Families in Boston who’ve experienced a wrongful death need someone with actual expertise in fatality claims rather than an attorney who just wants to be «a personal injury law firm of all types.»
Many law firms claim they handle wrongful death claims, but they’ll often have a paralegal or a case manager working alongside the attorney to handle their case. Their websites might show a list of results, but without specifying whether these outcomes were settlements or court rulings. Most law firms don’t show you how many wrongful death cases they’ve handled.
If you want to be sure the law firm you’re hiring specializes in wrongful death claims and isn’t just an average personal injury firm, then you need direct contact with an experienced wrongful death attorney, an experienced settlement history of fatal injury claims, and evidence of experience with medical malpractice or negligence claims and car accidents. There’s no easy way to find these out just by reading a law firm’s website.
We’ve reviewed five local wrongful death attorneys in Boston who focus on wrongful death claims and give you the results you need to compare. We chose these firms based on their results history with fatal injuries in either medical or accident cases; what kind of client reviews they’ve received; and whether you’re working directly with the attorney rather than with a case manager.
Here’s a comparison of what you can expect from Boston’s top five wrongful death attorneys.
What Is a Wrongful Death Claim?
In Massachusetts, wrongful death claims can be filed if someone died due to another person’s negligence, malpractice, or reckless conduct. Surviving family members may receive compensation for lost wages, funeral expenses, and mental anguish.
However, since 2026, most Google search results for personal injury attorneys are generic personal injury firms. Most of these law offices never handled wrongful death lawsuits, don’t have a trial record, and can never disclose the results of their wrongful death settlement cases. Most families find that the attorneys who handle the initial phone call aren’t the same attorneys who file the lawsuit or represent the family before a wrongful death jury in the courtroom or mediate with insurance companies.
Families require lawyers in Boston who represent wrongful deaths, and are very clear and transparent with families that they publish and report jury verdicts in wrongful death cases, maintain their own medical experts in-house, and always have attorneys handling every file from start to finish, rather than staff members acting in lieu of lawyers. This is the most important feature of a wrongful death attorney and differentiates real lawyers from personal injury referral companies.
How to Choose a Wrongful Death Lawyer in Boston
Boston residents need wrongful death attorneys who focus specifically on wrongful deaths, rather than personal injury lawyers handling 50 practice areas:
- Attorneys, Not Assistants: Do you deal with a licensed attorney for your entire case from initial contact through the conclusion of the lawsuit and settlement? Or are you dealing with paralegals or other non-lawyer staff?
- Trial Verdicts & Settlements: Ask for a list of cases the attorney won at trial and settlements they achieved for wrongful deaths. The number «millions of dollars» means nothing unless specific cases are listed.
- Specialization in Fatal Injuries: Many attorneys handle wrongful death claims as part of a larger scope in «personal injuries.» However, the top Boston lawyers specialize in wrongful deaths through medical malpractice, workplace fatalities, automobile and other accident fatalities.
- Satisfaction Guarantee or Trial: Some Boston wrongful death attorneys offer a trial period or satisfaction guarantee. This demonstrates confidence in their services.
- Clear Fee Structure: Don’t let the attorney «pull a fast one.» Request a clear, written fee contingency arrangement before hiring a firm, as there shouldn’t be hidden fees to reduce your settlement before you receive any of it.
- Medical Expert Contacts: You need strong medical experts for wrongful death claims to testify regarding causation, which means the Boston lawyer should have access to a solid network of qualified medical professionals, such as pathologists, toxicologists, and accident reconstruction experts.
Top 5 Wrongful Death Lawyers
The firms shown below made their way onto our rankings because they have demonstrated fatal-case specialization through actual results, open results records, and formal dedication to attorney representation in every client’s legal matter. They each carry advantages in specific types of wrongful death matters.
Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers
Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers, a Boston wrongful death firm, stands out by offering a 30-day satisfaction guarantee: if you’re not fully satisfied with the firm’s representation for any reason within the first 30 days, your file can be returned free of charge. The firm also works on a contingency-fee basis, meaning families pay no legal fees unless compensation is recovered.
Clients work directly with their attorney rather than relying on a case manager or paralegal, providing consistent communication throughout the legal process.
Led by Michael D. Kelly, Esq., the firm handles wrongful death, medical malpractice, catastrophic injury, and serious motor vehicle accident cases. The legal team manages every stage of a claim—from accident investigations and evidence preservation to settlement negotiations and trial representation—while working with medical experts, accident reconstruction specialists, and financial analysts to strengthen complex cases.
The firm’s reported case results include a $2.5 million motorcycle accident settlement, a $500,000 slip-and-fall settlement, and a $455,000 wrongful death settlement. With offices in Boston, Cambridge, Lowell, Worcester, and Salem, Michael Kelly Injury Lawyers serves families throughout Massachusetts and offers consultations by phone, video conference, or in person.
