About the Firm

Mitch Baumeister founded Baumeister & Samuels in 1989 to offer victims and their families a different choice in legal counsel in the aftermath of an aviation crash or other catastrophic disaster. Convinced that the most compassionate way to represent victims and their families is to provide them with distinctively individualized services, he gathered a team of experienced trial lawyers and staff, who work tirelessly to bring exemplary legal services to their clients in a caring, supportive manner. The firm dedicates itself to uncovering and improving dangerous conditions within an industry while simultaneously securing full and just damages as are available under the law to their clients.

The firm’s expertise is recognized by the national law directory, Martindale Hubbell, which annually bestows upon Baumeister & Samuels its highest “AV” rating, and we are honored to be listed in the Martindale Hubbell Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers, a publication featuring only the most distinguished, competent and ethical practitioners. Mitch Baumeister is named by U.S. News and World Report as one of its “Best Lawyers”, and he was recently named one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in the country by the National Trial Lawyers organization. The firm's trial lawyers have been named New York Super Lawyers for many years.

Trust is the most important aspect of the relationship between a client and his or her lawyers. Clients are asked to place their trust in someone they have never met before, and to put that trust into a civil justice system with which they are likely to be unfamiliar. To help foster that trust, we make ourselves available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to answer any questions or address any concerns our clients may have. A tribute to the relationship we have formed with our clients over the years is that many of them remain in contact with us even decades after their lawsuits are resolved. (See Client Testimonials)

Although our civil justice system is, at times, imperfect, it does provide victims and their families with an opportunity to collect fair and just compensation for the damages caused by negligent conduct. To that end, we pride ourselves on consistently securing the largest monetary settlements and awards for our clients. Since our founding, we have recovered more than a billion dollars for our clients and their families. Indeed, the firm has the distinction of having obtained the largest personal injury settlement in an aviation case on behalf of a woman who survived but was catastrophically burned in a commercial air disaster. We routinely achieve eight-figure settlements in cases on behalf of clients who have been catastrophically injured or the families of those who have been killed. Defendants and their insurers have paid record-setting amounts of damages to Baumeister & Samuels because they know that the firm can, and will, dedicate the necessary time, effort and financial resources to pursue each and every case we handle through trial, should it be necessary.

Retaining the firm