Articles Posted in Personal Injury

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Unintentional injuries are the leading cause of death in Florida, and the Sunshine State has an unintentional injury rate that’s 13% higher than the national average according to the Florida Department of Health. Top causes include car accidents, falls (particularly among older folks), pedestrian accidents, bicycle accidents, and violence. Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

But as far as whether such injuries are grounds to take legal action, such as filing a Palm Beach personal injury claim, there’s a lot of factors that must be considered. In our experience as longtime Palm Beach injury attorneys, there are major misconceptions about when someone can file a lawsuit, how easy it’s going to be, how much they’re going to win (if they win), how fast it will happen, and what sort of stakes personal injury lawyers have in all of it.

So here, we’re busting the top Palm Beach personal injury claim myths we hear most frequently as plaintiff attorneys in South Florida civil tort cases.

Myth No. 1 – I was seriously hurt, so I can sue.

Just because you were hurt does not mean you automatically have grounds for a personal injury claim. First, we have to establish that someone else was at fault in causing that injury, and second that they owed you a duty to use greater care or do things differently. A person injured in a car accident can only sue if the other person was negligent in causing that crash or exacerbating their injuries. And thanks to recent updates to Florida statutes, an injured plaintiff can only collect financially if they can prove they weren’t more than half responsible for their own injuries. T

They also need to make sure there’s actually money to collect. If there’s no insurance coverage and the at-fault person doesn’t personally have substantial assets, you may not have a viable claim.

Another point worth making here is that not every case requires a lawsuit. It is very possible (common, even) to successfully collect fair financial damages without ever setting foot in a courtroom. The key to ensuring what you collect is fair is consulting with a skilled personal injury lawyer. Continue reading

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Trying to figure out how much your Florida personal injury lawsuit may be worth? It’s typically one of the first questions West Palm Beach injury lawyers are asked. Many factors are weighed in the answers we give, and one of those is the possibility of damage caps. West Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

“Damages” is legalese for the amount of money paid to someone who has been wronged by another. A damage “cap” is a cutoff, the maximum amount a person can receive for certain types of damages. There are two main types of damages in Florida personal injury cases: Compensatory and punitive. Compensatory damages are paid to compensate an individual for their losses. (Within compensatory damages, there are economic damages, which are actual financial losses like medical bills, lost wages, etc., and then there are non-economic damages, which are for non-tangible impacts like pain and suffering and mental anguish.) Punitive damages are paid to punish the wrongdoer for especially egregious conduct.

Generally speaking, Florida doesn’t impose damage caps on economic damages, but does for punitive damages and some types of non-economic damages. However, this assertion comes with a few caveats. Certain types of claims against certain defendants may be subject to caps on economic damages as well. With some claims, non-economic damages aren’t even considered — and punitive damages are usually a long-shot.

Working with an experienced West Palm Beach injury lawyer can help ensure you receive the maximum among of fair compensation allowable under Florida law.

Non-Economic Damages in Car Accident PIP Claims

When it comes to auto insurance, Florida is a no-fault state. That doesn’t mean you can’t sue a driver who caused a crash that resulted in serious injuries. You can – often collecting both economic and non-economic damages (though rarely punitive damages, unless it was a DUI case). But it does mean most injured drivers/passengers are first going to have to file a claim with their own personal injury protection (PIP) insurer.

Per F.S. 627.736, PIP provides coverage for a portion of your economic damages – namely medical bills and lost wages – up to $10,000. It also offers up to $5,000 in death benefits. However, it does not cover non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering and emotional distress. (Injured motorcyclists won’t have access to PIP coverage at all.)

Damage Caps on Tort Claims Against Government Defendants

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In West Palm Beach personal injury cases, there is strong incentive for both sides to settle things out-of-court. Trials are expensive, time-consuming, and often emotionally-wrought. Florida statute also provides strong incentive: If either side rejects a reasonable settlement offer and the end result at trial is a judgment ends up being fairly close to that amount, the party who rejected the offer can be compelled to pay the other side’s attorney fees.personal injury lawyer West Palm Beach

As the plaintiff, even if you win, an order to pay the defense’s attorney fees can significantly cut into the amount of compensation you ultimately receive. So the question becomes: How do I know if a settlement offer is reasonable?

