Jackson Heights, NY

Richard S. Jaffe

For over 25 years, Richard S. Jaffe has dutifully earned and vigorously maintained his reputation as a fierce trial attorney and litigator. There is no mistaking his calling. However, beneath the legal theory and courtroom savvy is an enthusiasm for medicine that persistently fuels this native New Yorker. Today, Richard has combined this passion for law and medicine by completing his certification as a Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS). ... Richard Jaffe has handled thousands of personal injury cases and is a lifetime member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, recognized for achieving multiple settlements or verdicts exceeding $1 million. He holds an AV Preeminent* rating from the Martindale-Hubbell peer review system and was listed in the 2012 New York Super Lawyers for his professional standards and consistently favorable outcomes. Licensed to practice in New York, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia, including federal courts in New York, Richard is a member of several professional organizations, such as the Nassau County Bar Association, New York State Trial Lawyers Association, and the Association of Trial Lawyers of America. He is also fluent in Spanish, allowing him to serve a broader range of clients.

Eric J. Gottfried

Eric J. Gottfried is a highly experienced litigator with over 30 years of advocating for those injured due to negligence. He has secured numerous published Appellate Division decisions, settlements and verdicts, establishing a strong reputation in personal injury law. His practice covers automobile accidents, complex labor law/construction site injuries, trip-and-fall claims, municipal liability, airline injury litigation, wrongful death, brain damage claims, and boating and shipping accidents. Admitted to the New York State Bar and the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, Mr. Gottfried earned his Juris Doctor from New York Law School and his Bachelor of Arts from Syracuse University. Recognized as a New York Metro Area Super Lawyer from 2009 to 2011 and 2013 to 2025, he is an active member of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the Bronx County Bar Association, and the New York Law School and Syracuse University Alumni Mentor Programs. Beyond the courtroom, Mr. Gottfried has been a guest lecturer at Baruch College and New York Technical College, a Continuing Legal Education (CLE) lecturer for the New York State Bar Association, and has served as a judge for the Robert F. Wagner, Sr. Moot Court Competition. He has also been featured as a legal consultant in national and local media, including The New York Times, The New York Post, The New York Daily News, and 1010 WINS Radio.

Jeffrey J. Schietzelt

Jeffrey J. Schietzelt is an accomplished trial attorney with a track record of securing seven-figure verdicts. He earned his Juris Doctor from Fordham Law School in 2002, where he received the Phillip R. Fusco Memorial Award for campus leadership and served as an Associate Editor of the Fordham International Law Journal. He is admitted to practice in New York State and the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. Since the start of his career, Mr. Schietzelt’s practice has exclusively focused on litigation and trial work. He has had at least one of the top fifty jury verdicts in New York for five of the last ten years. Mr. Schietzelt has been recognized as a “Super Lawyer” by Super Lawyers Magazine each year since 2013, been featured in The New York Times Magazine’s “Top Attorneys” list, and named one of the "10 Best Under 40" by the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys. He holds a perfect "10 of 10" AVVO rating and is a member of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the American Institute of Trial Attorneys, and the Bronx County Bar Association. Mr. Schietzelt is an adjunct professor at his alma mater, Sacred Heart University where he focuses on Law and Ethics. He frequently speaks on ethics and litigation strategy and has been quoted in The New York Daily News, The New York Post, The Journal News and other major publications. His dedication to service extends beyond the courtroom, as he serves on the Board of Directors for a Manhattan-based Title 1 High School, dedicated to helping low-income students access opportunities in information technology and software engineering. He has also sat on the Institutional Review Board at Sacred Heart University, overseeing ethical issues arising from applications for human trials in research endeavors. An avid surfer, beach volleyball player, fisherman, and youth sports coach. He played Division I Volleyball at Sacred Heart University and continued his career in beach volleyball afterward. He lives locally with his wife Amanda and their four children.

