Michael J. Epstein was born in Paterson, New Jersey, in 1970. He was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1996, and the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, New York bar, and United States District Court for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York in 1997. Mr. Epstein received his B.A., summa cum laude, from Hamilton College in 1993, Phi Beta Kappa, and his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard University in 1996. After graduating from law school, he served as a law clerk to The Honorable Marie L. Garibaldi, New Jersey Supreme Court, from 1996-1997, and to The Honorable Alfred M. Wolin, United States District Court of New Jersey, from 1997-1998.
Mr. Epstein is a member of the following organizations: Bergen County Bar Association (Immediate Past President, 2017-18, President, 2016-17, President-elect, 2015-2016, First Vice President, 2014-15, Second Vice President, 2013-14, Treasurer, 2012-13, Trustee, 2005-11, Co-Chair of Civil Practice Committee, 2003-present, Bench Bar Committee 2003-present), The New Jersey Association of Justice (Board of Governors, 2012-present, Co-Chair, Amicus Committee, 2013-present,Civil Practice Committee, 2011-present) and the Association of County Bar Presidents (President, 2016-18). He was the author of the monthly Civil Practice Update for the Bergen County Bar Association.
His areas of practice include: Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice, Nursing Home Negligence, Legal Malpractice, Employment Law, Civil Litigation, and Commercial Litigation.
Mr. Epstein was named to the Super Lawyers Rising Star list for the years 2006-2008 and has been named to the Super Lawyers List published by Thomson Reuters every year since 2009 and has been named to The Top 100 List for Super Lawyers since 2014.
Areas Of Practice
Civil Litigation
Commercial Litigation
Legal Malpractice
Medical Malpractice
Personal Injury
Product Liability
Employment Law
Pedestrian Accidents
Premises Liability Slip & Fall
Workers Compensation
Wrongful Death
Certified Legal Specialties
Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Civil Trial Attorney
Bar Admissions
New Jersey, 1996
New York, 1997
U.S. District Court District of New Jersey, 1997
U.S. District Court Southern District of New York, 1997
U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York, 1997
U.S. Court of Appeals 3rd Circuit
Education
Harvard University Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts
J.D. 1996
Honors: cum laude
Hamilton College
B.A. 1993
Honors: summa cum laude
Honors: Phi Beta Kappa
Published Works
Monthly Civil Practice Update, Bergen County Bar Association
Co-author, “A Solution Without a Problem,� New Jersey Law Journal, May 12, 2014
Representative Cases
Murphy v. Implicito, 392, 2007, N.J. Super. 245 App. Div.
Pollack v. Quick Quality Rests., Inc., 452 N.J. Super. 174 (App. Div. 2017), LEXIS 149
Krzykalski v. Tindall, 2018, Supreme Court, 229 N.J. 622, appeared as amicus for NJAJ
O’Donnell v. NJ Turnpike Authority, Supreme Court, appeared as amicus for NJAJ
J.H. v. R&M Tagliareni, LLC New Jersey Supreme Court, appeared as amicus for NJAJ
Classes/Seminars
Moderator, Direct and Cross-examination of Defense and Plaintiff Doctors, Bergen County Bar Association, February 2007
Speaker, Bounds of Bias Cross-examination, ATLA Boardwalk, 2008
Moderator, Minding Medicare’s Interests, Liens and Set-asides in Liability Cases, Bergen County Bar Association, January 2011
Moderator, Erisa, Medicare, and Medicaid Liens, Bergen County Bar Association, October 2011
Speaker, An Update On Civil Practice Issues, NJAJ Civil Trial Practice, December 2012
Program Co-Chair and Moderator, NJAJ Trial Academy: All About Motions, November 2013
Speaker, Motions for Mistrials, NJAJ Trial Academy, November 2013
