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‘Pothole King’ lawyer leaves Brooklyn…

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‘Pothole King’ lawyer leaves Brooklyn Law School $12 million

March 16, 2026, 7:03 am CDT

Brooklyn Law School alumn Sheridan Albert left the school $12 million, the largest donation in the 124-year-old school’s history. (Photo courtesy Brooklyn Law School)

Brooklyn Law School received $12 million from the estate of alum Sheridan Albert, dubbed “the Pothole King,” the largest single donation in the 124-year-old school’s history.

Albert was a personal injury lawyer known for his role in launching the Big Apple Pothole and Sidewalk Protection Corp, which mapped thousands of hazardous streets and sidewalks in New York City and forced the city to repair dangerous conditions or face liability, a statement from the school states.

“If I fall and break a hip because I’ve tripped over a piece of sidewalk that is two or three inches higher than the surrounding sidewalk and that defect isn’t on the record with the city, my suit is out the window,” Albert had told the Chicago Tribune.

Albert entered Brooklyn Law School in 1941 but was drafted into the U.S. Army during World War II. After serving, he returned part-time and graduated in 1948, then earned a reputation as a Brooklyn-raised Court Street lawyer who practiced at Pokorny and Schrenzel and Schneider, Kleinick and Weitz. He died in 2000.

The donation will fund three endowed professorships.