New York – Simmons Hanly Conroy, one of the nation’s leading mass tort and product liability law firms, is pleased to announce that seven attorneys in the firm’s New York office have been named 2021 New York Metro Super Lawyers, while two have been named New York Metro Rising Stars.
Firm Shareholders Jayne Conroy, Andrea B. Bierstein, Daniel P. Blouin, Donald P. Blydenburgh, James M. Kramer, and Thomas Sheridan III are listed as Super Lawyers for Class Action & Mass Torts, along with assistant managing Shareholder Laurence Valere Nassif. Attorneys Brett Fuller and Arthur Prystowsky were named Rising Stars.
“We congratulate our Shareholders and attorneys, whose accomplishments and strong commitment for their clients have earned them recognition among this year’s New York Metro Super Lawyers,” said John Simmons, chairman of Simmons Hanly Conroy. “We are proud to have them on our side.”
Conroy is a Named Shareholder and oversees practice areas in the Complex Litigation Department. For over 30 years, she has secured billions of dollars in results for her clients in mass torts, class actions, product liability, pharmaceutical and sexual abuse litigation. She is currently lead trial counsel for Suffolk County, New York in the ongoing New York opioid trial, which is the first nationwide to go before a jury.
Bierstein, one of the premier appellate brief-writers and oral advocates in the nation, focuses her legal practice on pharmaceutical litigation, consumer protection class actions, commercial litigation and environmental law.
Blouin has served as lead trial attorney in securing three of the top five valued verdicts in the history of New York City Asbestos Litigation, including the highest. He won the largest 2019 asbestos trial verdict in California. He also recently secured his sixth win at trial in the past four years in a Louisiana trial. Through his career, he has won dozens of trials across the country.
For more than a decade, Blydenburgh has focused his practice exclusively on asbestos litigation. With extensive experience in trial and appellate courts around the country, Blydenburgh has successfully secured over $100 million dollars for his clients, including a recent $8.26 million verdict in June on behalf of a mesothelioma victim in a case against Ford Motor Company. He frequently speaks nationally on trial strategy, emerging legal issues, and asbestos product hazards.
Kramer has secured millions for his clients. As a lead trial attorney, he has secured three of the top valued verdicts in the history of New York City Asbestos Litigation.
Sheridan has more than 40 years of experience trying cases and arguing appeals in the state and federal courts in New York and throughout the country. In recent years, he has focused on representing plaintiffs in pharmaceutical, medical device and other mass tort litigation, including, for example, the ongoing nationwide litigation on behalf of cities and counties to recover the cost of dealing with the opioid epidemic.
Nassif serves as assistant managing Shareholder in the firm’s New York office. He focuses his practice on asbestos and mesothelioma litigation, pharmaceutical mass torts, and other complex personal injury cases. His recent legal work has resulted in millions of dollars for his clients.
Fuller is an associate in the firm’s New York City office and focuses his practice on mass torts and helping victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos–related diseases. He has managed hundreds of cases and defended more than 100 depositions throughout the country.
Prystowsky focuses his practice on helping individuals with asbestos-related diseases. He has represented a wide variety of occupationally exposed individuals, including U.S. Navy and Army veterans and homemakers. This is his fifth consecutive year being recognized as a Rising Star.
Published by Thomson Reuters, Super Lawyers recognizes attorneys who have achieved a significant level of peer recognition and professional accomplishment. Only the top 5% of lawyers in the New York metropolitan area are named Super Lawyers.
The Rising Stars list recognizes no more than 2.5% of attorneys in each state who are either 40 years old or younger or in practice for 10 or fewer years.
