Mary Ellen O’Connor

Mary Ellen O’Connor brings an unmatched, battle-tested perspective to personal injury and motorcycle accident advocacy. As the founder and principal attorney of O’Connor Law PLLC, with offices in Larchmont and the Bronx, she has spent her career standing up for individuals sidelined by life-altering accidents, including motorcycle riders, motor vehicle drivers, and injured workers. When an injury takes someone off the road and out of work, Mary Ellen is the advocate they call.

What sets Mary Ellen apart is her insider knowledge of how the other side operates. Before founding her firm, she spent years as an insurance defense attorney, representing major insurance carriers in high-stakes personal injury litigation, including motor vehicle collisions, premises liability, trip-and-falls, and complex construction site accidents. She then transitioned in-house to defend workers’ compensation carriers before stepping away from insurance defense entirely to dedicate her career to injured individuals. Having spent years inside the insurance apparatus, she knows exactly how insurance companies evaluate, delay, and defend claims, and how to defeat their tactics.

Her journey to advocacy is deeply personal. Mary Ellen began her professional life as a K–2 teacher before earning her Juris Doctor from CUNY School of Law. While in law school, her husband suffered a severe workplace injury, leaving their family without income for nearly six months with three young children at home. She understands firsthand the fear, financial strain, and uncertainty that follow a devastating injury.

During her tenure as Of Counsel, Mary Ellen personally handled more than 100,000 hearings, appeals, and depositions, building extraordinary courtroom prowess. In 2009, she launched O’Connor Law PLLC on a clear commitment: injured people deserve a relentless advocate who knows the defense’s strategy, explains every step clearly, and never treats a case as routine. Building on her firm’s proven track record, she has expanded her practice to aggressively represent victims of motor vehicle, motorcycle, and serious personal injury accidents across New York.

A recognized leader in the legal community, Mary Ellen served as Chairperson of the Workers’ Compensation Alliance (2019–2023) and currently serves on its Board of Directors, as well as the Board of Directors of the Injured Workers Bar Association.

She is a sought-after faculty member for TRT CLE and regularly lectures on complex litigation and injury law for the New York State Bar Association, Westchester County Bar Association, and New Rochelle Bar Association.

Named a Super Lawyers honoree (2023–2026) and a Top Lawyer by Hudson Valley Magazine, Mary Ellen raised three children while attending law school—who have since gone on to careers as a firefighter, a nurse, and an accountant. Outside the legal arena, she remains actively involved in community and veteran support organizations.