Articles Tagged with Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

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Florida is one of the deadliest places in the U.S. to travel by foot. In a single recent year, there were more than 10,000 pedestrian accidents in Florida – 765 of those fatal. Palm Beach pedestrian accident lawyer

In a recent national analysis of pedestrian accidents by the Governors Highway Safety Commission, researchers reported that among pedestrians 16 or older killed in crashes involving a motor vehicle, nearly one-third of the pedestrians had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater. By comparison, 19% of pedestrian accident fatalities involved a driver who was drunk.

To be clear: Only one of those is against the law. As long as someone isn’t underage or disorderly, it’s not  illegal to walk in public while impaired. In fact, walking home (versus driving) is considered a smart choice for those who have been out imbibing.

It’s true that drunk pedestrians may be more prone to violating certain traffic safety rules. But their impairment alone is not evidence of negligence. Even if they did err, they’re unlikely to hurt anyone but themselves. That’s why drivers still bear the brunt of the responsibility. Even if pedestrians do make a make a misstep, that does not mean they cannot file a Florida pedestrian accident lawsuit (or that their survivors cannot file a wrongful death pedestrian lawsuit).

As our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers can explain, the impairment of a plaintiff pedestrian can be used by the defense as evidence of comparative fault in a lawsuit. However, it doesn’t absolve the driver of liability for their own negligence.

Unfortunately, the issue of comparative fault in Florida injury cases has become a much bigger sticking point in recent years, thanks to recent legislative changes. So if you are a pedestrian who was injured while impaired, it is important to hire a personal injury lawyer who knows the proof burden you’re facing — and how to effectively push back on those claims of comparative fault.

Changes in Florida’s Comparative Fault Law

Up until fairly recently, Florida was a pure comparative fault state with respect to negligence claims. Continue reading

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Most Palm Beach car accident injury claims do not go to trial. Palm Beach car accident lawyer

Of course, every case is different. If your Palm Beach car accident lawyer has taken the step of filing a personal injury lawsuit on your behalf, there’s always a chance it will wind up before a jury. But even then, it’s unlikely.

Most Florida car accident cases are actually resolved without the need for litigation (filing a lawsuit) at all. Hiring a South Florida personal injury lawyer doesn’t make the prospect of a lawsuit or trial any more likely. Actually, we may be able to minimize the chance of a courtroom confrontation because we’re adept at negotiating effectively with insurance companies to fight for fair outcomes for our clients. Often the sooner we are brought onto a car accident case, the better the odds we can resolve it without going to court.

Still, we approach every case as if that’s a possibility. From the very outset, we’re meticulous in our investigation, evidence-gathering, researching, interviewing eyewitnesses and consulting with expert witnesses. We’re never bluffing to insurers about our preparedness to escalate to the next level if necessary. But trial is not a common – or even preferable – outcome for most parties involved, usually. If we can settle car accident claims fairly without filing a lawsuit – and especially without going to trial – that’s typically our aim.

Why Palm Beach Car Accident Cases So Rarely Make it to Trial

Some of the reasons why your Palm Beach car accident case is unlikely to go before a judge and jury: Continue reading

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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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Every year, there are more than 33,000 violent crimes reported in Florida. (The actual number is probably higher, as some violent crimes – particularly sexual assaults – go unreported.) Only a fraction of these cases will be prosecuted in a criminal court. But that may not be the only avenue for survivors to seek justice. Some crime victims may have grounds to sue the property owner where the attack occurred. Palm Beach injury lawyer premises liability dangerous property breakin

At first blush, that notion might seem a bit nonsensical. After all, the only person who is “guilty” is the one who actually carried out the attack, right?

Yes and no.

As our Palm Beach injury lawyers can explain, it’s true that the only person(s) who will be held criminally responsible (i.e., “guilty”) for a criminal act are those who were directly involved. However, civil claim liability can extend beyond that individual. In fact, most civil claims that stem from a criminal attack are filed against third parties – very often the property owner where the incident occurred.

Liability in these cases stems not from the act itself, but from the failure to protect lawful guests from risks that were reasonably foreseeable by the property owner. This is particularly true if those lawful guests are invited onsite by the property owner for the purpose of financial benefit to the property owner. (Ex: A paying hotel guest would be a “public invitee” who would be owed the highest duty of care and protection by that hotel/property manager.) Continue reading

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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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“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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When it comes to defective or dangerous products – including cars and their parts – the State of Florida gives claimants 12 years from the delivery of the product to its first purchaser in which to file a claim for harm caused by that product.Palm Beach personal injury lawyer

That might sound like a lot of time, but consider that more than 1 in 5 cars and trucks driven in the U.S. are 16+ years-old. That means right now, if you’re driving a 2011 or older model car, it might be too late for any product liability claims – in Florida at least.

