Carol L. Schlitt
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Carol L. Schlitt is an accomplished personal injury attorney living in Huntington, NY on Long Island. She is one of the best known woman attorney's in the personal injury field. Managing a solo practice, Carol has experience working as an attorney for the City of New York and in a private Manhattan law firm.
Growing Up
Born in Roselle, New Jersey, Carol grew up in Montrose in Westchester County, New York. Her father worked for IBM and other computer consulting businesses: her mother worked for YAI, in a program that worked with the developmentally disabled. Carol also worked with the developmentally disabled as a teenager. She earned her undergraduate degree from the College of the Holy Cross (Worcester, Massachusetts) and her law degree from St. John’s University.
Cutting Her Teeth at the New York City Law Department
Carol joined the New York City Law Department while still in law school and worked there from 1984 through 1991. During her tenure, Carol handled the most complex and difficult cases. Her trial work saved New York City hundreds of millions of dollars and her cases were covered by the New York Times, the New York Post, and the New York Daily News. In recognition of her accomplishments, she earned the award as the New York City Municipal Attorney of the Year. The leadership at the Law Department assigned her their most important road design, car accident, wrongful death, medical malpractice, slip and fall and brain injury cases. Carol looks back on those days with great fondness. "We were overworked and understaffed, but the cases were large in value and importance. It was thrilling to be so young and to work on such vital trials."
Entering Private Practice
Upon leaving the City Law Department, Carol joined the prestigious Manhattan law firm of Acito and Klein. Attracted by the quality of work performed and the focus on client needs, Carol made her mark both in the trials she won as well as the way she worked with clients. "Even in the mid-90's there weren't many female trial attorneys, especially in the Bronx. I had to be better than good to survive. It was a challenging and thrilling time."
Carol handled a large caseload of both defense and plaintiff cases. During her time there, she built a large networks of contacts in the courts, the bar associations and the insurance companies. "Much of this business depends on who you know, and over the years, working for both the City and as a defense lawyer, I got to know people throughout the system." Carol earned a following of clients due to her personal approach and the supportive manner she takes to ensure that her clients receive the best representation possible. Most importantly, she earned a reputation as a fierce trial lawyer, one known for insightful trial strategies and impassioned and highly quotable summations. She spent much of her time in the courtrooms of the Bronx and Manhattan, but her trial work took her to Brooklyn and Queens as well as Long Island (Nassau County and Suffolk County).
The Decision to Open a Solo Practice
Carol established her own law practice in 1997. Explaining her decision, Carol said, “I was tired of doing both defense and plaintiff work. I wanted to focus on plaintiff work, on standing up as the advocate for my individual clients. My husband likens it to St. George fighting the dragon." She also wanted to spend more time working with her clients. "At the City and Acito and Klein, I had huge caseloads, I wanted to take fewer cases so I could focus more on individual clients and their cases. Starting my own practice created the best environment for me to work one-to-one with clients from start to finish. I can give my clients the individual attention not possible in larger law firms.”
In the last ten years, Carol has won many significant victories for her clients throughout the New York Metropolitan area (click here to see some of her recent cases) and seen those cases covered by Newsday, New York One, the New York Jury Verdict Reporter and the New York Law Journal.
Carol is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the Bronx Bar Association, the Brooklyn Bar Association, the Suffolk County Bar Association and the American Trial Lawyers Association. She is active in both the St. John’s University Law School Alumni Association and the Holy Cross Lawyers Guild. Carol performs pro bono legal services through St. Patrick's Trocaire House, donating her time to help individuals and families who cannot afford legal representation. "In a recent pro bono case, I helped a gentleman with an SSI disability case. After we won the ruling, he shed tears of joy and that meant as much as the biggest settlement could." She contributes to the legal profession by volunteering as a Moot Court Judge for Law School Competitions sponsored by the American Trial Lawyers Association and teaching continuing legal education (CLE) classes.
Recent Activity
The rear end car accident may be the most common type of car accident. Following a car accident, the highest priority is to receive the medical attention that you need. If you have been hit in the rear in New York State, you may be entitled to compensation. This article will look at some of the issues you may need to consider if you seek compensation.
The Humane Society estimates that there are 77.5 million dogs in the United States. Clearly, we are a nation of dog lovers. While we may cherish our dogs, we need to remember that they are animals and can pose a potential threat to health and safety. Each year, dogs bite an estimated 4.7 million Americans, mostly children. Many dog bites can be prevented through simple steps. This week, the U.S. Postal Service is sponsoring National Dog Bite Prevention Week (May 15-21) along with a number of oth
New York's No Fault Insurance law limits the ability for car accident victims to sue for pain and suffering. Chapter 51 of New York State's Insurance Law - the No-Fault Insurance Law - limits the ability of victims of car crashes to sue for damages beyond the No-Fault benefits. New York State Insurance Law requires a person to have sustained a "serious injury" before that person can seek damages. This limit is known as the threshold law for serious injuries.
Postings on Facebook, Twitter, My Space and other social media can undermine a lawsuit. A New York State Supreme Court held that a woman had to open her private Facebook and MySpace accounts to the defense in their effort to challenge her injury claims. This ruling heightens the need for clients to be very careful i
Whiplash is a non-technical term used to describe neck pain resulting from an injury to the soft tissue of the neck. By soft tissue we mean injuries to the neck muscles, tendons and ligaments and not broken or fractured bones. Whiplash injuries primarily result when the head snaps forward and then snaps back.
This article concerns your medical records and addresses questions of who can see the medical records and how you can request copies of our medical records.
Before you can bring a lawsuit against a town, city or public agency in New York, you must first file a Notice of Claim. Under New York Law, you must file the Notice of Claim within 90 days of the incident. This article discusses the Notice of Claim in New York.
When we think of car accidents and other motor vehicle accidents, we tend to think only of the vehicles involved in the accidents. However, in 2008, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 69,000 pedestrians were hurt in motor vehicle accidents and 4,378 pedestrians died in those accidents. Pedestrian deaths accounted for 12 percent of all motor vehicle crash deaths. As pedestrians and drivers, we can all take steps to improve pedestrian safety.
Never let anyone tell you that bed sores are an accepted fact of life of long term care. They are not. The overwhelming number of long-term hospital and nursing home patients never develop bed sores thanks to the application of good standards of care, the use of modern technology and the diligent work of the medical staff. The presence of bed sores, particularly advanced bed sores, is almost always an indicator that medical malpractice has occurred.
According to a new report by the Comptroller's Office, we all need to watch those sanitation trucks a little more carefully. New York City sanitation vehicles caused over 1,000 accidents in 2009 and cost taxpayers over $17 million in claims.... Naturally, I am concerned when individuals suffer injuries or property damages. I have represented many clients who have been hurt by City trucks and vehicles...Yet this situation speaks to a matter of public policy...
