A new report from the American Tort Reform Association exposes a staggering surge in lawsuit ads across New York, revealing how aggressive marketing campaigns fuel both fraud and skyrocketing auto insurance premiums amid Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) push to address affordability through anti-fraud and litigation reform measures.
“New Yorkers are trapped in a rigged game where trial lawyers profit from fraud and taxpayers pick up the tab,” said Lauren Sheets Jarrell, ATRA’s Vice President and Counsel for Civil Justice Policy. “Gov. Hochul’s efforts to clean up the system are a crucial step toward restoring fairness and affordability in one of the nation’s worst Judicial Hellholes®. Lawmakers who reject these reforms are siding with billboard lawyers over working families.”
In 2025 alone, plaintiffs’ attorneys poured nearly $179 million into almost 1.2 million local legal service ads across New York’s media markets — an 84% increase since 2023. A majority (78%) of those ads promoted personal injury attorneys, with nearly 300,000 ads specifically related to accident attorneys, including motor vehicle and construction worksite accidents.
The spike in trial lawyer ads tracks closely with rising auto insurance fraud and no-fault litigation scams that plague the state’s legal system. Data from the New York State Department of Financial Services show reports of insurance fraud nearly doubling since 2020. ATRA notes that fraudulent schemes often involve unscrupulous lawyers partnering with corrupt medical providers to inflate claims and drain billions from insurers — costs ultimately passed down to consumers.
“We’re all footing the bill for this flood of trial lawyer advertising,” said Tom Stebbins, Executive Director of the Lawsuit Reform Alliance of New York. “With every unnecessary lawsuit and jackpot claim, it costs more to drive a car, deliver food, transport products, and operate public transit and emergency services. Billboard attorneys aggressively advertise along our highways, on TV, the radio, and digital platforms to recruit plaintiffs and condition a litigious culture. They drum up an endless stream of litigation, hoping to transform every fender bender into a high-value case.”
New Yorkers pay the second-highest “tort tax” in the nation — up 43% since 2022, now at $2,684 per person annually due to excessive litigation. ATRA’s latest findings reinforce New York City’s distinction as the No. 2 “Judicial Hellhole®” in the nation, a ranking driven largely by the rampant fraud that distorts the civil justice system.
“The connection is impossible to ignore — trial lawyers flood New York’s airwaves with ads designed to recruit plaintiffs, then profit from a culture of endless litigation,” Sheets Jarrell said. “These campaigns condition consumers to see every accident as a potential payday and encourage fraudulent claims that drive up premiums for everyone else. Lawsuit abuse isn’t just a courtroom problem; it’s an economic one that squeezes working families and deters investment.”
“The trial lawyers spend millions to control the agenda inside the state capitol and to tip the scales of public perception,” said Ashley Ranslow, New York State Director for the National Federation of Independent Business. “New York’s small businesses are struggling to keep their doors open as operating costs soar.”
Last year, 33 law firms spent more than $1 million each on ads. The largest individual spender, Morgan & Morgan, doubled its ad budget year-over-year, totaling $27.5 million in 2025. Andrew Finkelstein, current president of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, is managing partner of several different law firms, including Finkelstein & Partners and Jacoby & Meyers. Combined, those two firms spent at least $3.7 million on more than 20,274 ads in 2025.
“Gov. Kathy Hochul’s anti-fraud and lawsuit reform proposals take direct aim at the trial lawyers business model and the laws that incentivize profiteering,” Stebbins said. “It’s time for the New York State Legislature to back her proposals and bring down costs for working families instead of blocking reforms so wealthy billboard lawyers can keep spending millions on obnoxious ads while working families struggle to make ends meet.”
“Lawmakers have a clear choice — stand with Governor Hochul in tackling this fraud epidemic or stay silent while billboard lawyers bleed New Yorkers dry,” Sheets Jarrell said. “The data show what’s at stake: billions in costs, hundreds of thousands of lost jobs, and a justice system that rewards manipulation over merit. It’s time to restore balance by passing meaningful reform and ending the trial bar’s stranglehold on New York’s economy.”
The full report on 2024-2025 local legal services advertising in New York is available at ATRA.org.
