The blood test came back, and the number was higher than it should ever be. The pediatrician used the words "lead exposure," and now you are looking at your apartment, the chipped windowsill, the peeling paint in the hallway, and wondering how long this was happening and what it means for your child's future.
Our NYC lead poisoning lawyers at Washor Kool Sosa Maiorana & Schwartz, LLP represent children and families poisoned by lead paint in apartment buildings across Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Manhattan, and Staten Island.
We hold landlords and property owners responsible for the hazards they were required by law to find and fix, and we pursue the compensation a lead-injured child will need for the rest of their life. Our attorneys have recovered over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements, and every consultation is free.
Call (212) 406-1700 for a free case review, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Can I Sue My Landlord for Lead Paint Poisoning in a NYC Apartment?
Yes. New York City places the burden of finding and fixing lead paint squarely on the landlord, not the tenant. Under the city's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act (Local Law 1 of 2004), any apartment in a building built before 1960 where a child under six lives is presumed to contain lead-based paint, and the owner must inspect for hazards every year and repair them safely.
When a landlord ignores those duties and a child is poisoned, the family has a claim for landlord and property owner liability.
What the law requires of NYC landlords:
- Send an annual notice asking whether a child under six lives in or regularly spends time in the apartment
- Inspect every such apartment, and the building's common areas, at least once a year for peeling paint, chewable surfaces, and doors and windows that rub and create dust
- Repair lead hazards using trained workers and lead-safe work practices, then pass a dust-wipe clearance test
- Address lead paint at every apartment turnover before a new tenant moves in
When a landlord cannot produce the notices, inspection records, or clearance tests the law demands, that gap becomes evidence in your child's case. The city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development publishes the full lead-based paint rules for owners.
Do I Have to Prove My Landlord Knew About the Lead Paint?
Not in the way most people assume. In a pre-1960 building, the landlord is charged with knowing the paint contains lead. What matters is whether the owner knew, or should have known, that a young child lived in the apartment. New York's highest court settled that question years ago: a landlord who knows a child under the protected age resides in a pre-1960 unit is treated as having notice of the hazard.
- Rent receipts, leases, and the annual notice itself prove the landlord knew a child lived there
- HPD violation history for the building shows the owner was on notice of peeling paint
- A landlord who never sent the required annual notice cannot use that failure as a defense
Do I Need a Lead Poisoning Attorney for My Child's Case?
Yes, because of the defense you will face. Landlords and their insurers do not dispute that lead is dangerous. They dispute where the exposure happened, whether it caused your child's specific problems, and what those problems will cost over a lifetime. Answering those questions takes medical, environmental, and economic evidence a family cannot assemble alone.
What a child lead poisoning attorney in New York does that a family cannot:
- Obtain the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene case file, including the inspection that identified lead in the apartment
- Pull the building's complete HPD violation history and the owner's Local Law 1 compliance records
- Retain a certified lead inspector to document lead levels on specific surfaces with XRF testing
- Arrange neuropsychological testing that measures the injury in terms a jury understands: attention, memory, processing speed, and IQ
- Work with pediatric neurologists, educational consultants, and life-care planners to project the cost of tutoring, therapy, special education, and lost earning capacity
- Identify every responsible party, including prior owners, management companies, and contractors who did unsafe renovation work
How Our NYC Lead Paint Lawyers Build the Proof
A lead case is won on timelines: when the child moved in, when blood lead levels rose, when the landlord was notified, and when repairs were or were not made.
- Blood lead history from every test the child has had, including the first elevated result
- Housing history for every address where the child lived or spent significant time
- City inspection reports, violations, and the landlord's own repair records
- Photographs and testing of the surfaces involved, before the landlord paints over them
- School records, early intervention evaluations, and any IEP or 504 plan
- Physician and neuropsychologist opinions tying the exposure to the child's deficits
If you want to understand the exposure pathway itself, we explain how lead paint exposure happens in NYC apartments in a separate guide for parents.
Peeling paint gets painted over. Records get lost. Call (212) 406-1700 now, so the evidence is preserved while it still exists.
What Is a Lead Poisoning Lawsuit Worth in New York?
There is no fixed number, and any lawyer who quotes one before reviewing the records is guessing. The value of a lead paint case depends on how high the blood lead level was, how long it stayed elevated, how measurable the child's deficits are, and how the exposure will affect education and earning ability over a lifetime. New York places no cap on damages in these cases.
Compensation in a lead poisoning lawsuit may cover:
- Past and future medical care, including chelation therapy, developmental pediatrics, and ongoing monitoring
- Neuropsychological evaluations, tutoring, speech and occupational therapy, and special education costs
- Reduced lifetime earning capacity, which is often the largest element in a childhood lead case
- Pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life
Because most lead poisoning cases involve a child, any settlement must be approved by a judge and the funds are protected until the child turns 18. We handle that court process as part of the case.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lead Poisoning Claim in NYC?
For most lead paint cases, the deadline is three years from the date of injury, but when the injured person is a child, that clock does not start until the child turns 18. In practical terms, a child poisoned by lead in a private apartment generally has until age 21 to file. Do not rely on that cushion. Evidence disappears long before the deadline does.
