Accolades and Recognition

Block O’Toole & Murphy’s consistent dedication to our clients and willingness to tackle tough cases against powerful entities has earned us awards and accolades from a variety of legal organizations and publications. Our attorneys are honored that their success on behalf of clients has received such recognition.

Firm Recognition

ALM VerdictSearch

According to ALM’s VerdictSearch, Block O’Toole & Murphy has reported more case results exceeding $1,000,000 than any other law firm in New York since 2012. VerdictSearch tracks and records data on verdicts and settlements across the country, and BOM cases have consistently been featured by the site’s editors. ALM, VerdictSearch’s parent company, also owns Law.com and the New York Law Journal.

Best Law Firms

Best Law Firms, the companion legal ranking agency to Best Lawyers, awarded Block O’Toole & Murphy the prestigious Tier 1 ranking in Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs for the New York City region. Only the highest scoring firms receive a Tier 1 ranking. Best Law Firms uses extensive research, client and attorney evaluations, peer reviews, and information provided by each firm to decide its scores each year.

Super Lawyers – Top Firms

In 2026, Block O’Toole & Murphy was added to Super Lawyers’ list of New York Metro Top Firms for Personal Injury Plaintiffs, recognizing the firm as one of the best of its kind in the region. This newly created list only selects firms with at least five Super Lawyers or Rising Stars selectees from the same practice area, and only the highest-scoring attorneys make it to Super Lawyers or Rising Stars lists.

Attorney Recognition

Super Lawyers 

Block O’Toole & Murphy attorneys have been selected to Super Lawyers’ lists every year since 2008. Each year, Super Lawyers conducts a rigorous search to identify the top attorneys in more than 70 practices areas from across the country. This process includes independent research, peer nominations, and peer evaluations to ensure only attorneys with the highest levels of peer recognition and professional achievement are selected. The following BOM attorneys have been selected to the New York Super Lawyers list for the Personal Injury Plaintiff category: 

• Jeffrey A. Block, 2008-Present
• Daniel P. O’Toole, 2008-Present
• Stephen J. Murphy, 2011-Present
• David L. Scher, 2016-Present
• Joseph Donahue, 2011-Present
• Frederick C. Aranki, 2016-Present
• Michael J. Hurwitz, 2015-Present
• Christina R. Mercado, 2023-Present
• Scott Occhiogrosso, 2013-Present

Selectees represent only the top 5% of lawyers in a particular practice area. Mr. Block, Mr. O’Toole, and Mr. Murphy have also been named to the Super Lawyers Top 100: New York Metro list, which highlights the “best of the best” attorneys who received the highest point totals in the region across all practice areas.

In 2026, Mr. O’Toole was selected as one of Super Lawyers’ Top 5 Personal Injury Plaintiff attorneys in the New York Metro area. This honor is only given to the five attorneys who score highest in Super Lawyers’ yearly ranking.

Several of our younger attorneys were also selected as Rising Stars, a designation of Super Lawyers that recognizes the top 2.5% of attorneys who are under 40 or have been practicing for less than 10 years. The list is developed using the same selection process as Super Lawyers, and it includes:

• Pawel P. Wierzbicki, 2021-Present
• Kristian Krober, 2021-Present
• Aaron Fishkin, 2022-Present
• Gabriela Pulla, 2025-Present
• Olga Baginski, 2025-Present
• James Coscia, 2026

Best Lawyers®

Best Lawyers®, the oldest peer review guide to the legal profession in the country, also conducts a yearly search and peer review process to recognize the attorneys who have received the most acclaim and respect from fellow lawyers. The following attorneys have all been named to the Best Lawyers® list for plaintiff personal injury attorneys in New York:

• Jeffrey A. Block, 2015-Present
• Daniel P. O’Toole, 2014-Present
• Stephen J. Murphy, 2014-Present
• David L. Scher, 2024-Present
• Joseph Donahue, 2024-Present
• Christopher Soverow, 2023-Present

In addition to being named Best Lawyers, Partners Stephen Murphy, Jeffrey Block, and Daniel O’Toole were also selected as “Lawyer of the Year” for Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs in New York City for 2022, 2023, and 2026, respectively.

Best Lawyers also publishes a yearly “Ones to Watch” list, which includes attorneys with less than 10 years of experience in private practice for outstanding professional work. It includes:

• Frederick C. Aranki, 2026
• Michael J. Hurwitz, 2026
• Christina M. Mercado, 2026
• Pawel P. Wierzbicki, 2026

Forbes Advisor 

Several attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy were recognized in Forbes Advisor Lists: Partner Stephen J. Murphy for Best NYC Personal Injury Lawyers, Partner Daniel P. O’Toole for Best NYC Wrongful Death Lawyers, and Partners David L. Scher and Scott Occhiogrosso for Best NYC Motorcycle Accident Lawyers. In 2023, Mr. Murphy was also featured on Forbes’ Top 15 list of Personal Injury Lawyers in New York City.

Forbes Advisor is a trusted resource that helps people make informed decisions about financial, legal, and consumer services. Towards this mission, its editorial team independently researches and curates lists of top lawyers across different practice areas, highlighting attorneys with proven experience, outcomes, and professional excellence.

National Trial Lawyers

Partners Jeffrey A. Block, Daniel P. O’Toole, and Stephen J. Murphy were recognized among the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in New York State by The National Trial Lawyers. The National Trial Lawyers is a professional organization composed of trial lawyers from across the country who demonstrate superior skills as civil plaintiff or criminal defense trial lawyers.

In 2026, Partner Pawel P. Wierzbicki and Associates Gabriela Pulla, Olga Baginski, and James Coscia were recognized on National Trial Lawyers’ Top 40 Under 40 list, which highlights young attorneys with an impressive set of skills and results.

Irish Legal 100

Firm partners Daniel P. O’Toole and Stephen J. Murphy have previously been named to the Irish Legal 100. Each year, this organization compiles accomplished attorneys of Irish descent from across the United States and publishes the results in its magazine.

Million and Multi-Million-Dollar Advocates Forums

Several members of the firm are members of the Million-Dollar Advocates Forum and Multi-Million-Dollar Advocates Forum, including:

• Jeffrey A. Block
• Daniel P. O’Toole
• Stephen J. Murphy
• David L. Scher
• Joseph Donahue

 Membership in Million-Dollar Advocates is limited to attorneys who have won verdicts and settlements of $1 million or more, and membership in Multi-Million-Dollar Advocates is limited to those who returned results of $2 million or more. There are over 5,000 members throughout the United States, representing fewer than 1% of all U.S. attorneys.

Charity and Fundraising Recognition 

In addition to their legal accomplishments, Block O’Toole & Murphy attorneys have also been honored for their philanthropic efforts.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Block O’Toole & Murphy has raised over $10,000,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital through its New York City Wine Tasting. This event helps raise funds for the hospital, so it can continue to provide critical medical care at no cost to patients and families. In 2019, Partner Stephen J. Murphy was named St. Jude’s Chairperson of the Year for his commitment to St. Jude’s and his efforts to make the event a success. Partners Jeffrey A. Block, Daniel P. O’Toole, and David L. Scher have also played significant roles in organizing the event as co-chairs.