I have been working on personal injury law cases for over 30 years. I began working as a paralegal for my father, Frederick M. Wittenstein, Esq. in 1988. In 1995 I went to CUNY Law School and was admitted to practice in 1999. In 2000 the name of the firm was changed to Wittenstein & Wittenstein, Esqs as it is today. Now I work with a staff of wonderful paralegals and of-counsel attorneys to bring clients not only the best outcomes, but also the best experience possible during the process.

Keith Gilman grew up in Queens County, New York. He attended Hunter College High School in Manhattan, where he lettered in baseball and bowling. Mr. Gilman graduated with honors from the University of Miami, and completed a year of undergraduate study at Oxford University in England. While in law school at St. John's University, Keith was a published author and editor for the St. John's Journal of Legal Commentary, and worked in the Litigation Bureau at the New York State Attorney General's Office. Mr. Gilman has specialized in the field of plaintiff's personal injury law over the past three decades and has recovered millions of dollars for clients during that span including substantial verdicts that have been published in the Jury Verdict Reporter. Because he is bilingual, Mr. Gilman is able to provide direct, face to face counsel to our Spanish speaking clientele. Mr. Gilman is an active member of the Queens County Bar Association and has served as an Arbitrator and Mediator in resolving attorney-client conflicts. He is admitted to the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York. In his spare time, Mr. Gilman volunteers as President of the Board of Managers at his Homeowners Association. He also enjoys traveling with his wife and two children.

Richard S. Gershman, the firm’s founder, has been practicing law for more than five decades. Over the past 50 years, Richard Gershman has won recoveries amounting in the millions of dollars for injured plaintiffs and their families. As most colleagues and clients already know, Richard Gershman is a tireless advocate for those injured through the negligence of others. Richard S. Gershman, born in Far Rockaway, New York 1946, attended Oklahoma City University earning a BS in business, and continued his education at Suffolk University Law School earning a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree. Professionally, Richard S. Gershman specializes in Personal Injury beginning his career with the Law Firm Queller & Fisher. He then went on to form his own firm Bernstein & Gershman which handled real estate transactions along with oil & gas transactions. He now is the sole owner of Richard S. Gershman & Associates PC. Richard S. Gershman has formerly been a board member of Franklin General Hospital. He is the former president of the Woodmere Country Club. He has served as a board member of Fresh Meadow Country Club. He is currently a Board Member of Northwell Health and was named the outstanding Associate Trustee of the hospital in 2019. Over the past 35 years, he has headed up Golf tournaments for numerous charities including Northwell Health for Cohen’s Children’s Hospital, raising in excess of twenty-five million dollars.

William Pagan is a 1987 graduate of the St. John’s University School of Law. He obtained in undergraduate degree from Fordham University in 1984. He was admitted to the New York Bar in 1988. He is admitted to practice in the Federal Southern and Eastern District Courts of New York and has been admitted pro hac vice to the United States District Court for the Districts of Puerto Rico and Hawaii, as well as New Jersey Superior Court. His professional memberships include the Puerto Rican Bar Association, American Association for Justice, New York State Trial Lawyers Association, New York County Lawyers Association, New York City Bar Association, and the Bronx, Kings, Queens and New York County Bar Associations as well as the Dominican Bar Association. He’s a member of The Pagan Law Firm, P.C. and has accumulated over twenty-five years experience in trying highly complex medical malpractice cases, serious injuries from construction, lead paint poisoning, municipal premise and general accident cases in State and Federal court in all boroughs of the City of New York, statewide in New York and pro hac vice nationwide. He’s a member of The National Trial Lawyers, “Top 100 Trial Lawyers.” Presently, Mr. Pagan’s caseload comprises primarily medical malpractice cases, including birth injury cases, with some construction accident cases, police brutality cases and premises negligence cases as well.

Stephen B. Tiger is a firm believer in doing whatever is necessary to secure the best possible recoveries for his clients. “I take a lot of pride in helping people,” he says. “I do my best for them and try to make a change for what’s right.” After receiving a Bachelor of Business Administration degree at Hofstra University in 1987, Tiger worked in the field of finance for several years before realizing that he wanted to practice law. He enrolled at Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center and got his J.D. there in 1994. Tiger clerked for two criminal court judges and began his legal career handling criminal defense cases, but then began to move into the area of plaintiff’s personal injury law, which he prefers. He practiced solo and also in a small partnership before joining The Law Office of Cohen & Jaffe, LLP in 2011, where his career has thrived, leading to his promotion to partner as of 2024. Tiger’s practice concentrates almost exclusively on plaintiff-side civil litigation. “I represent injured persons,” he says. “I attempt to get them fairly compensated, usually from big insurance companies or other big corporate entities that have harmed them through negligence.” His efforts have resulted in numerous sizeable outcomes for his clients, including $3 million for an injured motorcyclist, $1.45 million for a child who suffered a head injury in a motor vehicle accident, $1.8 million for an automobile passenger who suffered spinal injuries in an accident, and $875,000 for a passenger whose injured knee required multiple surgical procedures. Usually, the defendants in these cases are reluctant to admit fault, but Tiger has years of experience in knowing how to deal with them. “I’m appalled that the insurance carriers have managed to negatively influence the public’s perception of injured parties going for recovery,” he says. “I really don’t like to take what the insurance companies do lying down, so I’m happy to fight with them for the people.” Tiger is particularly known for his relentlessness in the discovery process. Often, defendants are dishonest, and do not exchange documents that they are lawfully required to. Only through Tiger’s persistence and perseverance are these materials uncovered, often leading to favorable results, even in circumstances that at first glance seem unfavorable to injured clients.

