Fellows Hymowitz Rice, PLLC, a personal injury law firm based in New City, New York, is marking 45 years of representing people hurt in the Hudson Valley by rebuilding its website and publishing more plain-language information about injury rights. The firm said the effort is meant to help Rockland County residents understand their legal options before they contact a lawyer.
The firm has represented Rockland families since 1981 and handles truck accidents, serious car accident injuries, construction accidents, pedestrian accidents, wrongful death claims, dog bites, slip and fall injuries, trip and fall injuries, medical malpractice, and nursing home neglect from its main office on South Main Street in New City. It also has offices in the Bronx and White Plains.
The announcement matters because most people who call a personal injury lawyer have never needed one before, according to the firm. They are often dealing with medical bills, missed work and calls from insurance adjusters at the same time. The new marketing work is intended to answer initial questions in plain terms, in English and in Spanish, and to make it easier to reach a lawyer familiar with Rockland’s courts.
Managing partner Robert L. Fellows served as president of the Rockland County Bar Association from 2022 to 2024. He led the Rockland Center for the Arts as president from 2009 to 2016 and sat on the board of the Rockland Community Foundation from 2011 to 2019. In 2023, Fellows received the County of Rockland Distinguished Service Award and the first Hon. Harriet Cornell Award for Excellence. He and his wife, Arlene R. Rodgers, were named Philanthropists of the Year by the Rockland Development Council in 2019.
“We take the time to get to know our clients as people, beyond the facts of their cases,” Fellows said.
Each year, the firm funds scholarships for two Rockland Community College students and supports the Rockland Conservatory of Music, United Hospice of Rockland, Gay Pride Rockland and the Center for Safety and Change. After a fire forced residents out of the Nyack Plaza Apartments, the firm filed a lawsuit on behalf of displaced tenants. “These are wonderful people. These aren’t people that can be ignored,” Fellows told CBS New York in 2025.
Partners Steven R. Hymowitz and Matthew F. Rice handle cases alongside Fellows. All three partners were named 2026 Top Lawyers by Hudson Valley Magazine and have been selected to the Super Lawyers list several years running. Fellows, Hymowitz and Rice are all AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell, and Rice is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates forum.
“We keep the pressure on the insurance companies,” Hymowitz said. “We are determined and we never let up.”
The firm’s past results include an $8.365 million recovery for the family of a 17-year-old hurt in a crash on an icy stretch of the Van Wyck Expressway, $4.3 million for a medical malpractice action, a $2.5 million construction accident recovery, and a $2.25 million pedestrian accident recovery. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future case.
The firm offers free consultations and handles injury cases on a contingency fee basis. It also offers reduced retainer fees to police officers, firefighters, first responders and members of the military. Spanish-speaking staff are available, and a Spanish version of the website is at pilaw.com/es. More information about the firm is available at Fellows Hymowitz Rice, PLLC, and profiles of the partners are available at Robert L. Fellows, Steven R. Hymowitz and Matthew F. Rice.