The combination of direct attorney involvement, a client-focused satisfaction guarantee, verified case results, and statewide accessibility makes the firm a strong option for families pursuing wrongful death claims.
Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers
Started in 1991, Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers takes on the fatal accident cases other firms reject, recovering hundreds of millions of dollars for more than 25,000 clients. The firm specializes in wrongful death cases involving bus, subway, truck, and motorcycle accidents. This is not another generic injury law firm.
The firm’s willingness to fight fatal transportation accidents in court, where several defendants may be at fault, and the corporate nature of the defendants can create complex legal issues, differentiating the company from other personal injury law firms that prefer early settlements. By insisting that those whose careless, reckless, or intentional behaviors cause injuries be held liable, Glassman has built a reputation for maximizing compensation for victims.
Boston attorneys who accept fatal accident and injury cases involving public transportation and truck or pedestrian accidents have a solid history of winning compensation for their clients. Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers has more than three decades of successful litigation and a history of large settlements.
Lubin & Meyer PC
Established in 1974, Lubin & Meyer PC has been in operation for 50 years and has become known as a premier medical malpractice and wrongful death firm in New England. Their specialization in maternal death, birth injury, and anesthesia accidents makes them ideal for wrongful death lawsuits that involve allegations of negligence or malpractice in a hospital, health care setting, or surgical procedure.
While a family is dealing with the tragic loss of a loved one due to a medical provider’s failure, Lubin & Meyer sees to it that their medical error is not swept under the rug. Their attorneys will hold the institutions responsible with innovative trial strategies and tenacious representation.
For the past 50 years, Lubin & Meyer has earned recognition as one of the most respected medical malpractice law firms in New England, as their fellow lawyers in the region and country continue to refer the most difficult medical negligence cases to them. This recognition and referrals reflect their proven courtroom skills, trial experience, and investigative resources.
Lubin & Meyer consists of five attorneys: founding partner Andrew C. Meyer, Jr., along with Robert M. Higgins, Adam Satin, Krysia Syska, and Elizabeth Cranford, and all have extensive experience handling brain injury cases, including cerebral palsy, burn injuries, and cancer misdiagnosis. For any type of wrongful death that is due to a medical provider’s failure to diagnose, treat, or monitor an acute, fatal illness, and where Lubin & Meyer has more than 50 years of experience with medical malpractice, you have found the best firm.
Joel H. Schwartz, P.C.
For over 60 years, the firm has developed a wealth of experience in personal injury law that younger firms are unable to reproduce. In total, the lawyers at Joel H. Schwartz, P.C. have more than 185 years of experience litigating cases. Since its inception, this firm has been able to successfully resolve more than 30,000 claims and has obtained settlements totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.
Their wrongful death attorneys are able to take on cases involving vehicle accidents, construction accidents, and medical malpractice through the use of the latest software, along with extensive research. These attorneys utilize all available legal tools to ensure that their clients’ wrongful death claims have the greatest possible chance of success, whether it comes in the form of a settlement or a successful trial.
With eight lawyers on the team, Joel H. Schwartz, P.C., offers a team led by Joel H. Schwartz as President and Steven A. Schwartz as Managing Partner. The rest of the team includes senior associates who work on pedestrian accidents and construction site accidents, two of the leading types of wrongful death accidents.
Joel H. Schwartz, P.C., makes every effort to make the legal process as easy as possible for their clients, an aspect that can be especially important to families dealing with their loss, as it would also entail probate issues and dealing with insurance carriers.
DOLAN CONNLY, P.C.
The attorneys of DOLAN CONNLY, P.C. were founded in 2000. Because the firm is owned by veterans, it has an in-depth understanding of how the insurance industry evaluates claims.
Wrongful death attorneys can provide clients with clear, direct answers without the sales pitch or the run-around. Wrongful death cases at the firm often center around medical malpractice, motor vehicle accidents, and premises liability. This firm’s attorneys are well aware of how to handle claims related to medical malpractice, personal injury, and wrongful death.
In the quarter-century they have been a law firm, they have been victorious in verdicts and settlements in wrongful death cases that spanned millions of dollars. The attorneys know how adjusters assess wrongful death claims, which gives DOLAN CONNLY a distinct advantage. There is no case manager. No one to pass the buck to. Wrongful death at the firm is centered around medical malpractice claims.
Conclusion
Before hiring any wrongful death attorney in Boston, interview at least two candidates and ask each directly about their trial frequency, personal involvement in your case, documented results in fatal injury claims, medical expert networks, and written fee structures.
Compare their answers carefully. Wrongful death claims are legally complex, emotionally draining, and subject to strict Massachusetts statutes of limitations. The attorney you choose will affect not only the financial recovery for your family but also whether those responsible are held accountable. Take the time to make an informed decision—your family’s future depends on it.