"Attorney for the injured."
ORIGIN OF ORLANDO & ASSOCIATES, P.C.
The Beginning
At age twenty-six, Joseph M. Orlando, sensing both opportunity and need, opened, together with Edward J. White, a law office on the top floor of the Blackburn Building at 2 Main Street in Gloucester, MA. Orlando, the son and grandson of fishermen, was born and raised in Gloucester, MA, America’s oldest seaport. He recognized that injured fishermen sorely needed representation. Indeed, his father, Michael P. Orlando, had been injured on a fishing boat and had received no compensation during his year-long recovery. This was a memory that was etched in Attorney Orlando’s consciousness, as he had been a young boy during that year when his family had struggled so badly. So, when it came time to strike out as partners to form their own firm, Orlando and White chose to do so in Gloucester.
Representing injured fishermen
On January 1, 1980, in their office overlooking the working waterfront of Gloucester, Orlando & White was born. They focused their practice in representing injured fishermen, longshoremen, harbor workers, and other mariners; as well as victims of land-based personal injury negligence, including car accidents, products liability, toxic torts and other related civil cases.
Orlando & White
Orlando, who was just 26 at the time, with a wife and 8 month old daughter, would sit in his office overlooking the Federal-style building across the street at One Western Avenue and muse that the stately home would be the perfect location for his fledgling law office.
One year later, in 1981, after winning the firm’s first substantial fee, Orlando & White purchased the Addison Gilbert Estate, now the Orlando & Associates flagship overlooking St. Peter’s Square. After extensive renovation, Orlando & White began operating in 1982 in the historic Gloucester building.
The firm continued to grow and in 1984, Orlando & White expanded and purchased a building near the historic New Bedford waterfront.
In 1986, when the two men decided to dissolve the partnership, Attorney Orlando retained the Gloucester office while Attorney White took over the New Bedford branch.
With that, Orlando & Associates was born.
EARLY SUCCESS (1980's)
Orlando Chooses to Side with Fishermem
From the beginning, Joe Orlando successfully, and nearly exclusively, represented victims of personal injury negligence at sea, prompting significant praise from local, regional and national news outlets.
Orlando drew national attention when he was featured in the New York Times, which heralded Joseph M. Orlando, Esq. as “the most prominent in a rising group of young maritime lawyers.”
In fact, the New York Times, in that article, dubbed Orlando, “Attorney for the Injured.” Orlando & White won some significant victories in the firm’s early days. The practice, which focused heavily on injured mariners, sought to advocate for these workers against powerful insurance companies which were accustomed to shortchanging these injured men. The emergence of a powerful voice in Gloucester on behalf of the fishermen did not go unnoticed.
EXPANSION (1990's-2000's)
Representing Victims of Land-based Injury
With its long history of representing injured marine workers, in the early 1990s, Orlando & Associates expanded its practice to other areas of personal injury civil litigation. The firm continued to meet success on behalf of injured Cape Ann residents, as well as those involved in business, contract, and insurance disputes, worker’s compensation claims, social security disability claims, and motor vehicle accidents.
Injured Woman Awarded $475,000
Gloucester Daily Times, June 1, 1991
Suit filed Against GHS Renovators
Gloucester Daily Times, July 9, 1999
In the early 1990s, Attorney Orlando sought to bridge his lifelong love of sports with his legal career. He began representing athletes seeking to sign professional contracts:
Sports Figures Hope to Win with Orlando
Gloucester Daily Times, January 23, 1992
Bates Signs With Pro Agent
Tucson, AZ Citizen, January 28, 1992
Firm Expands
To meet the needs of his ever-expanding business, Attorney Orlando expanded his practice into the third floor of the office building, and worked to hire staff which could handle the demanding case load. His assistant, Ruth Katsikas, worked at the firm from 1984-2020 and greatly contributed to the smooth running of this successful practice. Attorney Orlando found a great collaborator in Brian S. McCormick, Esq., who was hired as an associate at the firm in 1990 after graduating from New England School of Law. Brian is licensed in Massachusetts and practiced maritime and land-based personal injury law as well, but began specializing in workers compensation.
The collaboration between Attorneys Orlando and McCormick has led to several great successes.
Italian Gold Families win round in court
Gloucester Daily Times, July 20, 2001
Tall Tale Takes new Twist in Court
The Boston Globe, November 25, 2010
The law firm of Orlando & Associates now in its fourth decade, continues its tradition of excellent representation of its clients.
THE NEXT GENERATION
2nd Generation
Orlando & Associates moved into the next generation of the family business. The firm still employs the family matriarch, Connie (Russo) Orlando as the book keeper, and eldest child, Amanda Orlando as a law clerk and soon to be associate attorney.
In 2010, Joseph M. Orlando, Jr., Esq. graduated from Massachusetts School of Law and joined Orlando & Associates as an associate attorney. In 2018, Joe, Jr. was promoted to partner and took over the practice in 2021. Following a storied career as a college baseball player at Endicott College, where he was named All Conference player, and invited to tryouts with the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Indian organizations, he was spotlighted for his achievements.
Orlando, Jr. decided to follow in his father’s footsteps. In 2010, Joseph M. Orlando, Jr., Esq. graduated from Massachusetts School of Law and joined Orlando & Associates as an associate attorney. Orlando Sr., and Jr. collaborated on a motor vehicle accident case which was highlighted in the “Largest Verdicts and Settlements” section of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly in 2014. In addition, Orlando, Jr. has been recognized by his peers for seven consecutive years as a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers Magazine. In 2018, Joe, Jr. was promoted to partner and took over the practice in 2021.
2021- Present
In 2021, Orlando, Jr. assumed ownership of the practice and the firm has continued to meet with great success on behalf of its clients. Orlando, Jr.’s work was highlighted by syndicated television program, Justice in America: Insider Exclusive, a CBS affiliated program. His work has also been spotlighted several times by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly in their Judgment and Settlement Report section, as well as The Portland Press Herald and Gloucester Daily Times.
The family business grew in June of 2024 when Amanda Orlando(Orlando, Sr.’s eldest child and Orlando, Jr.’s sister), formerly the firm’s law clerk and office manager, was sworn in as an attorney in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, having graduated from Massachusetts School of Law in 2023, and successfully passing the bar examination for which she sat in February of 2024.