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Knowledge, experience, and dedication have brought the lawyers of The Epstein Law Firm to the forefront of their profession. From personal injury to civil litigation, they have built a strong record of success in achieving justice for their clients.
Our practice is diverse and well-established. Recognizing that every case is unique, we always begin by listening to you.
The Epstein Law Firm, P.A. has been successfully representing clients throughout New Jersey since 1973
Practical guidance for injured people and families in Hawthorne NJ and Passaic County
An unexpected injury can leave you dealing with medical appointments, missed work, insurance questions, and uncertainty about who is responsible. If another person, business, property owner, medical provider, or product may have caused your harm, a personal injury claim can help determine what happened and whether compensation is available.
The Epstein Law Firm, P.A. represents injured people throughout New Jersey. Our personal injury lawyers can investigate the incident, identify potentially responsible parties, document your losses, and handle communications with insurers. Contact us for a free case evaluation before accepting a settlement or assuming you do not have a claim.
The Epstein Law Firm
Personal injury legal help
The Epstein Law Firm can review your personal injury claim and explain the evidence, deadlines, and next steps that may apply.
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Hawthorne NJ is in southern Passaic County. State Route 208 and County Routes 504 and 659 carry regional traffic through the borough, while Lafayette Avenue and Diamond Bridge Avenue serve local residential and commercial areas. Injuries can occur on these roads, at businesses, on residential property, at work, or while using an unsafe product.
A New Jersey personal injury claim generally requires evidence that another party owed a legal duty, failed to meet the applicable standard, and caused an injury and resulting loss. The exact requirements depend on the claim. A motor-vehicle collision, dog bite, fall, defective product, workplace incident, and medical-malpractice case do not all follow the same liability or insurance rules.
New Jersey also follows modified comparative negligence. An injured person may generally recover when their share of fault is not greater than the fault attributed to the defendant or defendants, but the recovery is reduced by the injured person’s percentage of responsibility.
The firm evaluates claims arising from many circumstances, including:
These incidents may cause fractures, head and brain injuries, neck or back trauma, spinal cord damage, burns, internal injuries, scarring, amputations, or lasting physical limitations. A diagnosis or poor outcome alone does not establish negligence. The medical evidence must be considered together with evidence showing how the incident occurred and who may be legally responsible.
Your health comes first. The following steps can also help preserve reliable information about what happened:
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Learn which insurance policies, legal rules, and deadlines may apply to your injury.
Call (201) 231-7847 or request a free case evaluation.
Responsibility depends on who created, controlled, or should reasonably have addressed the danger. Depending on the facts, potentially responsible parties may include:
More than one party may share responsibility. A company’s involvement, police report, code violation, product recall, or agency finding does not automatically establish civil liability. A lawyer must examine the applicable duty, control over the hazard, causation, defenses, and available insurance.
If the injury occurred while you were working, New Jersey workers’ compensation may provide certain medical and wage benefits. A separate claim may also be possible against a negligent person or company other than your employer, depending on how the accident happened.
The Epstein Law Firm can review the evidence, insurance issues, and next steps that may matter in your personal injury claim.
You do not need to collect every record before speaking with a lawyer. The most useful information often includes:
The firm may seek additional evidence such as surveillance recordings, property records, maintenance documents, contracts, vehicle data, product information, or expert review. Acting promptly can matter because recordings may be overwritten and physical conditions can change.
A settlement or judgment may include compensation for losses caused by the injury, such as:
Not every category applies in every case. The available compensation depends on the type of claim, insurance coverage, strength of the evidence, severity and duration of the injury, and its effect on the person’s work and daily life.
New Jersey generally requires a lawsuit for personal injury to be filed within two years after the claim accrues. Exceptions can change the calculation. Claims involving a New Jersey public entity or public employee may also require a formal notice of claim within 90 days, with late notices allowed only in limited circumstances. Prompt review is especially important when a municipal vehicle, public property, roadway condition, school, transit agency, or government employee may be involved.
A lawyer can begin by listening to what happened and determining which area of law applies. The investigation may involve identifying all responsible parties and insurance policies, requesting reports and records, preserving time-sensitive evidence, interviewing witnesses, and consulting qualified experts when necessary.