Keetick L. Sanchez

Keetick L. Sanchez is a lifelong resident of New York dedicated to helping clients. She represents clients in courtrooms throughout New York City, skillfully handling administrative, civil, and criminal proceedings. Before and during law school, she worked as a trial litigation paralegal for personal injury actions. After graduating from Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law School, she became a litigator in a NYC personal injury law firm, prosecuting hundreds of cases and earning a reputation as a tough and tenacious attorney. She also gained experience in Criminal Law and Immigration Law, interning with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office and the International Refugee Assistance Project. She is admitted to practice law in all boroughs of New York City and in the State of Texas.

Robert Astrachan

Robert Astrachan is a fighter for the rights of injured people. Robert has experience as a litigation attorney appearing before state and federal courts across the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. His areas of practice include motor vehicle crash, premises liability, medical malpractice, traumatic brain injury, wrongful circumcision, medical device and product liability cases. Over the span of his career, Robert Astrachan has obtained millions of dollars in gross recoveries for plaintiffs, most recently a $950,000.00 damages award for a woman with a fractured ankle and disc herniation. Robert Astrachan is recognized in his field and was named a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021. He was invited to lecture on the subject of virtual depositions at the Puerto Rican Bar Association’s CLE: Law 2020. He has appeared on the podcast Latte with a Lawyer to discuss his experiences as a personal injury attorney. Robert Astrachan’s passion for helping others extends outside of the courtroom. Having grown up in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Robert has always helped those in Spanish speaking and immigrant communities. Robert has volunteered his time to help immigrants obtain citizenship. After hurricane Maria, he organized a fundraiser to raise money for the victims of the hurricane in Puerto Rico. Robert is the head of Traffic and Safety for his local civic organization where he communicates with Town and County officials to improve dangerous road conditions.

Stephen M. Cohen

Stephen Cohen grew up in working-class Queens, where he learned about the importance of hard work from his family and neighbors. He also learned that bad things can happen to good people - and that when they do, they oftentimes need a helping hand. “I had an understanding that everyday people had accidents through no fault of their own,” he recalls. “I think that’s what pushed me into becoming a lawyer.” He has carried that commitment to helping everyday working people throughout his legal career. After receiving his B.S. degree at Bradley University in 1971, he enrolled at St. John’s University School of Law and got his J.D. there in 1974. He joined a small law firm for a time before venturing out to create his own solo law practice, which was located in a third-floor walkup in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. Initially, Cohen handled a wide variety of cases. But early on, he realized that personal injury law was his passion and began to focus his practice in that area. In the ensuing years, that concentration has never wavered. For a time he moved his practice to lower Manhattan, but after he started a family and moved to Long Island he decided to set up shop closer to home. He opened an office in Great Neck and then moved to the firm’s current location in New Hyde Park. Over the years, his solo practice grew into a multi-lawyer firm that now has six attorneys and a support staff of more than 20. Cohen believes that the key to the firm’s success and growth has been its focus on providing the best possible service. “I take great pride that the firm is really people-related,” he says. “I want the firm to convey the idea that when they come in to see us, we’re no better than they are - that this is just what we do and that we respect what they do.” He has represented thousands of injured parties in automobile accidents, trip and fall cases, construction accidents, and the like. He divested the practice into No-Fault collection in both the arbitration and judicial forums, representing health care providers against insurance carriers for collection of bills relating to the treatment of individuals injured in automobile accidents.

Manuel Portela, Jr. is the principal attorney at The Portela Law Firm, P.C., with over 26 years of experience in criminal defense, immigration, family law, and personal injury. He leads a team handling complex state and federal cases, and his work has been featured in various top publications. A former Assistant District Attorney in King’s County, he graduated with honors from Fordham University in 1986 and received his Juris Doctorate from The Washington College of Law in 1990. He is committed to providing exceptional legal service, particularly to New York's Hispanic communities, and is a member of the American Bar Association, New York State Criminal Defense Association, and AILA. He has been recognized by The Who’s Who Directories as one of the Top Attorneys of North America 2021-2022, Super Lawyers, and AAAA Top Ranking Criminal Defense Badge.