Broward Injury Lawyer Blog

February 27, 2016

Florida Energy Drink Lawsuits Allege Serious, Irreversible Effects

A man in his 20s, constantly on-the-go, felt a sudden wave of nausea come over him as he was driving on the way to work. His vision grew blurry. He pulled over and called his boss. He wouldn’t be in that day. Within hours, he was rushed to the emergency room, where he discovered he had stage 4 kidney disease.

The case, according to a recently-filed lawsuit, is long-term consumption of energy drinks. He reportedly drank four every single day, which is the caffeine equivalent of 12 Coca-Colas. He did this for 10 years. Now, he’s awaiting a liver transplant.

His case is one of five filed against Monster Beverage Corp., asserting claims of severe and almost deadly health problems resulting from longtime use of the drink. It’s alleged that habitual drinkers of the products suffer renal failure, stroke and heart attacks, among other health concerns. Continue reading

February 23, 2016

Florida Bill Seeks End to Traffic Crash Drownings

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Last year, a University of Central Florida student left a friend’s house to pick up her mother and grandmother from the airport at 4 a.m. She never arrived. After reportedly falling asleep at the wheel, 21-year-old Chloe Arenas careened off the road and into an unguarded retention pond. Having lost consciousness from the impact of the crash, she drowned.

Now, her best friend is advocating for legislative change on her behalf. She has spoken out to lawmakers in support of a Florida bill that would require state and local transportation officials to install barriers near retention ponds and other bodies of water identified as dangerous or where other motorists have died after leaving the roadway.

The measure, called Chloe’s Law, is named after the young Orlando woman who “died in a completely preventable accident.” The bill has passed its first House committee. Continue reading

February 20, 2016

Student Athlete Concussion Target of Fort Lauderdale Teen App

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Plans for a mobile app that aims to reduce student athlete concussions, the brainchild of seventh-graders at Pine Crest School, is now close to becoming reality. This was after they received the top honor in a national contest for the app, which they’ve been developing for the last two years.

Now, they’re in the running to work alongside software engineers with MIT to improve their app before it goes on the market. They’ll also receive $20,000 from the Verizon Foundation. It was one of 1,200 submissions nationally, and this was one of eight teams chosen to compete.

The goal of the app is to slash the number of student concussions and prevent traumatic brain injuries among young athletes. It’s an issue close to home for these Fort Lauderdale students, where just last year, 1 in 5 junior and varsity football team players – 10 out of 48 – suffered a concussion-related injury. Continue reading

February 16, 2016

Gores v. Miller – Use Caution in Car Accident Settlement Releases

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

When entering into a car accident settlement, crash victims must make sure the language of the agreement is carefully reviewed. Some agreements contain provisions that release not only the person or entity involved, but also all future defendants, even if those have not yet been identified.

Make sure to ask the personal injury lawyer negotiating your settlement about this possibility, and carefully read the document yourself before signing off.

The case of Gores v. Miller is a cautionary tale. This was a case recently before the South Dakota Supreme Court, but the principles are still applicable to accident victims in South Florida. Continue reading

February 14, 2016

Fort Lauderdale Crash Injury Victim Wins $300K Against Police

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Jurors in Broward County have awarded more than $300,000 to a woman who was seriously injured following a Fort Lauderdale car accident with a police officer six years ago.

Unfortunately, because the defendant is a municipality, the award is capped at $100,000. The city hasn’t yet said whether it will appeal the decision.

Plaintiff, 52, was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her son just a few weeks before Christmas 2010. Defendant Daniel Gowans, a Fort Lauderdale police officer, was responding to a domestic violence call when he arrived at the intersection of Southeast Fourth Avenue and Sunrise Boulevard. His cruiser collided with the vehicle driven by plaintiff’s son. As a result of that impact, plaintiff’s wrist was broken in eight different places. Continue reading

February 10, 2016

Researchers: Economic Improvement Tied to Uptick in Traffic Deaths

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

There are over 20,000 car accidents in Florida every year. Preliminary counts of South Florida traffic deaths in 2015 suggest a sharp increase. In Palm Beach County, for example, The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles counted a 29 percent increase in the first six months of the years to the first six months of 2014 – 102 deaths versus 79 deaths. Motor vehicle fatalities in Florida were also up 29 percent and nationally, up 14 percent.

