Kenneth Grundstein has been committed to the practice of law for over thirty (30) years and has had
a long and distinguished legal career. The majority of his career has been dedicated to serving the City
of New York. Prior to joining NAM (National Arbitration and Mediation) as a full-time Hearing Officer,
he was Senior Counsel and Chief Settlement Negotiator for the New York City Health and Hospital
Corporation, the largest municipal hospital and health care system in the country. Since joining NAM,
Mr. Grundstein has been voted one of the Top Ten Mediators in New York State by the New York Law
Journal Annual Reader Rankings Survey for the seven consecutive years (2010 – 2016). He was
named a National Law Journal 2016 Alternative Dispute Resolution Champion, in which only 48 ADR
Champions were selected nationwide. Mr. Grundstein was also named a Top Ten Arbitrator in the
state in the “Best Individual Arbitrator” category in the 2013 survey. Mr. Grundstein began his illustrious career with the Office of the Comptroller in NYC as Chief of
the Personal Injury Division. He supervised a staff of over fifty employees involved in investigating
and settling a variety of tort claims. During his tenure, Mr. Grundstein developed, implemented and
supervised an Early Settlement Program; a joint initiative between the Comptroller’s Office and the
New York City Law Department. Eight years later, Mr. Grundstein joined the New York City Law Department as a Senior Litigator. While there, he served as the chief settlement negotiator for all large exposure cases against the City,
including significant medical malpractice lawsuits brought against the Health and Hospitals Corporation.
Consequently, his transition to the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation as Senior Counsel/Chief
Settlement Negotiator was seamless. Mr. Grundstein supervised all litigation, trials and negotiations in
connection with high exposure professional liability claims against the HHC.
During this time, Mr. Grundstein successfully negotiated and settled over 10,000 cases, more than
1000 of which were well into the seven figure range, with some into eight figures. In his capacity as
Chief Settlement Negotiator, he reduced the backlog of pending cases by 50%. He handled not only
high exposure but also high profile cases, including medical malpractice, motor vehicle, police assaults,
premises liability, labor law, board of education, etc.; cases where damages included brain damage,
quadriplegia, loss of vision, loss of limb; wrongful death, zone of danger, property damage; the Staten
Island Ferry crash cases; in addition to a major medical malpractice case involving a local hospital’s
psychiatric program. As a result Kenneth Grundstein has established himself as an authority on negotiation
and settlement.
Mr. Grundstein also serves on NAM’s National Roster of Hearing Officers and is often selected to serve as a mediator and/or arbitrator
on several cases throughout the country. His expertise in complex negotiation coupled with his ability to digest some of the most
challenging case law and issues has proven to be effective in almost any jurisdiction.
Education
- New York University School of Law, LL.M. (1981)
- State University of New York at Buffalo, J.D. (1977)
- City College of New York, B.A. (1974)
Bar Admissions
- Admitted to practice in the State of New York
Industries
- Auto Accidents
- Negligence
- Education
- Personal Injury
- Insurance
- Premises Liability
- Labor Law
- Products Liability
- Maritime Law/Jones Act
- Professional Liability
- Medical Malpractice
- Torts