Kari has significant experience defending high-profile and catastrophic personal injury cases, from the preliminary conference stage up through and including jury selection and trial. She regularly handles pre-trial discovery and investigation, conducts depositions, drafts and argues motions, negotiates settlements and tries cases.
As a member of Harris Beach Murtha’s Medical and Life Sciences Practice Group, Kari routinely defends companies and municipalities facing a wide variety of general liability claims. These include the defense of matters involving slip and trip falls, New York’s Labor Law 240/241, workplace accidents, car accidents, fire and water infiltration issues, matters involving exposure to mold and § 1983 civil rights actions. She also regularly counsels and defends condominium and cooperative boards, unit owners and shareholders in various matters. In addition, Kari defends municipalities in Child Victims and Adult Survivors Act cases.
Kari also has significant experience defending Dram Shop Act cases, including the analysis of alcohol service protocols, bar and restaurant compliance practices and eyewitness testimony. Her work in this area includes close collaboration with toxicology and forensic experts, particularly in matters involving retrograde extrapolation to assess alleged intoxication levels and timelines. She has also aggressively litigated cases involving suspected fraud, including the targeted pursuit of third party litigation funding records to challenge the credibility of claims, uncover inconsistencies and drive strategic resolution. Her practice includes developing comprehensive litigation strategies, coordinating complex discovery and advancing defenses through detailed factual and legal analysis across all stages of litigation.
Before joining Harris Beach Murtha, Kari spent more than a dozen years with the New York City Law Department, Special Litigation Unit, defending the city in personal injury and civil rights cases. She handled high-profile catastrophic injury cases in all five boroughs and across multiple city departments, including the New York City Police Department, Fire Department of the City of New York, Correctional Health Services, Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the Department of Education. Her extensive experience, from the preliminary conference stage through jury selection and trial, earned her a rapid increase in responsibility during her tenure with the city.
She also served as judicial clerk for the Honorable Arthur Donald Spatt in United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.