The lawyer can also calculate documented past losses, evaluate future consequences, respond to insurance defenses, negotiate a potential settlement, and file a lawsuit when appropriate. If venue is proper in Passaic County, a civil lawsuit may proceed through the New Jersey Superior Court in Paterson. Filing location and procedure depend on the parties, accident location, amount in dispute, and other case-specific facts.
The Epstein Law Firm, P.A. has represented clients throughout New Jersey since 1973. The source page states that the firm provides free case evaluations and handles personal injury matters on a contingency-fee basis, collecting an attorney’s fee only if it obtains a recovery.
Questions About an Injury in Hawthorne NJ?
Get a focused review of the accident, available evidence, insurance coverage, and important deadlines.
Call (201) 231-7847 or contact The Epstein Law Firm for a free case evaluation.
If you or a family member was injured in Hawthorne NJ, you do not have to determine liability, insurance coverage, and the value of the claim on your own. The Epstein Law Firm can review what happened, explain the options that may be available, and take steps to preserve important evidence.
Call (201) 231-7847 or contact the firm online for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.
These answers provide general information about New Jersey personal injury claims. The facts, parties, insurance coverage, and applicable exceptions can change the analysis; this information is not individualized legal or medical advice.
You may have a personal injury case if another person or entity violated an applicable legal duty, caused your injury, and left you with measurable losses. The necessary proof varies. For example, a car-accident claim may focus on driving conduct, while a property claim may depend on control of the premises and notice of a dangerous condition.
A lawyer will consider how the incident happened, whether another party’s conduct was a substantial factor in causing the harm, and what medical or financial consequences followed. Even a serious injury does not establish negligence by itself, and a minor role in causing an accident does not necessarily eliminate a claim.
Sources: NJ Courts: Negligence and Ordinary Care; NJ Courts: Proximate Cause.
Get appropriate medical care and report the incident to the relevant authority, business, property manager, or employer. If a traffic crash causes injury, death, or qualifying property damage, New Jersey law requires prompt notice to law enforcement. Call 911 for an emergency rather than attempting to document a dangerous scene.
When it is safe, preserve photographs, witness information, insurance details, medical instructions, and receipts. Request a copy of any incident or crash report and avoid guessing about speed, fault, or the extent of your injuries. If you struck your head, monitor symptoms and follow professional medical advice because some concussion symptoms may not appear immediately.
Sources: CDC: Concussion Symptoms and Danger Signs; MedlinePlus: When to Use the Emergency Room; HHS: Access to Your Medical Records.
Most New Jersey personal injury lawsuits must be filed within two years after the claim accrues. That general deadline does not control every situation, and the correct starting date or an available exception may depend on the type of claim and when legally significant facts became known.
A substantially shorter requirement can apply when a New Jersey public entity or public employee may be responsible. The Tort Claims Act generally requires notice within 90 days. Because missing a deadline can bar an otherwise valid case, obtain an individualized review instead of relying solely on the general two-year period.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2: Personal Injury Filing Period; NJ Treasury: Tort and Liability Notice Requirements; N.J.S.A. 59:8-9: Late Notice of Claim.
A claim may be possible, but public-entity cases are governed by special liability, immunity, and notice rules. An injury involving a municipal vehicle, public employee, roadway, park, school, or government-maintained property does not automatically make the public entity liable.
New Jersey generally requires a written tort-claim notice within 90 days after accrual. Permission to submit a late notice may be available within one year only if statutory requirements, including extraordinary circumstances and lack of substantial prejudice, are satisfied. The correct government entity and notice recipient must also be identified, so prompt investigation matters.
Sources: NJ Treasury: Tort and Liability Notice Requirements; N.J.S.A. 59:8-9: Late Notice of Claim.
You may still recover if your negligence was not greater than the negligence attributed to the defendant or the combined negligence of multiple defendants. If you are found partly responsible, your damages are reduced by your assigned percentage of fault.
Comparative fault can arise from claims that an injured person was distracted, ignored a warning, drove unsafely, wore unsuitable footwear, or otherwise contributed to the event. These allegations are not automatically correct. Photographs, witness accounts, reports, physical evidence, and applicable safety rules can help determine whether fault should be shared and by how much.
Sources: NJ Courts: Comparative Negligence and Ultimate Outcome; NJDOBI: Comparative Negligence Settlement FAQs.
