Articles Tagged with injury lawyer West Palm Beach

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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Reckless drivers have caused damage and death on our roads as long as there have been motor vehicles. Although Palm Beach car accident lawyers can attest it had been getting safer in recent decades, we’re now in the midst of one of three historically huge spikes in U.S. traffic deaths. Palm Beach car accident lawyers Florida roads getting deadlier

As detailed in a recent analysis by The New York Times, the first uptick occurred early in the 20th century, when cities were first flooded with large numbers of new, unskilled drivers. The second occurred at the midcentury mark, with the unveiling of the freeway system and powerful vehicles that could go from 0 to 60 mph in mere seconds. Nearly 51,000 traffic deaths were reported in a single year in the 1960s, rivaling the number of U.S. soldiers killed in combat during the entirety of the Vietnam War.

From 1972 to 2011, traffic deaths started declining. Vehicles got safer. The government began requiring stronger roofs and doors. Seat belt laws were passed. Airbags became standard. Medical advances were made. Crashes that would have killed people in the 1960s now only result in a broken leg. Accountability for bad driving behavior, like DUIs and later cell phone use, got more stringent. Young drivers were required not only to pass driver’s education courses, but also to complete graduated driver’s license schedules before being granted a full license.

Bars, festivals, nightclubs, concerts and cruises are required to use reasonable care in ensuring the safety of patrons – particularly if they are serving substantial or unlimited quantities of alcohol – in order to prevent South Florida injuries and wrongful deaths.South Florida festival injury lawyer

According to The News-Herald, a man filed a Florida injury lawsuit recently alleges a no-limit alcohol policy for unlimited alcohol policies for VIP guests. Among the most dangerous practices: Offering unlimited amounts of “free” alcohol. This, plaintiff alleges, resulted in his falling off the balcony at a Panama City Beach business owner and sustaining serious injury.

Although there was railing on the multi-level platform, there was no railing on the stairs that flanked either side of it. When he was asked by a security employee to sit down on the step, he complied – but lost his balance ended up falling from the stairs, sustaining serious and permanent injury.

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