Gunning & LaFazia, Inc.

What Gunning & LaFazia, Inc. does

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc. is a civil litigation law firm founded in 1954 and headquartered in Warwick, Rhode Island. The firm specializes in insurance defense litigation, serving insurance companies and their insureds throughout Rhode Island and Massachusetts in state and federal courts. Its practice extends to commercial litigation, premises liability, products liability, medical malpractice defense, employment discrimination, and appellate work. The firm is staffed by four attorneys: Partner Rajaram Suryanarayan (joined 2002), Associate Andrew W. Plocica, and attorneys Michael B. Messore IV and Emily E. Hogan.

The firm operates on a professional services billing model, charging clients on hourly or fixed-fee arrangements for civil defense matters. Customer acquisition is sales-led and referral-driven, with prospective clients reaching out directly via phone, email, or the firm's website contact form. The firm maintains no proprietary technology platform; its operations are supported by standard website infrastructure hosted through Internet Brands/FindLaw. There is no AI/ML capability, no API, no integrations, and no software product — the firm is a pure legal services provider.

Founded by William Gunning and Raymond LaFazia, both deans of the Rhode Island defense bar, the firm has cultivated a 70+ year regional reputation. Multiple attorneys hold AV Preeminent ratings from Martindale-Hubbell, Super Lawyers designations, and recognition from America's Top 100 Civil Defense Litigators. The firm is a closely-held private corporation with no disclosed funding, no parent company, no M&A activity, and no known institutional investors. It operates as a single-office practice serving the RI/MA legal market with no disclosed expansion plans, no new practice area launches, and no technology-driven growth strategy.

Name

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc.

Legal name

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc.

Website

https://gunninglafazia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1954

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc. is a civil litigation law firm founded in 1954 in Warwick, Rhode Island, specializing in insurance defense and related civil defense matters for insurance carriers, businesses, and insureds across Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Litigation Defense / Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Personal Injury & Insurance Defense (BPAHAAAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Medical Malpractice Liability (FSAJADAK), Commercial General Liability (CGL) (FSAJADAA)

Keywords

• Civil litigation defense
• Insurance defense
• Medical malpractice defense
• Premises liability defense
• Products liability defense

Headquarters

HQ city

Warwick

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Legal Services Billing: Professional services billed on an hourly or fixed-fee basis for civil litigation defense services, including insurance defense, medical malpractice, premises liability, and products liability cases.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc. is a civil litigation defense law firm that provides legal representation primarily to insurance companies and their insureds, as well as business entities, in matters such as insurance defense, medical malpractice, premises liability, products liability, commercial litigation, and appellate practice across Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The firm delivers services through a team of attorneys handling cases from initial investigation through trial and appeal in both state and federal courts.

Product overview

Gunning & LaFazia, Inc. is a civil litigation law firm founded in 1954, offering a unified suite of legal defense services centered on insurance defense litigation. The firm's service portfolio includes Insurance Defense Litigation Services as its primary offering, complemented by Civil Litigation Services, Commercial Litigation, Alternative Dispute Resolution (mediation/arbitration), Premises Liability Defense, Products Liability Defense, Medical Malpractice Defense, and Appellate Practice. These services are delivered through a team of four attorneys handling cases in Rhode Island and Massachusetts state and federal courts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Hundreds of cases tried in state and federal courts since founding

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Internet BrandsminorOthersInternet Brands provides website hosting and marketing technology services for the firm's online presence, including data collection as part of marketing efforts.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Clyde & Co US LLP: Global insurance and reinsurance-focused law firm with a large U.S. insurance defense practice. Directly comparable on insurance defense panel work but with international carrier relationships and substantially more resources than G&L.
• Cozen O'Connor: Full-service Am Law firm with a significant insurance defense and commercial litigation practice. Competes for the same carrier panel work as G&L on multi-line insurance defense matters, but at much broader scale and geographic reach.
• Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin: National insurance defense firm with offices across the U.S., including New England. Overlaps directly with G&L's insurance defense, premises liability, products liability, and medical malpractice defense practices, but operates at far broader scale and geographic scope.

Direct peers

• Rivkin Radler LLP: New York/New Jersey insurance defense boutique with a similar carrier-panel model and trial-focused practice across general liability, premises liability, and products liability. Comparable mid-size defense-firm profile serving insurance carrier clients.
• Morrison Mahoney LLP: Boston-headquartered insurance defense firm with a substantial New England presence. Directly comparable as an insurance defense boutique with a similar carrier-panel business model and trial-focused practice, though materially larger.
• White and Williams LLP: Philadelphia-based insurance defense and commercial litigation firm. Similar boutique-to-mid-size scale with overlapping practice areas including premises liability, products liability, and commercial litigation defense.
• Mendes & Mount: New York insurance defense boutique with deep carrier relationships. Comparable in size, scope of insurance defense practice, and panel-based business model serving major property & casualty carriers.

Regional players

• Barton Gilman LLP: Providence, Rhode Island-based law firm with regional New England offices and a litigation practice. Competes in overlapping state/federal court matters with similar scale and RI/MA geographic concentration.
• Hinckley Allen: Providence, Rhode Island-headquartered law firm with offices across New England, including litigation and insurance-related practices. Comparable New England regional platform serving RI/MA legal markets.
• Pierce Atwood LLP: New England-based full-service law firm with offices in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Competes in overlapping state/federal court matters and serves some of the same carrier clients in the RI/MA market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gunning & LaFazia, Inc.