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Every DWI defense lawyer in New York City cross-examines breath-test results. Daniel McGuinness changed what they have to work with: in 2014 he won a freedom-of-information case before the First Appellate Division that pried loose the NYPD’s complete maintenance and calibration records for its breath-testing machines — records now available online to every defendant in the city. It is the rare DWI credential that benefits people who never hired him.
At a Glance
| Firm | Law Offices of Daniel A. McGuinness, PC |
| Principal Attorney | Daniel A. McGuinness |
| Office | Midtown Manhattan (ZIP 10016), blocks from Grand Central and Penn Station; a precise street address is not published in the sources consulted, a gap we disclose |
| Focus | Criminal defense with a substantial DWI concentration, paired with a civil rights practice in false arrest, malicious prosecution, and prison abuse |
| Education | New York University School of Law (J.D. 2006); admitted to the New York bar in 2008 |
| Memberships | National College for DUI Defense; New York State Bar |
| Fee Structure | Free consultation; 24/7 emergency assistance; fees described as reasonable in peer endorsements |
Career History
McGuinness graduated from New York University School of Law in 2006 and was admitted to practice in 2008. His practice history includes an earlier partnership — a 2015 client review references the firm of Permutter & McGuinness — before the practice continued under its current name. The firm’s own account of his DWI work is specific: a substantial portion of his criminal defense practice is focused on DWI defense, spanning trial work — including cases involving traffic accidents and breath results as high as .19 — and public-interest litigation, most notably the 2014 appellate FOIL victory over the NYPD’s Intoxilyzer maintenance records. On the civil rights side, his firm reports client recoveries in the millions in official-misconduct cases and a role in a landmark 2015 ruling.
Practice Concentration
The practice pairs two disciplines that sharpen each other, in a combination this category has seen once before: DWI and criminal defense on one track, and civil rights litigation — false arrest, malicious prosecution, prison abuse — on the other. The lawyer who sues the NYPD over unlawful arrests is unusually well equipped to attack the stop at the front of a DWI case; the lawyer who forced the NYPD’s breath-machine records into daylight is unusually well equipped to attack the number at the back of it. The firm handles the full DWI arc — suppression fights over reasonable suspicion and probable cause, blood-draw consent issues, breath-test reliability challenges, trial, and appeal — with a multi-attorney team and in-house investigators, from a Midtown office accessible from all five boroughs and the suburbs.
Track Record
The independently verifiable centerpiece is the 2014 First Appellate Division FOIL ruling on the NYPD’s breath-testing maintenance records — public-record litigation whose fruits are themselves now public. The firm’s trial claims — many DWI cases successfully defended at trial, including high-BAC and accident cases — and its civil-rights recoveries in the millions are the firm’s own reported figures, attributed as such; this research did not independently verify individual dispositions. The firm’s client materials also state that most clients get their case dismissed or charges significantly reduced, which is a marketing claim we report without adopting. Past results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome in any future case.
Client Voice
The aggregate review record stands at 4.7 stars across 29 reviews, with a smaller base of 3 on Avvo. One DWI client marveled at a dismissal without trial: “I think God sent them to me.” Recurring themes are constant communication and thoroughness, with clients noting the firm kept them informed at every step. Peer endorsements add texture — a fellow defense attorney praised his tenacity and command of criminal procedure while volunteering that his fees are quite reasonable, and an NYU Law classmate of fifteen years vouched for his strategy and dedication. One reviewed matter came through court assignment, indicating panel work alongside retained cases. This research did not surface a pattern of negative reviews or any public disciplinary findings.
Beyond the Courtroom
The breath-test records litigation is the firm’s signature public contribution — a private practitioner spending his own time to make the government’s machine-maintenance records public benefits the entire defense bar and every DWI defendant in the city, most of whom will never be his clients. The civil rights docket extends the same posture: holding official misconduct to account is community work conducted through litigation.
Recognition
McGuinness has been selected to Super Lawyers continuously from 2022 through 2026, with Criminal Defense: DUI/DWI and Civil Rights among his listed areas — a peer-influenced, research-driven selection by a commercial publication, categorized here as peer-informed recognition rather than certification. His National College for DUI Defense membership is a professional-association affiliation directly relevant to this category. The appellate FOIL victory is a matter of public record and outweighs both. A disclosure we apply to every New York profile: New York State does not operate a board certification program for legal specialties comparable to the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, so no New York attorney profile on this site will describe its subject as a state-certified specialist, and this profile attributes no certification to McGuinness.
New York Legal Backdrop
New York’s impaired-driving offenses are tiered under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1192: Driving While Ability Impaired by alcohol (§ 1192(1)) is a traffic infraction typically charged between .05 and .07 BAC; per se DWI (§ 1192(2)) begins at .08; Aggravated DWI (§ 1192(2-a)(a)) begins at .18. Leandra’s Law makes DWI with a child aged 15 or younger in the vehicle (§ 1192(2-a)(b)) a class E felony on a first offense, and VTL § 1198 mandates ignition interlock devices for misdemeanor and felony DWI convictions. A second DWI within ten years is a felony under § 1193, and a chemical-test refusal triggers a separate DMV hearing under § 1194 that can revoke a license for at least a year regardless of the criminal outcome. The reliability of the breath number at the center of most per se cases depends on machine maintenance and calibration — which is precisely why public access to those records, won in McGuinness’s 2014 litigation, matters to every defendant weighing whether to fight. None of this is legal advice; consult a licensed New York attorney about your situation.
Awesome Attorneys Assessment
The case for McGuinness is documented substance over volume: a verifiable appellate win that reshaped DWI evidence access citywide, genuine trial experience in hard fact patterns, NCDD affiliation, five consecutive Super Lawyers selections, and the DWI-plus-civil-rights pairing that concentrates exactly the suppression and evidentiary skills DWI cases turn on.
The honest trade-offs, stated plainly: the consumer review base is modest — 29 aggregate reviews, just 3 on Avvo — compared to the high-volume shops in this category, and the firm publishes no precise street address in the sources we consulted. Its claim that most clients see dismissal or significant reduction is unverifiable marketing language. And clients seeking a large-firm apparatus will find this a boutique, with the capacity profile that implies.
Methodology & Sourcing
This profile was researched and written independently by Awesome Attorneys in August 2026 without the participation, sponsorship, or payment of the Law Offices of Daniel A. McGuinness, PC. Primary sources: the firm’s website (newyorklegaldefense.com), including the attorney biography and DWI practice pages. Independent verification: National College for DUI Defense member profile (Manhattan 10016 location, DWI trial history including .19 BAC cases, the 2014 NYPD records litigation); Super Lawyers attorney and firm profiles (NYU Law 2006, 2008 admission, selections 2022–2026, DUI/DWI and Civil Rights practice listings); Avvo profile and reviews (including the earlier Permutter & McGuinness firm name and peer endorsements); TrustAnalytica aggregate review data (4.7 stars, 29 reviews). The absence of a published street address is disclosed in At a Glance. Statutes cited in the New York Legal Backdrop were verified against New York Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1192, 1193, 1194, and 1198.
Publisher Disclosure & Independence Notice
Awesome Attorneys is an independent legal-directory publisher. This profile was not paid for by the Law Offices of Daniel A. McGuinness, PC, and inclusion in our editorial coverage cannot be purchased. Our methodology and editorial standards are applied consistently across all firms we cover.