Florida Personal Injury Laws

Boating Accident Claim

An important consideration for most everybody considering pursuing a boating accident claim, is how much is it going to cost to hire an attorney to do so. Most attorneys will evaluate your case free of charge. They’ll meet with you or speak with you over the phone, get the initial information, try to determine how the accident happened, how you were injured, what the basis of your claim is, and will assess for you, for no charge, whether or not you have a viable claim. If you do have a claim to move forward, then the attorney will talk to you further about the fees and costs involved in pursuing your claim beyond that.

Length Of A Trucking Accident Case

There’s no weighth to tell you with any exactness how long an 18-wheeler big rig trucking wreck case is going to last. It totally depends on judge, and ExPro witnesses, and the litigation process, on what state you’re in, and whether it’s state or federal court. But in general a case – if suit is filed and there’s going to be litigation and then a trial – it is going to be likely a two to three-year ordeal. And I’m factoring in that there could be an appeal. Be very careful about listening to some lawyer who says, “I’m going to be able to do your case in just a few months.” That is generally not a true statement. For these cases to be handled correctly it takes time and if they get in to litigation it is definitely going to take usually a two or three-year period.

Pure Comparative Negligence

We’re fortunate in Florida because we have what we call Pure Comparative Negligence. In many other states if a person is injured by an at-fault driver, but that person himself or herself is also determined to be partially at fault, that person could be completely barred from recovery. Florida being a Pure Comparative Negligence state – your negligence, or your partial negligence, is compared to the negligence of the other party and even if you’re determined to be mostly at-fault you can still recover your damages, but your damages are reduced in Florida by the percentage of fault that is assigned to you.

Value Of A Case

Most clients or most consumers always want to know how much their case is worth, but most lawyers will tell you that they don’t know what your case is worth. There’s two values to your case: the amount that an insurance company is voluntarily willing to pay to settle your case, or the amount that a jury will later tell you your case is worth after hearing all the evidence in your case. And while most cases do settle before trial, the overall economic and non-economic damages in your case must be assessed by not only your attorneys but also the insurance company or the defense lawyers and then hopefully the parties can come to a reasonable compromise or an agreement on the value of the case for settlement purposes. If not, the case will go to trial and a jury will determine what they believe the case is worth after hearing all of the evidence presented by all sides of the case.

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.

Insurance Company Requests A Recorded Statement

If you’ve been injured in an accident, you do not have to give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company. You may have to give a recorded statement to a representative of your own insurance company, and that is totally dependent upon the wording or the language in your own insurance policy.

Do You Always Need a Lawyer?

Many people ask that question. The truthful answer is no. There are many cases people can handle on their own. If you only have a few aches and pains after a crash and you fully recover after a few weeks, honestly there’s no need for a lawyer. The insurance company will probably be happy to give you a little money to sign a release. But don’t sign anything until you’re sure you’re okay.

Free Consultations

Well, the simple answer is call us. We never charge to discuss a case; and we’ll be happy to tell you your rights and how you could best protect yourself and your family and whether you need a lawyer or not. No presssure. No conditions. We’re happy to help. I’ll even send you my book Smart Lawyer, Smart Clients: What to do in Case of a Car Crash for free.  I’m Evan Fetterman. If you need legal help, call me.

By: Evan Fetterman

Failure To Wear Protective Gear, Motorcycle Accident

Insurance companies and defense lawyers will always try to use that against you or a consumer or a loved one who’s been involved in an accident – the failure to wear any protective gear. However, in Florida, you’re not required to wear a helmet on a motorcycle if you comply with certain parameters, if you’re over a certain age, if you have eye protection, and if you have medical payments coverage in an off chance that you’re injured in a motorcycle accident. However, failure to wear any protective gear should not preclude you from contacting an attorney to handle your motorcycle accident case. While the failure to wear a protective gear will be used as a defense against you in an attempt to try reduce your overall recovery, it should not preclude you or prevent you from pursuing your motorcycle accident injury case, especially where you, as a motorcycle operator, were not at fault whatsoever in the cause of the accident itself.

Call Police Immediately After Being In A Motorcycle Accident

It is imperative that you notify the police if you’d been involved in a motorcycle accident cases. Many times, unfortunately, there are no witnesses to a motorcycle accident case, and often times, investigators, lawyers, the only way they can piece together what happened, in an attempt to determine who is at fault, is by the scene of the accident being documented as there are skid marks or gouge marks in the road. Where was their debris in the road? Where did the individuals in the vehicles end up at final rest? It’s crucial in reconstructing an accident, specially a motorcycle accident case, that police are notified and are involved so that the scene and the evidence can be properly documented, so that later on your lawyers can build your case and pursue your case without having to lost that critical evidence that can sometimes not exists specially in cases where there’s no witnesses to the accident.