Personal Attention Focused on You and Your Family

The Law Offices of Michael P. Burakoff, P.A. is different from other New Jersey personal injury law firms in the level of attention we provide, not only to the injury victim but to the entire family of the victim. We know that a personal injury is stressful for the whole family, and we understand how important family support is to individual healing and recovery. We keep clients and their families informed and involved throughout their case. Mr. Burakoff handles every critical aspect of the case personally and always returns calls promptly, typically on the same day.

Comprehensive Morristown Personal Injury Law Firm

Since 1976, Michael P. Burakoff has been handling personal injury claims in Morris County and beyond. We’ve seen it all and done it all during that time, and we put that high level of experience to work for you in your case. Call our Morristown personal injury attorney for help with any New Jersey personal injury matter, including all of the following.

Motor Vehicle Accidents – We handle car, truck and motorcycle accidents, pedestrian and bicycle accidents, bus accidents, and much more. We take on negligent drivers in distracted driving accidents, drunk driving accidents, UBER/Lyft accidents and just about any type of collision imaginable. The insurance company will deny their driver was at fault, or they’ll say you were to blame. They’ll also claim your injury isn’t serious to pay less or avoid liability. We know how to prepare and present a strong case proving the other driver’s liability to you.

Premises Liability – Our offices deal with slip and fall injuries in grocery stores, retail stores and parking lots, and government property. We handle dog bite injuries, playground accidents, and negligent security in apartment buildings. Property owners have a duty to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition, including inspecting the property and promptly fixing any hazards or putting up a warning. They’ll claim you weren’t looking where you were going, or they didn’t know about the danger. We’ll uncover the facts that prove they knew or should have known of the hazard yet failed to take appropriate action in time to avoid an accident.

Work Accidents – We work with experienced workers’ compensation attorneys to get you medical benefits and wage replacement after an on-the-job injury, and we pursue civil negligence claims against third parties in appropriate cases to get you the maximum compensation available. Were you injured on the job as a police officer? Workers’ comp may not be your only option. We can help.

Construction Accidents – More workplace accidents happen on construction sites than anywhere else. Owners and contractors are required to provide a safe working environment with appropriate equipment. We hold them liable when they don’t, as well as negligent third-parties who deliver materials or negligently conduct operations on the construction site. Call us after a scaffolding or ladder accident, forklift or crane accident, trench or excavation accident, electrocution, toxic exposure or any other construction site injury.

Products Liability – Manufacturers are strictly liable for injuries if they let a dangerous or defective product get on the shelves. We hold product makers liable for design defects, manufacturing defects and failure to warn. Our firm also handles food poisoning cases from tainted or contaminated food products.

Medical Malpractice – We hold doctors and hospitals to the standard required of the medical profession. We handle claims of negligence or incompetence involved in surgery errors, birth injuries, misdiagnosis, medication errors and other medical mistakes.

Catastrophic Injuries – The most severe accidents require the most skilled and dedicated lawyers to investigate and build a solid case proving liability and securing full and fair compensation. Our offices handle cases involving traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, permanent disability and wrongful death. We take on the most challenging accidents that cause catastrophic injuries, including airplane accidents and train accidents.

Bad Faith Insurance – Your insurance policy is a contract, and it comes with an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. It’s reasonable to expect insurance companies to investigate claims and make sure they are only paying on valid claims and paying a fair amount, but when their investigations are done solely to deny a claim, that’s bad faith. We hold insurance companies to task for wrongful claim denials, unreasonable delays in processing claims, making unreasonable requests for documentation, offering an unreasonably low settlement amount, and other bad faith tactics.

Personal Injury FAQs

Q: How do I know if I have a personal injury case?

A: First, you must have suffered an injury to your person or property. Second, you should consider whether your injury was someone else’s fault. It is not always necessary to have a physical injury to bring a personal injury lawsuit — some personal injury claims can be based on a variety of nonphysical losses and harms. In the case of an assault, for example, you do not need to show that a person’s action caused you actual physical harm, but only that you expected some harm to come to you. Similarly, you also may have a case if someone has caused injury to your reputation, invaded your privacy or intentionally inflicted emotional distress upon you.