The best way to have high confidence is to hire an experienced West Palm Beach injury lawyer with a track record of success in cases similar to yours. They are going to instinctively have a strong sense of what your case is worth — and how to properly verify the figure they’re thinking of.

As skilled Palm Beach injury lawyers, we have a number of specific methods we employ to help us pinpoint that number.

Consider Economic Factors

You’ve heard the saying, “time is money.” That is one of the most compelling arguments for avoiding trial in a personal injury case. Sometimes they’re necessary – but they’ll almost always cost more.

The longer a case drags on:

  • The more work there is for attorneys, which translates to higher attorney fees for both sides.
  • The less the same amount of money is worth, thanks to inflation.
  • The more time the plaintiff will lose at work or spend traveling for court dates, depositions, etc.

Settling sooner rather than later is usually in your best interests – but only if the settlement offer is fair. It’s not uncommon for insurers to lowball plaintiffs. It’s important to have an experienced attorney who can help you decipher whether an offer is fair or not.

Retaining a Valuation Expert

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If you’re a plaintiff in a Florida injury lawsuit, particularly one that’s on track to trial, it’s likely at some point you’ll need to undergo a deposition. It can be an intimidating prospect, but a skilled West Palm Beach injury lawyer can help ensure you are fully prepared. woman yellow shirt blue background swearing in at West Palm Beach injury lawsuit deposition

A deposition is a sworn statement given outside of a courtroom, but still under oath. They’re transcribed by a court reporter, and these days often video recorded. Sometimes, depositions can be done remotely. This isn’t generally the preferred method unless there are special circumstances (i.e., the witness lives far away). However, it is one that has become increasingly more common since COVID had virtually everyone on virtual video conferencing apps.

What is the Point of a Deposition?

In tort cases, depositions can prove pivotal in gathering information and evidence that will be key to the case. In general, both sides are going to leverage the deposition to question witnesses and:

  • Establish the events that led to the injury.
  • Detail the medical treatment plaintiff received as a result of the injury.
  • Delve into the impact the injury has had on plaintiff’s ability to work, personal relationships, and overall quality of life.
  • Identify inconsistencies in testimony.
  • Glean information from expert witnesses (if there are any) about their analysis, processes, and conclusions.

When a plaintiff undergoes a deposition, they should know that defense lawyers are likely looking for any statements that might:

  • Indicate you share part of the blame for what happened.
  • Implicate a pre-existing condition as the primary cause of your injuries.
  • Show your injuries aren’t as severe as you claim.
  • Reveal life hasn’t been as significantly impacted as you claim.
  • Uncover that you have not been fully truthful or consistent in your claims.

All of this can make a plaintiff feel very much “on the offensive.” It’s easy to get flustered, get loud, misspeak, etc. But when you know this is coming, you can better maintain your composure and complete the deposition without damaging your case.

Top Mistakes People Make in Personal Injury Case Depositions

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Anyone who has ever sought the services of a South Florida personal injury lawyer – whether for a car accident, slip-and-fall, or medical malpractice – has likely seen or heard the phrase “free initial consultation” in attorney marketing materials. But what exactly is a personal injury lawyer free consultation? Is it really free? Are you agreeing to hire that attorney by booking this consult?South Florida personal injury lawyer free consultation

As our South Florida personal injury lawyers can explain, a free initial consultation is something like a first date – except neither party picks up the tab because there isn’t one. (Initial consultations really are free.) But you can think of them as an opportunity to gather insight regarding the viability and potential value of your case, clarify your goals, get a sense of how the process will work, and determine whether the attorney you’re meeting is someone with whom you can develop a rapport, trust, and general ease.

Here, we offer a deeper dive into what these sessions are – and are not – and how you can come best prepared.

What Are the Obligations in a Personal Injury Lawyer Free Consultation?

Just as there’s no guarantee of a second date after the first, there’s no obligation for you to hire an attorney with whom you meet for a free initial consultation. In fact, it’s generally expected that you’ll meet with more than one personal injury lawyer before deciding which one to hire. Arranging several consultations will also provide you with a more well-rounded view of the key points in your case and what you might expect.