Presenter, End Distracted Driving, Paramus High School, October 2013
Program Co-Chair and Moderator, Evidence Issues Before and During Trial, NJAJ College of Trial Advocacy, November 2014
Speaker, Rules, Uses, and Limits of Documentary Evidence on Cross-Examination, NJAJ College of Trial Advocacy, November 2014
Speaker, Liens at Trial: Boarded, Molded, or Stipulated, NJAJ Auto Program, November 2014
Speaker, Hospital Immunity: Kuchera v. Jersey Shore Family Health Center, NJAJ Boardwalk Convention, May 2015
Speaker, Litigation Holds, NJCAA Annual Conference 2015
Program Co-Chair, Finding the Goods on Bad Experts, NJAJ Meadowlands, November 2015
Program Co-moderator, The Philosophy of Tort Law Liability, NJAJ Boardwalk Convention, April 2017
Speaker, Effective Use of the Offer of Judgment Bad Faith, Medical Malpractice Seminar, NJAJ Boardwalk Convention, April 2017
Speaker, Common Evidentiary Issues in Medical Malpractice Cases, Medical Malpractice Seminar, NJAJ Meadowlands, 2017
Changes to “But For� Proximate Cause Charge, Medical Malpractice Seminar, NJAJ Boardwalk Convention, May 2018
Speaker, Prepping the Client, Plaintiff Perspective, Deposition Seminar, NJICLE, February 2019
Speaker, The de bene esse Deposition, Plaintiff Perspective, Deposition Seminar, NJICLE, February 2019
Moderator, Achieving Great Results In A Twitter World: Shorter Is Better, NJAJ Boardwalk May 2019
Moderator, 2019 Tort Law Conference, NJ ICLE, October 2019
Speaker, Five Significant Tort Cases of 2019, 2019 Tort Law Conference, NJ ICLE, October 2019
Honors And Awards
Named to the Top 100 New Jersey Super Lawyers list published by Thomson Reuters, 2014 Present
Named to the New Jersey Super Lawyers list published by Thomson Reuters, 2009 Present
Named to the Super Lawyers Rising Star list published by Thomson Reuters
Million Dollar Advocates Forum
Ten Leaders for New Jersey Civil Trial & Personal Injury Law
Bergen Magazine, Top Lawyers, Civil Trial
American Board of Trial Advocates, 2019 Present
National Association of Distinguished Counsel, Nation’s Top One Percent, 2019 Present
Professional Associations And Memberships
Bergen County Bar Association, Member, 2000
Bergen County Bar Association, Co-Chair, Civil Practice Committee, 2003
Bergen County Bar Association, Trustee, 2005 to 2011
Bergen County Bar Association, Secretary, 2011 to 2012
Bergen County Bar Association, Treasurer, 2012 to 2013
Bergen County Bar Association, Second Vice President, 2013 to 2014
Bergen County Bar Association, First Vice President, 2014 to 2015
Bergen County Bar Association, President-elect, 2015 to 2016
Bergen County Bar Association, President, 2016 to 2017
Bergen County Bar Association, Past President, 2017 to 2018
Bergen County Bar Association, Member, Bench-Bar Committee, 2004
Bergen County Bar Association, Member, Judicial Appointments Committee, 2019 to Present
New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ), Board of Governors, 2012 to Present
New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ), Co-Chair, Amicus Committee, 2013 to Present
New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ), Member, Civil Practice Committee, 2011 to Present
New Jersey Association for Justice (NJAJ), Member
New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on Model Civil Jury Charges, Member, 2014 to Present
New Jersey State Bar Association, Member
Association of County Bar Presidents, President, 2016 to 2018
The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100, Member, Civil Plaintiff Trial Lawyers in New Jersey
Past Employment Positions
The Honorable Marie L. Garibaldi, New Jersey Supreme Court, Law Clerk, 1996 to 1997
The Honorable Alfred M. Wolin, U.S. District Court of New Jersey, Law Clerk, 1997 to 1998
Davis Polk & Wardwell, Associate, 1998 to 1999
