New York Personal Injury Lawyer
Admitted in New York in 1989, Jonny Kool has represented people who were seriously hurt because of someone else’s negligence, and he is a partner at Washor Kool Sosa Maiorana & Schwartz, LLP. He handles motor vehicle crashes, construction accidents, brain injuries and wrongful death claims.
Mr. Kool combines courtroom and negotiation skills with empathy for his clients, and he does not see the two as in tension. “Because I care about my clients, it compels me to be that much more persuasive,” he explains. He spends as much time as a client needs on the case and on the hardships that follow a serious injury, not only the legal questions.
Call us at (212) 406-1700 to speak with Mr. Kool about what happened.
A Path to Law Built on Real-World Experience
Before becoming a lawyer, Mr. Kool spent nine years working as a commercial fisherman, a bookstore manager, and a construction worker. That is an unusual route to a courtroom, and it matters most in construction cases, where knowing a job site firsthand changes how a lawyer reads the evidence.
Having worked construction himself, he knows what a site looks like when safety rules are followed and what it looks like when they are not. New York puts that duty in statute: owners and contractors must furnish scaffolding, hoists, ladders, ropes, and similar devices that give proper protection to workers at height, and they cannot pass the obligation to anyone else, under Labor Law Section 240(1).
Those years also shaped how he talks with clients. Time spent alongside commercial fishermen, construction crews, and bookstore customers gave him an ear for how people actually describe their lives, their injuries, and their worries. He brings that to a client meeting rather than reducing someone’s experience to the language of a legal brief.
If any of that sounds like the lawyer you want, call us at (212) 406-1700 for a free case review.
How Does Jonny Approach a Case?
By building an evidence-backed account of what happened that a jury can follow. He gathers the facts, works with the professionals who can explain the technical and medical details, and organizes all of it into an argument that holds together under pressure.
Fault is rarely all on one side, and New York accounts for that. Damages are reduced in proportion to an injured person’s own share of the blame rather than barred outright, under CPLR 1411, which is why the evidence on how an accident happened matters as much as the evidence on the injury.
Mr. Kool has represented clients in cases that led to verdicts and settlements exceeding one million dollars. Results may vary. Prior case outcomes do not guarantee similar results.
As he puts it, “Any time you can walk into a courtroom with just a briefcase and walk out with a million-dollar verdict, it’s a great feeling.” For him, the significance is not the figure but what the result does for a client’s future, because no amount of compensation undoes a permanent injury. What it can do is provide the resources a client needs to rebuild.
What Kinds of Cases Does Jonny Handle?
Serious injury and wrongful death matters in the areas below.
Each of these requires a different kind of technical knowledge, and he draws on his trial experience to develop the right approach for each. Timing matters across all of them, since most New York personal injury actions must be started within three years under CPLR 214.
Education and Credentials
Mr. Kool earned his J.D. from New England School of Law in Boston in 1988 and his B.A. from Ithaca College in 1979. He was admitted in Massachusetts in 1988 and in New York in 1989, and to the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York in 1996 and the Western District of New York in 2009.
He is a member of the New York State Bar Association and the New York State Trial Lawyers Association. He has been a trial advocacy instructor for the New York State Trial Lawyers Association since 2000, which is the same trial-tested approach he brings to his own clients’ cases.
FAQs: Jonny Kool, New York Personal Injury Lawyer
These are the questions people ask most often before calling Mr. Kool.
Does His Construction Background Actually Matter to My Case?
On a job site case, yes. He has done the work, so he knows what a site is supposed to look like, which shortcuts get taken, and which witnesses are worth finding.
How Long Do I Have to Bring a Claim in New York?
Most personal injury actions carry a three-year deadline, and a claim against a public agency requires a notice of claim within 90 days. Ask early rather than assume.
What if I Was Partly at Fault?
You may still recover. New York reduces damages in proportion to your own share of the blame rather than barring the claim, so partial fault is a reason to talk to a lawyer, not a reason to skip it.
Will Mr. Kool Handle My Case Himself?
Yes. The attorney who begins with a client stays personally invested through the investigation, the litigation, and the resolution.
What Does It Cost to Hire the Firm?
Nothing up front. We handle these cases on a contingency fee, so our fee comes out of a recovery rather than out of your pocket.
Talk to Jonny Kool About Your Case
Choosing a personal injury lawyer involves more than credentials. It is also whether you can speak openly with the person handling your case, and whether that person understands what happened to you and what you need next.
We treat the first meeting as a two-way decision. You explain your circumstances and ask your questions, and we work out together whether we are the right firm for the case.
Call Washor Kool Sosa Maiorana & Schwartz, LLP at (212) 406-1700 or reach out online for a free case review with Mr. Kool. Our office is at 233 Broadway #2020, in Manhattan.
Credentials and Admissions Summary
J.D., New England School of Law
Boston, Massachusetts
1988
B.A., Ithaca College
Ithaca, New York
1979
New York State Bar Association
Member
New York State Trial Lawyers Association
Member
- Massachusetts, 1988
- New York, 1989
- U.S. District Court Southern District of New York, 1996
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York, 1996
- U.S. District Court Western District of New York, 2009
- Instructor, Trial Advocacy, New York State Trial Lawyers Association, 2000 – Present