But just as you have no obligation to hire the attorney, the attorney has no obligation to take your case. They may provide you with information, and then regrettably inform you they won’t be taking your case. This usually happens if the attorney feels it’s not a case they can win, either because it isn’t strong enough or they don’t have the depth of skill, experiences, or resources to take it on. Because Florida personal injury lawyers accept cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning they aren’t paid unless their client wins, they are inclined to be selective.

Meeting with an attorney also doesn’t mean you’re obligated to file a lawsuit. In fact, many personal injury claims can be resolved through negotiation before it ever gets to the point of filing a lawsuit.

How Should I Prepare for This Consultation?

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Damages in Florida personal injury actions are awarded with the intent of compensating plaintiffs monetarily for their losses. As our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers know, damages that first come to mind are things like medical expenses, loss of income, loss of earning capacity, and pain and suffering. But beyond the physical pain one has endured, there’s also the emotional response to that pain, which often includes the reasonable withdrawal from meaningful activities and relationships a person once enjoyed. This is what we refer to as “loss of enjoyment of life.”

Some jurisdictions include “loss of enjoyment of life” as part of the pain and suffering damage award, while others consider it a separate category of damages all its own.man in wheelchair in bedroom with wife suing for loss of enjoyment of life Florida Florida considers loss of enjoyment of life to be its own separate category of damages.

Let’s say that prior to a Palm Beach car accident, the plaintiff (injured person) was active in going to the gym, participating in recreational sports, volunteering with a local charity, and engaging in a satisfying physical relationship with their spouse. After the crash, they’re no longer able to enjoy any of those things, at least not in the same way as they once did. That’s loss of enjoyment of life.

The person would have been able to lead a normal lifestyle had it not been for the injury, but now they can’t. For this deprivation – in the past as well as what will be experienced in the future – plaintiffs can seek damages for loss of enjoyment of life.

As noted in Florida Civil Jury Instructions 501.2, there’s no exact standard for measuring such damage. It must, however, be “fair and just in the light of the evidence.” Non-economic damages such as loss of enjoyment of life are typically only awarded in Florida when one can prove that their injuries were serious and usually permanent.

The types of injuries that can impair your ability to enjoy life may include:

  • Traumatic brain injuries
  • Spinal cord injuries
  • Soft tissue injuries
  • Injuries resulting in chronic pain
  • Loss of sight or hearing
  • Severe scarring or disfigurement

Examples of Loss of Enjoyment of Life

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In a Florida criminal case, if you intentionally destroy/tamper with evidence, it can be a third-degree felony. But what if it’s a civil case? Palm Beach injury lawyer evidence

Anyone who files a Palm Beach injury lawsuit will soon come to understand the pivotal role of evidence. A fact can be 100 percent true, but virtually meaningless without concrete proof. More weight will always be given to assertions supported by strong evidence, as opposed to one side’s word versus another’s.

If evidence central to a civil case is destroyed, it’s called spoliation, and it doesn’t even have to be intentional for the court to impose sanctions. As for the exact penalty, the consequences depend on:

  • Who had control of the evidence.
  • Whether the possessor/controller was a party to the civil case and in some way benefited from its loss.
  • The extent to which the loss of that evidence prejudiced the other side in its ability to prove/disprove pivotal facts.
  • If the person/organization was a non-party to the case, whether they owed the duty – by contract, statute, or timely-served preservation/discovery request – to preserve the evidence.

Since the 1980s, Florida courts have repeatedly held that when physical evidence is lost, misplaced, destroyed, or otherwise made not available AND it fundamentally prejudices the other side’s chance to pursue/defend a claim, courts have the authority (and broad discretion) to impose sanctions. These can include:

  • The legal presumption that key facts pertaining to that evidence would have benefitted the other side.
  • Dismissal of the claim (when the plaintiff is the spoliator).
  • Granting default judgment in favor of the party prejudiced by the loss of that evidence.

Types of Spoliation in Palm Beach Injury Lawsuits

There are two basic types of spoliation: First-party and third-party. Continue reading

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The vast majority of successful Palm Beach personal injury cases end in a settlement, as opposed to a trial. Trials are time-consuming, expensive, and sometimes traumatic for plaintiffs and their loved ones. But how are these settlements actually paid out? personal injury settlement Florida

Let’s start with the fact that if you hire an experienced injury attorney, you might not even need to file a lawsuit. Settlements can be reached by mutual agreement at any time – whether there’s a lawsuit or not.