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.

“I want to convey to the clients that we’re going to do the best we can and that no matter how many questions you have, you’re always going to get that service. You’re going to get courteous people who care about you.” Richard After pioneering a string of personal injury cases on Long Island and in the New York City metropolitan area involving lead paint poisoning of infants, Richard’s reputation would be well known enough as a fierce trial attorney and litigator. But he didn’t stop there. In fact, Richard has managed to secure several multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements throughout his 30 years of experience, which has earned him membership in many prestigious circles, such as the nation’s Million Dollar Advocates Forum. When not in front of a jury, Richard, is a proud member of the Patriot Guard—an organization established in 2005, which primarily aims to support the families of fallen heroes by protecting them from disruptions during the services for their loved one. He also serves as a board member for The Center for Developmental Disabilities and actively supports the Babylon Breast Cancer Coalition. In the past, Rich has volunteered as a Critical Care Emergency Medical Technician (EMT-CC) and Firefighter on Long Island. When his children were younger, he often coached basketball and lacrosse on Long Island sports fields. Rich is smart, confident, entertaining, fully committed, energetic, and caring. Recently, Richard became a member of the Blue Knights LE MC Chapter in New York State. He is, perhaps, the world’s worst (but most enthusiastic) dancer and the start and finish of every family function. Richard was born and raised in New York, as were his parents and grandparents all who forged his incredibly strong work ethic and tenacity. To his credit, he paid for both college and Law school tuition by working during the hours he was not studying. As a graduate of Binghamton University with a degree in Romance Languages and Literature, Richard is fluent in Spanish and has a working knowledge of five other languages. His history of helping victims of discrimination and negligence dates back as far as 1988, giving the Hispanic community a voice working as a paralegal for a major personal injury law firm. Richard met his current law partner, Stephen Cohen, in 1993. Working as a Law clerk by day and completing Law School by night, Richard authored memoranda and appellate briefs on negligence and discrimination issues that continue to be cited by New York State’s highest courts to this day. Upon graduation from Law School, Richard became an associate attorney with Cohen’s Law Office, and began a trial the very first day he was admitted to practice. Richard hasn’t looked back since. He has obtained hundreds of verdicts and settlements for victims of accidents and discrimination throughout courts of Long Island and the New York City metropolitan area, many in excess of one million dollars. He and Stephen Cohen are now partners at Cohen & Jaffe. Nonetheless, Richard hasn’t forgotten his New York roots, nor his blue collar formative years. He is thankful for the opportunities and core values given to him by his family, which serve as the backbone of his fight for the rights of his clients against insurance giants like State Farm, Allstate and GEICO, to name a few. Call Richard. He will do the same for you. Whether your life is shattered by a car accident, a trip and fall, a construction accident, or discrimination at work, Richard knows it’s more than just a case for you – it’s about putting your life and the lives of your family back together.

Ms. Caitlin McNaughton is a tough litigator who chose a career as an attorney because she firmly believes in standing up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. She has always believed that while flawed, the American judicial system represents the best force for justice in the world. During law school, as a part of her LL.M. degree, Caitlin worked in Tanzania with the Tanzanian government and various non-government organizations on legislative reform to expand legal rights for Tanzanian women and children. Caitlin is licensed in three states as well as admitted to practice in both federal and Appellate courts; she takes pride in her work, zealously representing clients at all stages of litigation, arbitration, and in pre-litigation matters. Caitlin has achieved over $12 million in settlements and verdicts for her clients. In her spare time, Caitlin enjoys reading and political activism.

Nicole Brenecki is a native-born New Yorker who, following an extensive overseas education, returned to practice law in her place of birth. Fluent in English, German, and Polish, Ms. Brenecki’s distinctive global experiences allow her to fully understand and appreciate the unique needs of her clients with the ability to explain the intricacies of New York law in multiple languages. Ms. Brenecki obtained her Juris Doctorate from Brooklyn Law School in 2017. At Brooklyn Law, Ms. Brenecki was awarded the prestigious Brooklyn Law Students for the Public Interest Fellowship and in 2018, she co-founded an organization that was instrumental in the repeal of the New York City Cabaret Law by Mayor Bill DeBlasio. Prior to obtaining her Juris Doctorate, Ms. Brenecki received a Master’s Degree in Law at the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Warsaw and a Diploma in American Law at Center for American Law Studies at the University of Warsaw in 2013. Nicole has extensive experience working for both Plaintiffs and Defendants and specializes in Personal Injury and Labor Law, as well as Employment and Wage Law, in which she heads the firm’s practice. In only her second year of full-time practice, Nicole was named a “Super Lawyer – Rising Star,” a distinction awarded to no more than 2.5% of attorneys in each state for her excellence as a litigator, in 2021. In 2022, she was honored with the “Super Lawyer – Rising Star” award again, followed by the “Top 10 under 40” Award for New York Personal Injury Attorneys, as well as the Lawyers of Distinction Award. Ms. Brenecki is admitted to practice law in the state of New York, as well as before the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York.

VMW LAW is a general service law firm in New York City which was founded in 2004. With a broad array of legal services, the firm is dynamic and very proactive. A partial list of practice areas include: Real Estate, Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Criminal Defense, Civil Litigation and Immigration. Visit the Practice Areas page for more details. We pride ourselves with delivering innovative legal solutions in a cost effective manner. While as a general policy we do NOT guarantee any outcome for legal matters, we are result-oriented and driven to secure the best possible outcome for our clients.Avvo Badge Clients get personalized attention. Through constant research and an interdisciplinary approach effective, novel, and creative solutions are found to legal issues in the New York jurisdiction.