Florida Personal Injury Laws

Workers Compensation Immunity

Typically in Florida employers have what we call workers’ compensation immunity, meaning that you cannot sue them if you’ve been injured at the workplace or on the job, but that only applies if your employer carries workers’ compensation coverage for you.

So if you’re injured at the workplace, or on the job, or at a construction site and you do not have workers’ compensation benefits that provide you medical treatment or loss of wages, it’s imperative that you contact a reputable law firm to assess whether or not you have a viable claim against your employer for that injury that you’ve suffered on the job.

What is My Medical Malpractice Claim in Orlando Worth?

A lot of people call us or when they first meet with us they ask us, “What is my medical malpractice case worth?” To be honest, we really don’t know when we first meet with clients. I think some lawyers will tell you your case is worth X or worth Y, but if they’re being honest with you, they don’t really know early on what the case is worth.  A lot of times, once we take a case and start working on it we get a much better idea what the case is worth. Once we evaluate the damages, once we see all the records, once we talk to our experts. So to be honest, at the front end of a case, we never really know what it’s worth. We get to know that as we proceed with the case.  If you have a question about what your case is worth, call me, Nathan Carter at Calling, Gilbert, Wright, and Carter at 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Nathan Carter

Suing The Driver As A Passenger

If you were hurt while riding as a passenger in a car, that was involved in a car accident, you may have a basis to sue the driver of the car that you’re riding in, but only if the driver was negligent, and that negligence cause or contributed to the accident. You may also have a basis to pursue a claim against the driver of any car involved in the accident to the extent that that other driver’s negligence cause or contributed to the accident.

Am I at Risk If I File a Lawsuit in Orlando

A lot of clients that I meet with have the same concern. A lot of them are concerned if there’s a risk to them to bring a lawsuit. The short answer to that is, there’s some risk, but we fight hard to minimize those risks. For instance, we advance all the litigation costs in a typical case. If we’re not able to succeed or win the case, the client does not owe us any money. Another thing clients worry about is, if it costs money to meet with the lawyer to just talk about their case, and it does not. We offer free consultations on any type of case. So, there’s no harm or risk to you to come in, to sit with us, to talk about the case, and discuss your options. We’ll give you honest advise on whether you have a case, and what the chances of success are in that case. So if you have a question like that, feel free to call us. Nathan Carter at Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter, 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Nathan Carter

Construction Site Injury

It depends on the situation, but if you’ve been injured on a construction site or at the workplace you want to contact an attorney to first assess whether or not you have a viable worker’s compensation claim. Oftentimes if you do not have worker’s compensation insurance, or if you’re injured on a construction site and there was reckless or willful conduct on the part of the employer, you may have a viable third party negligence claim against your employer.

Oftentimes, however, individuals injured on a construction site they just think that they do not have a case and they never contact an attorney until it’s too late and the statute of limitations has already been expired. But if you’ve suffered a catastrophic workplace injury – especially on a construction site – you want to talk to a reputable law firm to assess whether or not you have a viable case against your employer.

Alternatives To Court

Absolutely, there are. Typically in Florida, a trial is a last resort. In fact, most cases do not go to trial. In Florida, we have mandatory mediation which is an alternative dispute resolution process where no matter what, before your case ever goes to trial in front of a jury or a judge, you’re required to go to an informal mediation in an attempt for both sides to come together and resolve a case or settle a case. So, there are alternatives to going to trial in a case. Also, there are alternatives to filing a lawsuit in a case because oftentimes, before a lawsuit is ever filed, a claim can be handled and settled amicably between both parties where a case can be resolved without there ever being a lawsuit or without there ever being a trial.

Factors To Valuing A Personal Injury

Determining what your personal injury case is worth is probably the most difficult task that any attorney has in the course of your case because there’s no easy answer, and the answer to the question often varies greatly from the beginning of the case to the end. It sometimes changes from time to time with additional information that’s obtained through the discovery process. The value of your case depends on a number of factors, including the nature of the accident, the nature and severity of your injuries or damages, and any available insurance coverage that applies to the case. The most important thing to keep in mind is that you should maintain regular contact with your attorney who can answer candidly his or her assessment regarding the value of the case, which helps you decide at every step of the way whether it makes sense to settle your case with the other side, or to continue pursuing your case towards trial.

Partial Fault, Catastrophic Injury

Yes we can, but that should not dissuade you from contacting an attorney or a law firm. In Florida we are fortunate because we have Pure Comparative Fault. All too often individuals who are involved in a catastrophic injury accident will just decide, “Well I think I was partially at fault so I have no case and therefore I should not contact an attorney.” You don’t want to think that way.

As I mentioned, in Florida we have pure comparative fault. What that means is even if you have been partially at fault – if someone else has been also partially at fault – you can still recover for your percentage of your damages and injuries, even if you are determined to be partially or even mostly at fault. Your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault.

Defective Product Injury Claim

If you’ve been injured by a product, it may very well be that the product had either a design defect or a manufacturing defect, which are two variations of product liability or product defect law. A design defect means that the product was designed in such a way that it was unreasonably dangerous and maybe could have been designed more safely. A manufacturing defect means that the product, although it may have been designed appropriately, suffered from a defect at some point during the manufacturing process. Either way, if the defect caused an injury, you may have a basis for the claim.

The best way to determine whether or not the product may be defective is to contact an experienced product liability attorney, who generally is going to be able to research and provide information with respect to any recalls or other lawsuits or litigation involving the same or similar products.