Let the Negotiations Begin

You will probably need to submit a claim to the other party, but that’s not the same as a formal lawsuit. Skilled attorneys can sometimes negotiate favorable pretrial settlements within just a few weeks – possibly even days – without every stepping foot in a courtroom.

If those negotiations are failing and the defendant is refusing to pay you fair compensation, then it’s time to file a lawsuit. Under Florida’s new statute of limitations outlined in F.S. 95.11, you have a 2-year deadline in which to file your case. (Up until this March, it was 4 years.)

That said, settlement negotiations can continue all the way up to trial – and even at any point prior to a verdict. Ideally though, they’ll conclude sooner than later and in your favor.

Although the Palm Beach personal injury claim is technically against the individual who was allegedly negligent in causing the harm, negotiations typically involve insurance companies and their attorneys. That’s because it’s probably ultimately going to be the insurer who pays out the claim.

But even once you reach a settlement, the insurer isn’t automatically going to just cut you a check. The insurer is going to want to protect themselves and their client from any future claims of liability. Before paying up, the insurer will want you to sign a final release. It’s really important that you read over the terms of this release before signing anything. These documents can contain language that can come back to haunt you – particularly if you have latent injuries OR there are other defendants from whom you might still be seeking accountability. The final release stipulates that you forever waive your right to pursue this case in exchange for the agreed-upon payout. It’s not uncommon for these releases to include language that you agree to forfeit your right to make future claims for this incident against any party. If there are other defendants with cases still pending, you really must be careful about this.

Liens & Bills to Be Paid

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“How much is my Florida injury case worth?”Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

It is probably one of the top three questions our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers get asked right off the bat – and it’s not always a simple thing to answer.

As experienced civil trial lawyers, we can typically provide a general ballpark estimate of case value based on certain elements we’ll want to explore as soon as we start investigating. That said, it’s only an estimate, and there’s a lot of room for that figure to fluctuate higher or lower depending on what’s revealed during the discovery phase.

But here are some of the basic aspects we investigate before giving a cursory answer to that question: Continue reading

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Major changes to state law are going to significantly impact Florida personal injury lawsuit claimants – most of them adversely. Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

Among the provisions in the new law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on March 24, 2023:

  • A shortened statute of limitations in personal injury cases, from four years to file down to two years.
  • A less favorable comparative fault standard, going from a pure comparative fault standard to one that includes a 51 percent bar.
  • Elimination of bad faith insurers’ duty to pay plaintiff attorneys’ fees except in very limited circumstances.
  • Significant reductions in damage awards for defendants in negligent security actions.

For all the accusations of “slick trial lawyers” and “frivolous lawsuits” that were used to justify these actions, the reality is that it’s never been a simple thing to file – or succeed – in a Florida personal injury lawsuit. Not to say it’s impossible, but it does require a fact pattern with strong evidence that supports a conclusion of the defendant’s liability. These provisions were heralded as helping Florida rise above the “judicial hellhole” that it had become. But the reality is it’s going to make it harder for people with legitimate claims to file, win, and collect the full scope of damages to which they’re entitled. It’s certainly a boon for the insurance companies, though.

With respect to the shortened statute of limitations, this is problematic for a few reasons. One is that while four years seems like a long time, complex personal injury lawsuits take a lot of time to thoroughly investigate. Furthermore, one of the reasons for a four-year limit is that settlement negotiations (the way 95 percent of personal injury cases are resolved) can go back and forth for many months or even years. By shortening the statute of limitations, we’re likely to see a glut of personal injury lawsuits filed (within a court system that’s already overwhelmed) so that plaintiffs can ensure their claim is preserved. Settlement negotiations can still continue after a lawsuit is filed (up to and even well into the trial) – but a shorter statute of limitations means more plaintiffs will pursue litigation just so that they don’t lose the option if too much time passes.

Next up is the altered comparative fault standard. This is a big one, and it’s going to impact most personal injury plaintiffs in a negative way. Continue reading

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