Articles Posted in personal injury

Generally speaking, our laws don’t allow one party to be held liable for the wrongdoing of another. However, when it comes to premises liability – in particular, negligent security – there are numerous examples of property owners held liable for criminal acts committed on site.

In negligent security claims, the crux of the argument is the criminal attack/injury would not have occurred but for a property owner/manager’s failure to secure the site or provide protection for plaintiff, as they had a responsibility to do.

This was the allegation in Sanders v. Erp Operating Ltd. P’ship, considered recently on appeal by the Florida Supreme Court. Although a trial court ruled in favor of plaintiffs, the 4th DCA reversed. The Florida Supreme Court reversed again, finding plaintiffs’ proof of causation sufficient.
Continue reading

The Florida Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of the decision by the 5th District Court of Appeals to uphold the validity of a release of liability waiver signed by a plaintiff who was later injured.

In so doing, the state high court cast aside the rulings of the four other appellate courts in the state, which had decided in other cases to make it tougher for defendants to use waivers as a defense.

This is not great news for injured plaintiffs. However, it does not mean liability waivers will now totally absolve individuals or companies from negligence or that these waivers should go unchallenged.

Still, it may be a tougher hurdle to overcome in the wake of the high court’s ruling in Sanislo v. Give Kids The World, Inc.
Continue reading

The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission reports an average of 420 boating injuries every year in Florida, ranging from cuts and bruises to broken bones and serious head, neck and spinal injuries.

While many news reports focus on injuries suffered by individuals who fall or are tossed overboard, those who suffer falls inside the vessel may sustain equally severe trauma. Depending on the circumstances, there may be grounds to pursue a personal injury lawsuit against the owner and/or operator of the vessel in which the injury occurred.

One such case recently before Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal, Starr Indemnity & Liability Co. v. Morris, deals with the kind of insurance wrangling that can spin out of cases like these. It serves as yet another example of why it’s critical to secure the aid of an experienced legal team before pursuing such a case.
Continue reading

While it’s true an increasing number of people are carrying out their holiday shopping online, there are still scores of people who venture out to the brick-and-motor stores to purchase their goods.

On Black Friday 2014, retailers reported holiday shopping at physical stores topped $50.9 billion. That was down about 11 percent from $57.4 billion a year ago, but it’s still significant.

When stores invite people onto their property to shop and engage in transactions, they also owe a responsibility to ensure those guests are safe. In legal terms, these patrons are referred to as “business invitees,” and stores owe them the highest degree of care in ensuring the property is safe and free of any defects or dangers not blatantly obvious to those entering.
Continue reading

There is an old saying: “the truth speaks for itself.”

In a court of law, that isn’t exactly the way it works. The truth matters, of course. But what matters equally is what can be proven. For personal injury victims, this means you must have two things: An attorney who can effectively present the truth about your case to the court and ample evidence to back your assertions.

Because evidence is so critical, there may be some incentive for one side or the other to “lose” critical elements of it. Sometimes, it’s an accident. Other times, it’s intentional. This is called spoliation of evidence, and regardless of the intent, the courts will deal with it harshly.

In Florida, courts have consistently held when spoliation occurs, sanctions are appropriate. Some possible sanctions for the loss of important evidence may include:
–Exclusion of expert testimony –Imposition of an evidentiary presumption in the disadvantaged party’s favor –Dismissal of a claim (if plaintiff caused spoliation)
–Entry of default judgment on the issue of liability (if defendant caused spoliation)
Continue reading

Water recreation is one of the primary draws for Florida vacationers. However, there is a lot that can go wrong when it comes to motorized watercraft.

Consumers trust that when they get on a boat or jet ski, the machine will work as intended and will not be unreasonably unsafe for use. Unfortunately, not all manufacturers and distributors adhere to strict safety guidelines.

There is also a high potential for operator error, particularly given the lax standards and enforcement for Florida boat licensing and commercial water craft operation.
Continue reading

A five-year-old child vacationing with his family suffers a serious fall from a hotel window, causing him to incur critical, debilitating injuries, including brain trauma.

Who is responsible?

A California appellate court recently granted the family the right to present a case at trial that the hotel was responsible for negligence and failing to address a known dangerous condition on its property. This was a reversal of an earlier trial court summary judgment favoring defendants, who argued they had no duty of care to the child and the accident was caused by parents’ failure to supervise, rather than its own failure to install a fall prevention device on the window.
Continue reading

A state supreme court decision in Arkansas underscores a fact that injured workers in many states come to find out: Injury lawsuits against co-workers are generally barred unless there is some evidence the action was intentional or outside the scope of employment.

That means the primary question is whether the incident was work-related. For example, if a co-worker physically attacks you, he was almost certainly not acting within the scope of employment, and therefore the victim would have grounds to file a third-party injury lawsuit, in addition to seeking workers’ compensation benefits. However, if he negligently crashes a motor vehicle while the two of you are on your way to a mid-day conference, this would likely be considered an action within the scope of employment. That means workers’ compensation would probably be your sole remedy for compensation from your employer, though it’s always best to consult first with an attorney to explore all options as a lawsuit against the other driver or even against your own insurance company may be warranted.

In the case of Curtis v. Lemna, the high court found a corporate executive who crashed a golf cart during a game played as part of a sales meeting was immune from liability for injuries to a fellow executive because he was acting within the scope of his employment.
Continue reading

In order to sue a business or municipality for failing to address a trip-and-fall hazard, a plaintiff must first show defendant knew or should have known about the danger. If there is proof the defendant knew, that’s called “actual knowledge.” When the evidence shows instead the defendant should have known about it, this is called “constructive knowledge.”

The latter can be established with circumstantial evidence, showing for example the condition was recurring or that it would have been discovered had defendant exercised reasonable care. If a plaintiff can’t prove some form of knowledge of the danger by the defendant, he or she will have no case. It’s a critical element of any premises liability lawsuit, and an experienced attorney can help determine whether there is a strong basis to prove it in your case.

It was central to the recent claim of Major v. City of Hartville, weighed by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
Continue reading

A Florida mother has filed a lawsuit against her daughter’s former charter school as well as the maker of an inflatable “Sumo wrestling” suit, alleging that a “Spirit Day” activity went horribly wrong when the school failed to make sure the girl’s helmet fit properly, and the manufacturer failed to warn of possible danger.

As a result, her family said the girl’s head hit the ground repeatedly, causing her to suffer traumatic brain injury that has resulted in dramatic personality changes, regression in the ability to communicate, blurred vision, headaches and severe anxiety.

Our Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorneys know that in preparing children for back-to-school, parents must recognize a significant number of injuries to children occur while at school or while students are engaged in school-related activities or events. Some of these cases may be compensable, depending on the level of control the school had over the student at the time of the incident, and whether school administrators and staffers might have reasonably foreseen the risk of injury.
Continue reading