Q: How soon after I am injured do I have to file a lawsuit?

A: Every state has certain time limits, called “statutes of limitations,” which govern the amount of time you have to file a personal injury lawsuit. If you miss the deadline for filing your case, you may lose your legal right to damages for your injury. Consequently, it is important to contact a lawyer as soon as you suffer or discover an injury.

Q: What should I bring with me for my meeting with a lawyer?

A: You should provide a lawyer with any documents that might be relevant to your case. Police reports, for example, may contain eyewitness information and important details about the conditions surrounding the event from which your claim arises. Copies of medical reports and bills from doctors and hospitals will help demonstrate the extent and nature of your injuries. Information about the insurer of the person who caused your injury is extremely helpful, as are any photographs you have of the accident scene, damaged property and your injuries. The more information you are able to give your lawyer, the easier it will be for him or her to determine if your claim will be successful. If you haven’t collected any documents at the time of your first meeting, however, don’t worry; your lawyer will be able to obtain them in his investigation of your claim.

Q: What if a person dies before bringing a personal injury lawsuit?

A: If a person injured in an accident subsequently dies because of those injuries, that person’s heirs may be able to recover money through a wrongful death action. Also, even if a person with a personal injury claim dies from unrelated causes (someone who broke their arm in a car accident, then died after falling down a flight of stairs, for example), the personal injury claim survives in most cases and may be brought by the executor or personal representative of the deceased person’s estate.

Q: What is negligence?

A: The critical issue in many personal injury cases is just how a “reasonable person” was expected to act in the particular situation that caused the injury. A person is negligent when he or she fails to act how an “ordinary reasonable person” would have acted. The determination of whether a given person has met the “ordinary reasonable person” standard is often a matter that is resolved by a judge or jury after presentation of evidence and argument at trial.

Q: If I can’t prove someone’s negligence caused my injury, is there any other basis for personal injury liability besides negligence?

A: Yes. Some persons or companies may be held “strictly liable” for certain activities that harm others, even if they have not acted negligently or with wrongful intent. Under the theory of strict liability, a person injured by a defective or unexpectedly dangerous product, for instance, may recover compensation from the maker or seller of the product without showing that the manufacturer or seller was actually negligent. Also, persons or companies engaged in using explosives, storing or transporting dangerous substances or keeping dangerous animals can be strictly liable for harm caused to others as a result of these activities.

Q: Will the person who caused my injury be punished?

A: Not in the traditional sense of the word. Defendants in personal injury cases do not receive jail terms or similar penalties as punishment; those are reserved for the criminal justice system, and personal injury is a civil matter. However, in some cases, juries and courts can award what are called “punitive damages,” which are designed to punish defendants who have behaved recklessly or intentionally against the public’s interest. The goal in ordering the payment of punitive damages is to discourage the defendants themselves and others from engaging in the same kind of harmful behavior in the future.

You can Afford High-Quality Legal Representation in a Morristown Personal Injury

At the Law Offices of Michael P. Burakoff, P.A., we believe in justice for people who have been wronged by the negligence of another. Obtaining justice requires that injury victims are able to have high-quality legal representation to get the best result, regardless of their ability to pay for a lawyer out of their own pocket. That’s why our Morristown personal injury attorneys operate on contingency fees. We advance all the costs of your case, so you never have to pay out-of-pocket. Our fees and costs come out of the settlement or judgment we obtain for you, and if we can’t recover any money for you, then we don’t charge you any fee.

Call 973-455-1567 for a free consultation on your claim. Weekend or evening appointments are available, and we can come to you if you can’t travel to our offices in Morristown, Newton or West New York. Call today, and we’ll get started right away, helping you and your family move forward with your lives after a serious personal injury accident.