- Private landlord: three years from injury, paused until the child turns 18
- Adults exposed at work or during a renovation: three years from the injury, with limited discovery-based extensions
- Wrongful death from lead exposure: two years from the date of death
What If We Lived in NYCHA or Other Public Housing?
Claims against the New York City Housing Authority run on a much shorter track. A formal notice of claim generally must be served within 90 days, and the lawsuit must be filed within one year and 90 days.
Courts sometimes allow a late notice for a child, but that permission is never guaranteed, and asking for it costs time and leverage. If your family lives in NYCHA housing, call us immediately.
- Notice of claim: 90 days from the injury
- Lawsuit: one year and 90 days
- NYCHA has faced federal scrutiny over its lead inspection practices, which our attorneys use as evidence in individual cases
Lead Poisoning Lawyer Deadlines for Adults
Adults poisoned on a demolition crew, in a renovation, or through contaminated work conditions may have a third-party claim against the property owner or general contractor in addition to any employer benefits. The three-year deadline applies, and the evidence trail on a job site disappears even faster than it does in an apartment.
What Does a NYC Lead Poisoning Attorney Cost?
Nothing up front, and no attorney fee unless we recover compensation for your family. Lead paint cases are handled on a contingency basis: we advance the cost of inspectors, physicians, and testing, and our fee comes as a percentage of the recovery at the end. When the client is a child, a judge reviews and approves the fee before any settlement is finalized.
- Free consultation with no obligation
- We pay the case costs while the case is pending
- You see every number in writing before you sign
- Court approval protects the child's share of any settlement
What Happens After I Call About a Lead Paint Case?
Expect a fast start and a long middle. The first weeks are about locking down evidence before the landlord repaints. The months after that are about evaluations that measure the injury. Cases involving young children often take longer because meaningful testing has to wait for the child to reach a certain age.
- Free consultation and review of the blood lead results and housing history.
- Evidence preservation. We send the landlord a legal demand to preserve the apartment, records, and paint surfaces, and we request the DOHMH and HPD files.
- Investigation and testing. A certified inspector documents the lead. Physicians and neuropsychologists evaluate the child.
- Filing. The lawsuit is filed in Supreme Court in Kings County, Bronx County, Queens County, New York County, or Richmond County, wherever the apartment is located.
- Discovery and negotiation. Most cases resolve after discovery; ours are prepared as if they will not.
- Court approval and protection of the child's recovery.
Along the way, if your building has other hazards, our attorneys also handle claims involving dangerous conditions in rental buildings beyond lead paint.
Why Choose Washor Kool Sosa Maiorana & Schwartz, LLP for a Lead Poisoning Case?
- Results that belong to the attorneys on your case. Our attorneys have recovered over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements for injured clients, including children with lifelong injuries.
- Cases built for trial, not for a quick check. Landlord insurers pay full value only when they know the case will be tried. Every lead case we accept is prepared that way.
- New York City housing knowledge. From the Woolworth Building in Lower Manhattan, our attorneys handle cases in every borough and know how HPD, DOHMH, and the courts treat Local Law 1 violations.
- Free consultations, 24/7. Call any time. You will reach someone who can actually evaluate whether you have a case.
NYC Lead Poisoning Lawyer FAQs
What blood lead level is considered lead poisoning in New York City?
There is no safe level of lead in a child's blood. The CDC uses a reference value of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter to identify children with higher exposure than most, and New York City requires action by the health department and the landlord at 5 micrograms per deciliter. A lower number does not mean no case; it means the medical evidence matters more.
Can I sue a landlord if we already moved out of the apartment?
Yes. Moving does not erase the claim. The deadline runs from the injury, not from when you left, and a child's deadline is paused until age 18. We regularly bring cases against former landlords using health department records and prior inspection reports.
My child was exposed years ago and is now struggling in school. Is it too late?
Usually not. If your child is still under 21 and the exposure happened in New York, the claim is likely still alive. In fact, older children often make stronger cases because the learning and behavioral effects of lead are now measurable through school records and testing.
Does the lawsuit cover lead in the water pipes?
It may. Lead paint is the most common source in NYC apartments, but lead service lines, brass fixtures, and lead solder in older buildings also poison children. The question is who controlled the source and whether they met their legal duty, so we investigate every pathway before naming defendants.
Can my landlord evict me for reporting lead paint or filing a lawsuit?
New York law prohibits a landlord from retaliating against a tenant for making a good-faith complaint to a government agency or for taking legal action to enforce housing laws. If your landlord threatens you after you report peeling paint, tell us immediately. That threat becomes part of your case.
Your Child's Blood Test Started a Clock. Let Us Handle What Comes Next.
New York City wrote the rules to prevent lead poisoning. When a landlord ignores them and your child pays the price, the law gives your family a way to recover what that child will need for decades. The evidence that proves it disappears with every coat of fresh paint.
Call Washor Kool Sosa Maiorana & Schwartz, LLP at (212) 406-1700 for a free case review, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or request a free case review online and a member of our team will reach out to you.
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