Personal Injury Protection generally pays covered medical expenses after an automobile accident regardless of who caused the crash, subject to the policy’s limits, deductible, treatment requirements, and coordination-of-benefits provisions. PIP does not determine whether another driver was negligent or pay for vehicle damage.
A separate liability claim may seek losses not covered by PIP. However, the policyholder’s lawsuit option can affect the ability to recover noneconomic damages such as pain and suffering. Under the limitation-on-lawsuit option, an injury generally must satisfy one of the statutory categories. Reviewing the applicable policies is therefore an important early step.
Sources: NJDOBI: 2026 Auto Insurance Buyer’s Guide; NJDOBI: Standard Auto Insurance Policy.
The most important evidence usually shows how the incident happened, who controlled the risk, what injuries resulted, and how those injuries affected your life. Useful items may include photographs, videos, reports, witness information, medical records, bills, insurance correspondence, and wage documentation.
You do not need to possess every record before contacting a lawyer. The firm may request surveillance footage, contracts, maintenance records, vehicle data, government records, or expert analysis. Preserve the items already under your control and provide accurate information about where additional evidence may exist. Under HIPAA, patients generally have rights to obtain medical and billing records from covered providers and health plans.
Sources: HHS: Access to Your Medical Records; New Jersey State Police: Crash Report Requests; NJ Courts: Proximate Cause.
A claim may provide compensation for medical expenses, future care, lost income, reduced earning capacity, disability, pain and suffering, disfigurement, and loss of enjoyment of life. Property damage and certain losses experienced by qualifying family members may also be recoverable when supported by the facts and applicable law.
There is no universal settlement formula. The amount depends on liability, insurance coverage, the nature and duration of the injury, medical proof, future limitations, and the injury’s effect on work and daily activities. Future losses generally require evidence showing that they are reasonably probable rather than speculative.
Sources: NJ Courts: Medical Expenses in Non-Auto Claims; NJ Courts: Loss of Earnings; NJ Courts: Disability, Pain, and Loss of Enjoyment of Life; NJDOBI: 2026 Auto Insurance Buyer’s Guide.
Delayed symptoms do not automatically prevent a claim. Some injuries may not be fully apparent at the scene, but you must still establish through appropriate medical evidence that the condition was caused or aggravated by the accident.
Seek professional medical evaluation when new, persistent, or worsening symptoms develop, and accurately explain when they began. Do not attempt to diagnose the condition yourself. The CDC notes that some mild traumatic brain injury symptoms may appear hours or days after an impact and identifies danger signs that require emergency care. Contemporaneous medical records can help document both the symptoms and their progression.
Sources: CDC: Concussion Symptoms and Danger Signs; HHS: Access to Your Medical Records; NJ Courts: Proximate Cause.
The Epstein Law Firm offers a free, no-obligation case evaluation. During the initial consultation, the firm can ask about the incident, injuries, medical care, insurers, available records, and timing. The consultation can also help determine whether the matter fits the firm’s practice and whether immediate action is needed.
The firm handles personal injury claims on a contingency-fee basis and collects an attorney’s fee only if it obtains a recovery. Any representation and responsibility for case expenses should be explained in a written fee agreement. Call (201) 231-7847 or use the firm’s contact page to request an evaluation.
Sources: The Epstein Law Firm: Free Case Evaluation; NJ Court Rule 1:21-7: Contingent Fees; NJ Rules of Professional Conduct: Client Decisions and Fees.
Tell The Epstein Law Firm what happened and get clear guidance about your injury claim and legal options.
We want to express our deepest gratitude for the exceptional work you did to insure that our father’s unfortunate accident did not go unrecognized; my dear dad would have appreciated your professionalism, unstoppable work ethic and most of all your compassion every step of the way. Please know we have the highest regard and the utmost respect for you.
Thank you again for all of your help, support and advice. You’ve made a trying and difficult time much easier to deal with for my family and myself. You will never have any idea how much your efforts were, and will forever be appreciated.
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560 Sylvan Avenue, Suite 1000-A Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 (By Appointment Only)
201-734-3763
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18-20 Lackawanna Plaza, Suite 200 Montclair, NJ 07042 (By Appointment Only)
973-381-8410
The Epstein Law Firm
The Epstein Law Firm