Harrison, David C.

Daniel R. Santola is a senior partner and co-founder of Powers & Santola, LLP. His practice is limited to the representation of catastrophically injured individuals, the field of law in which he has over 35 years experience. Born in Syracuse, NY, Dan received his undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Buffalo in 1971.

After graduating from Albany Law School, he was an assistant professor at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute School of Management in Troy, NY, until 1976, when he decided to concentrate his legal efforts in the field of personal injury law. Dan accepted an associate position with one of the Capital Region’s top trial lawyers and after five years became a partner in the firm of Bloomberg & Santola.

In 1987, he and longtime friend and colleague, John K. Powers, decided to form the firm of Powers & Santola, LLP, with a simple mission statement: To provide our clients with the best possible legal representation. This requires treating each case on an individual basis and developing the unique facts of each case, rather than processing a large number of claims.

In the pursuit of his goal, Dan has achieved several awards of distinction. He has consistently been named as one of the “Best Lawyers in America” and is listed by the American Trial Lawyers Association as one of the top 100 trial lawyers. He was named ”as Lawyer of the Year for 2012 for Medical Malpractice Law by Best Lawyers.  Dan has also been named in “New York’s Top Lawyers,” “Who’s Who in American Law,” “Who’s Who in America” and “Who’s Who in the World.”

Dan has spent more than 30 years teaching various topics within the field of personal injury law, covering subjects such as construction accidents, medical malpractice, trial tactics, evidence and products liability. He has lectured for the Office of Court Administration in its Continuing Legal Education programs for judges and court attorneys, the New York State Academy of Trial Lawyers, the New York Trial Lawyers Association, the New York State Bar Association, the Albany County Bar Association, the American Board Of Trial Advocates, the Capital District Trial Lawyers Association, Albany Law School, Albany Medical Center, Syracuse University Law School, and a number of other scholastic and professional institutions.

He was among the first trial lawyers to employ the use of technology in presenting personal injury cases to a jury, including video animation and computer graphics to demonstrate causes of accidents; SPECT scans to document and display brain injuries; and “Day in the Life” films to bring into the courtroom the everyday consequences of a permanent injury.

Dan has been at the forefront in the use of highly specialized experts such as placental pathologists, pediatric neuroradiologists and neonatologists to illustrate negligence in obstetrical malpractice cases; human factors engineers and biomechanics to demonstrate defective product designs; and physiatrists, vocational rehabilitationists and economists to calculate and document the full extent of losses caused by a devastating injury.
He has always been active in professional organizations and has served in numerous leadership roles. He is a past-president of the Capital Region Affiliate of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association, the Albany County Bar Association, The Capital District Trial Lawyers Association and the Albany Affiliate of the American Board of Trial Advocates. Dan also holds the rank of Dean of Continued Legal Education for the New York Academy of Trial Lawyers.  

Faculty Appointments : 

-Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY , School of Management ,

-Adjunct Professor, 1978 - 1980

-Associate Professor, 1976 - 1978

-Guest Lecturer, Syracuse University School of Law, 2005 - Present

-Guest Lecturer, Albany Law School, 2006 - Present

Daniel R. Santola

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