not affiliated with, any of the organizations named above.

About Buttafuoco & Associates

Buttafuoco & Associates has represented injured New Yorkers since 1981 and works on a contingency basis, so a client owes no attorney fee unless we recover compensation. Mark T. Freeley, the firm’s managing partner, has negotiated hundreds of six- and seven-figure settlements over more than twenty years and is a member of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association. He prepares each personal injury case as though it will be tried, which is often what moves an insurer toward a fair result. A Rochester client receives a candid assessment at no cost, and if the evidence does not support a claim, we say so.

What Our Clients Say

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“Mr. Buttafuoco helped my husband on his Worker’s Compensation case. We felt very comfortable with him and his office, and are truly grateful for his help and guidance. Would definitely recommend!!”

Marie

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Additional Resources for Rochester Personal Injury Victims

Contact Buttafuoco & Associates

If a serious injury has upended your life in Rochester, the decisions you make in the first weeks can affect a claim for years. Our Rochester personal injury lawyer will establish who is responsible, document the full extent of your losses, and pursue the compensation the law provides, including medical care, lost income, and pain and suffering. Buttafuoco & Associates handles these claims on a contingency basis, so no attorney fee is owed unless we recover for you, and the first consultation is free. Contact us to discuss your claim.

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