Florida Personal Injury Laws

Cruise Line Injury Claim

Cruise line claims are different than most negligence claims. In Florida we have a four-year statute of limitations on negligence claims. However, it’s very different when you’ve been injured while on a cruise. The ticket or your cruise contract– it actually is that. It is a contract and there is usually small print language on the back of your contract that requires you to bring your claim or file written notice of your claim with the cruise line, typically within six months of there being an accident. And then to file a lawsuit within one year of the accident which is obviously much different than having a four-year statute of limitations.

All too often in Florida people that have been injured on a cruise line will wait too long because they think they have four years to bring a claim when it’s just not the case. The cruise line ticket or contract applies and you must read that language. You must have family members look at the contract if you’ve been injured while on a cruise line because often times you will no longer have rights to bring a claim if you wait too long and that’s typically more than six months from the date the incident occurred.

Deadlines To Filing A Claim

There are very critical deadlines when it comes to filing suit after a big truck accident. In a death case, the statute of limitations runs two years from date of death. If it is a personal injury case in Florida, generally the statute is four years. However, there are certain time limits which may apply, which are different from that. For example, if it happens to be a big rig truck owned by the state of Florida or a governmental agency, there are certain notice requirements which have a three-year deadline, and it requires a totally different set of steps that need to be taken. The most important thing is you must have an attorney evaluate these deadlines.

If you live out-of-state and you’re involved in a Florida car accident, do you need a Florida attorney or do you need an attorney from your state?

The truth is you need an attorney who knows Florida law, an experienced Florida car accident attorney. I’m Mel Wright. I’m a partner at Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter. Call us at 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Mel Wright

The Amount Of Time To Get To Trail

In Florida a personal injury case generally takes anywhere from about 18 months to three years to get to trial from the date the accident happened. It sometimes can be shorter, sometimes can take a little longer, and it depends primarily on the Judge assigned to the case, the size of his or her docket, and other factors including the complexity of the case and any scheduling conflicts with the attorneys and the parties.

2 Types of Damages in Wrongful Death Lawsuit in Orlando

The Wrongful Death Lawsuit in the state of Florida has two basic types of damages: Economic Damages and Non-Economic Damages.

Economic Damages

Economic  Damages are those damages that we can put on the board – lost wages, funeral, medical bills, that type of thing.

Non- Economic Damages

Non-Economic Damages would be pain and suffering, impairment to the quality of life – things of an intangible nature. If you’ve lost a loved one due to a wrongful death, call Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter: 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Ron Gilbert

Who Can be Sued For Medical Malpractice in Florida?

A lot of clients come to us and ask us what types of doctors and nurses and x-ray techs can be sued for medical malpractice in Florida. The short answer is that all health care providers can be sued if they’re negligent and they hurt someone. There are different statutes that apply to different types of cases so it does get kind of complex, but the short answer is that in Florida, we do have a medical malpractice statute that covers all different health care providers. Some of them work in the hospital. Some of them work outside the hospital in private offices so we need to evaluate your case closely to see what type of health care providers were involved. Sometimes there’s doctors, nurses, and techs involved in the same case. If you have a question about that, call me, Nathan Carter at Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter at 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Nathan Carter

Collecting Damages For Injuries

Collecting damages for injuries in an accident case requires quite an impressive effort. It means getting an attorney who can go after those damages for you. It means pursing a defendant or the person legally responsible for causing those damages. In most accident cases, it is the insurance company of the other party which will be paying for the damages or paying an amount of money for the assessment of damages. In some instances, you may be going after a corporation, and it is the corporation itself paying those damages.

Motorcycle Accident Litigation in Orlando

In Florida, a lot of people like to get outside and ride motorcycles especially in the Summer or in the Spring. When the weather’s nice, we also have a lot of tourists who drive in Florida so that’s a bad combination. Over the years, we’ve handled a lot of cases involving motorcycles or hit by cars and vehicles and tourists. Usually the motorcyclist is hurt the worst in those cases, and a lot of times the motorcyclists and their families ask us if the person can still bring the case even if they weren’t wearing a helmet, and the answer is yes you can. You do not, by law, have to wear a helmet in Florida. The way they use it against you is by arguing that comparative fault is some of the fault is yours for not wearing a helmet, but you’re still allowed to bring the case, and you’re still allowed to recover if you were not at fault. If you have a question about a motorcycle accident case, call me, Nathan Carter at Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Nathan Carter

What is negligence?

A negligence is when the other driver is not operating their vehicle in a reasonably safe fashion and it causes the accident, that’s negligence. So if you were in a car accident, give me a call. I’m Ron Gilbert with Colling Gilbert Wright and Carter. 1-800-49-LEGAL.

By: Ron Gilbert