Meet Attorney Julian Sweet

Jay Sweet retired from Berman & Simmons in December 2019. For case inquiries, please contact us here.

Attorney Julian “Jay” Sweet earned a reputation as the preeminent attorney in Maine who represented plaintiffs in serious medical malpractice cases. His dominant record of trial victories, including two of the largest medical malpractice verdicts in Maine history, placed him among the very best lawyers in the nation. For more than three decades, Jay was one of the driving forces in building Berman & Simmons into the leading firm in Maine for personal injury and medical malpractice law.

From joining the firm in 1981 until his retirement, Jay successfully handled personal injury and wrongful death cases, as well as hundreds of medical malpractice cases―involving birth injuries, general surgery, orthopedics, neurosurgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and internal medicine. In 2001, he received a $9 million verdict in Cumberland County Superior Court, and in 2007, he received an $8 million verdict in Androscoggin County Superior Court. In both cases, Jay represented mothers whose babies suffered permanent disabilities because of negligence during labor.

These landmark cases served notice to powerful healthcare organizations, hospitals, and doctors: When they failed to meet the standards of care, Maine had a law firm with the talent, determination, and resources to hold them accountable. Over the past 20+ years, hospitals and healthcare facilities have put safeguards and specific changes in place in response to problems Jay and his colleagues identified. He recognized that as healthcare continues to move toward a profit orientation, the power of the medical establishment must be kept in check. When he took a case, he was fighting for those individual clients, and really for all consumers.

Before attending law school, Jay worked in the field of social services, fueled by a desire to help the poor and those less fortunate. He pursued a career in law to continue that mission. A native of Connecticut, Jay represented clients from across the state of Maine, and took particular pride in representing families from rural areas including Aroostook, Franklin, Piscataquis, Oxford, and Somerset counties.