Daniel O'Toole

Daniel P. O’Toole is one of New York’s premier trial attorneys, having obtained numerous record-breaking verdicts and settlements over the span of his 30-year career. A passionate advocate for his clients, Mr. O’Toole approaches every case with both compassion and tenacity, fighting to bring justice to those devastated by catastrophic accidents. In the past three years alone, Mr. O’Toole has amassed over $350,000,000 in settlements, and his lifetime reported total of results is nearly $1 billion.

Mr. O’Toole handles a variety of personal injury cases for plaintiffs, focusing specifically on construction accidents, motor vehicle accidents, premises liability, and wrongful deaths. Some of his top results include:

• $110,174,972 jury verdict for a pedestrian hit by a falling beam during subway maintenance

• $65,000,000 settlement for a paralyzed cyclist, the largest non-medical malpractice personal injury settlement in New York history

• $32,756,055 jury verdict for a Vietnam war veteran who suffered traumatic brain injuries

• $22,500,000 settlement for a driver injured in a car accident caused by an icy roadway

• $14,000,000 verdict for a motorcyclist who sustained a below-the-knee amputation after being struck by a truck

• $13,500,000 settlement for a pedestrian who suffered permanent disabilities after being struck by a car, the largest reported personal injury settlement in Suffolk County

• $12,000,000 settlement for a Local 147 tunnel worker who fell approximately 40 feet during the 7 Train extension project

• $11,500,000 settlement for a construction worker who suffered severe wrist injuries due to defective machinery

• $10,000,000 settlement for an asbestos abatement worker injured in a wall collapse

In addition to his landmark results, Mr. O’Toole has obtained more than 230 settlements exceeding $1,000,000. In 2017, he reported New York’s top mediated settlement ($12,000,000) and number two overall settlement ($13,500,000), the second of which was settled during trial. Year after year, Mr. O’Toole secures some of the largest settlements for victims, and on five separate occasions, he obtained verdicts that were among the top ten largest personal injury verdicts in New York for that year.

Appearances and Positions

Mr. O’Toole is active in the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, having served as the Co-Chairman for the organization’s Labor Law Committee since DATE. He also previously served as the organization’s Treasurer and was part of the Board of Directors from 2011 to 2020. He has also published articles advocating for the rights of workers, including a piece for the New York Law Journal.

Charity and Additional Work

Mr. O’Toole has long been devoted to philanthropic work and remains dedicated to supporting a number of charitable causes. He is a major donor to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and he and the other partners at Block O’Toole & Murphy have been instrumental in raising over $6,000,000 for St. Jude.

Mr. O’Toole and his wife are also proud supporters of various educational funds and charities. Together, they endowed scholarships at Fordham University School of Law and Georgetown University, and they continue to donate to Boston College, the Institute of Educational Achievement, the University of Scranton, and several Catholic schools in New Jersey. In 2023, Mr. O’Toole and his wife were honored by Fordham Law School at the 2020 Scholarship Benefactors Reception for their contributions.

As an avid runner, Mr. O’Toole has participated in a number of races, including the Boston Marathon and the New York City Marathon. During the 2018 Boston Marathon, he fundraised for One Mission, a Boston-based pediatric cancer charity. His efforts led One Mission to name him Runner of the Year in 2018. Then, in 2020, Mr. O’Toole ran the marathon in support of HomeStart Boston, an organization that seeks to eradicate Boston homelessness. His efforts helped raise the third-largest amount of money ever raised by a single runner in the history of the race.