Matthew Sakkas, Esq.

Matthew Sakkas graduated from Clark University (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) in 1988. While an undergraduate he completed a General Course of Study at the London School of Economics from 1986 to 1987. He graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1991 and passed the New York State Bar exam the same year. He was admitted to the New York State Bar in 1992. He is also admitted to practice law in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the Eastern District of New York and the Second Circuit of Court Appeals.

Mr. Sakkas began his law career as an associate at well-known insurance defense law firm where he defended clients primarily in premises liability and construction accident cases. After several years working on the defense side, Mr. Sakkas joined a plaintiff’s law firm where he was responsible for prosecuting a wide variety of personal injury cases from intake through trial as well as preparing and arguing appeals.

In 2000 Mr. Sakkas opened his own law firm concentrating on plaintiff’s personal injury practice and worked in an “of counsel” capacity to other law firms, where he conducted depositions, tried cases and prepared and argued appeals. In 2005 Mr. Sakkas and Mr. Cahn joined their practices. In 2008 they merged their practice with Mr. Weiss, forming the partnership of Sakkas, Cahn & Weiss.

Mr. Sakkas is a long-standing member of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the New York Academy of Trial Lawyers, New York County Lawyers’ Association and the American Association for Justice, where he has served as a judge for the Student Trial Advocacy Competition. Mr. Sakkas has also served as a arbitrator for the New York City Civil Court.

Following the attacks of 9/11 Mr. Sakkas participated in the Trial Lawyers Care initiative where trial lawyers volunteered their services to represent the families of victims of the attacks. Mr. Sakkas successfully represented the family of a woman who died in the attack on North Tower of the World Trade Center.

Some of Mr. Sakkas’ noteworthy appellate cases include the following:

• Washington v. Montefiore Medical Center et. al., 9 A.D.3d 271, 780 N.Y.S.2d 322 (1st Dept. 2004) which held that the plaintiff produced sufficient evidence to raise a question of fact as to the defendants’ negligence in the fatal stabbing of the plaintiff’s decedent at her workplace.
• Barnett v. Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, 40 A.D.3d 325, 835 N.Y.S.2d 183 (1st Dept. 2007) which held that the plaintiff established a sufficient connection between an engineer’s job-site duties and the conditions that created an unreasonable risk of serious injury to the plaintiff in a New Jersey construction accident case.
• Felton v. Tourtoulis, 87 A.D.3d 983, 929 N.Y.S.2d 493 (2nd Dept. 2011) which reinstated the plaintiff’s claim for punitive damages in a drunk driving accident after it was dismissed by the trial court.