The one exception would be, as noted in 95.031(2)(b), if the manufacturer – through its officers, directors, partners, or managing agents had actual knowledge that the product was defective in the manner alleged by the claimant AND took affirmative steps to conceal this defect. Confidentiality of trade secrets don’t count. In those cases, the statute of limitations can be “tolled” – or paused – for the time period of the fraud/coverup.

As our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers can explain, this is an important exception particularly for those taking action against auto manufacturers because these companies have been collectively fined billions of dollars over the last decade for doing just that. General Motors was fined $900 million in 2015 for concealing dangerous car defects. Toyota was fined $1.3 billion for a deadly cover-up over two safety issues that led to unintended acceleration. Ten of the world’s biggest automakers were sued in 2015 for allegedly concealing the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning in some 5 million cars equipped with keyless ignitions, which ultimately led to 5 deaths. The list goes on – defective airbags, defective seat belts, defective doors, defective engines… And much of it covered up from the public and government regulators, sometimes for decades.

However, as a recent Florida car accident case over an allegedly defective seat belt showed, proving actual knowledge isn’t necessarily a cakewalk. It may come down to who exactly in the organization knew what – and when. 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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Anyone who’s ever filed a Florida personal injury lawsuit probably understands the unpredictability of life – and death – better than most. But what happens when the defendant in your pending personal injury lawsuit dies suddenly? In short, it will inevitably impact the case, but the claim doesn’t die with them. That said, there are certain steps you may need to take to preserve your claim.Florida personal injury lawsuit

Florida’s survival statute, F.S. 46.201, states that no cause of action (the reason for the lawsuit) dies with the person. Lawsuits can be initiated, prosecuted, and defended in the name of the person who has died. In other words, if the defendant in your Florida personal injury lawsuit dies while the case is pending, you can continue to pursue the claim against their estate. Further, if you have a valid cause of action but haven’t yet filed your lawsuit by the time the would-be defendant dies, can still pursue that case against the defendant’s estate – assuming the statute of limitations hasn’t expired.

What if the situation is reversed, and it’s the plaintiff who dies? Personal injury lawsuits aren’t extinguished because a plaintiff dies.  The decedent’s personal representative would have to take over the case. From there, the only thing that really changes is the type and amount of damages that can be recovered. For example, damages for future medical expenses, lost wages, and mental anguish are no longer on the table if the plaintiff is dead.

Additionally, per F.S. 733.104(1), if a potential plaintiff had grounds to file a civil injury lawsuit but died before they could do so, the personal representative of their estate can initiate the claim, so long as they do so either before the statute of limitations runs out OR within 12 months of the decedent’s death – whichever is longer. In some cases, because it can take months for a personal representative to even be appointed, personal injury claims can also be commenced by either a curator or an administrator ad litem. The absence of a known personal representative is not a valid excuse for not filing a timely motion to substitute.

All this said, our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers must stress that if any party to a lawsuit dies, it is imperative to take proper steps to preserve the claim. Continue reading

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As Palm Beach personal injury lawyers, our clients are those who have been impacted by the negligence or wrongdoing of others. However, we have occasionally heard of incredulous third-party defendants who wonder how they could possibly be held liable for someone else’s misdeeds. But there are quite a few instances in Florida injury law wherein statute allows for vicarious and third-party liability. Car accident cases may be among these. West Palm Beach injury lawyer

In general, there are three ways third parties can be liable for Florida car accidents:

  • Drunk driving accidents. In drunk driving accidents, third parties, such as bars or social hosts, can be held legally responsible per F.S. 768.125, if they either served alcohol to the impaired driver prior to the crash – knowing they were either under the age of 21 or habitually addicted to alcohol. This is called “dram shop liability.”
  • Employers of negligent drivers. If a tow truck driver is on the job and runs a red light, crashing into another car and causing serious injuries, the tow truck driver’s employer may be held liable – even if the company technically did nothing wrong. Employers can be held vicariously liable for the negligence of their employees if the workers were acting in the course and scope of employment at the time of the incident. This is based on a legal doctrine called respondeat superior, which is Latin for “let the master answer.”
  • Vehicle owners. This is where we sometimes hear the question, “Can I be sued in South Florida if someone else wrecks my car?” And the answer is: Yes. Florida is a little unique in this because of its recognition of the dangerous instrumentality doctrine. Basically, it was established in the 1920s by the Florida Supreme Court that motor vehicles are recognized as inherently dangerous instruments. As such, if you own one and you allow someone to use it (with express or implied permission) and that person goes on to operate it in a way that is negligent and causes harm to others, YOU can be held legally responsible. This is another example of vicarious liability for someone else’s negligence. However, it only applies if you have given that driver permission. If someone steals your car and then wrecks it, you would not be vicariously liable in that instance.

Sometimes, vehicle owners can be found directly negligent too – even if they weren’t operating the vehicle. As our Palm Beach personal injury lawyers can explain, there may also be grounds for negligence as well. Continue reading

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West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Toll Free: 877-425-2374Phone: 561-616-3000Fax: 561-688-0775

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