There is of course the growing element of distraction now that most every driver has access to their own person computer at all times via their smart phone. But there is something else going on, researchers say.

We are now at the tail end of what has been one of the longest roads to economic recovery since the end of WW II. The labor market has improved. Unemployment is down. So are gas prices. This has meant people have more money in their pocket. More freedom to take a trip. More incentive to take a private vehicle rather than opt for public transportation or bicycling. In turn, there are more vehicles on the road and a higher likelihood of traffic deaths. Continue reading

February 6, 2016

Methadone Clinic, Doctor Settle Drugged Driving Crash Case for $8M

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

You may have heard of Florida’s dram shop law, which allows drunk driving victims in some cases to recover damages from the establishment that served alcohol to the impaired driver. As far as dram shop laws go, it’s not the greatest; it only allows compensation when the driver was under 21 or known to habitually abuse alcohol. Still, it’s an important resource for some victims of these wholly preventable collisions.

Now, given the precedent set by a recent settlement agreement in Minnesota, there may be another alternative for victims of drugged drivers: Action against the doctor or clinic where the driver received prescription medications.

Given the fact that Florida was not long ago labeled the “Oxy Express” and that abuse of prescription painkillers led to an epidemic of opioid addiction and overdose, it’s likely we might see similar cases crop up here. Continue reading

February 2, 2016

Uber Lawsuit Filed As Miami Considers Driver Screenings

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

It was just a few short months ago that Uber was granted permission to operate once again in Broward County, after commissioners caved and eased regulations for this and similar ride-sharing services. The public fought hard to bring the service back, flooding local leaders with email, snail mail and voice mail messages. Mayor Tim Ryan called the issue, “The millstone around our collective necks.”

Meanwhile, Palm Beach County leaders put the brakes on any decision until this spring, and Miami-Dade is weighing regulatory proposals now. But there is another side to this coin: Lack of driver and vehicle regulation could put the public at higher risk for injury.

This is what is being alleged in a wrongful death lawsuit against Uber following a December 27th fiery crash in Miami. According to The Miami Herald, 20-year-old Pablo Sanchez Jr., a pharmacy student, had contacted an Uber ride using the app on his cell phone. He was looking for a ride for himself and five friends from downtown Miami to his parents’ home 30 miles away in Country Walk. A driver picked them up and they were almost there when the driver allegedly turned left into oncoming traffic. The Uber driver’s sport utility vehicle burst into flames. The driver got out, as did all of Sanchez’s friends. However, he was trapped and died inside. Continue reading

January 28, 2016

“Bikes Up, Guns Down” in South Florida Criticized as Safety Hazard

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

For the second Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. day in a row, throngs of riders on motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, dirt bikes and mopeds took the highways of Broward and Miami-Dade Counties. According to those on the informal, unsanctioned ride, it was about civil rights. It was about honoring King’s legacy of non-violence.

However, police say that was nothing more than a guise to pull roadway stunts that endangered the traveling public. Some of the actions observed by police and others:

Running red lights;
Popping wheelies;
Speeding;
Driving in the wrong lanes;
Taking photographs and video of other riders while operating vehicles.

January 25, 2016

Wrong-Way Accidents in Broward, Miami-Dade Target for Safety Advocates

By Ansara Law Personal Injury Attorneys

Imagine driving along a dark stretch of a four-lane highway. A few taillights pass. Then suddenly, you see headlights suddenly flash. They’re right in front of you. It’s too late to do anything but brace.

It’s a nightmare that plays out all too often in real life for drivers in South Florida. The impact of these collisions are often violent. They are often fatal. Officials are forced to halt traffic on major highways for hours as they launch complex investigations and massive cleanup efforts.

It’s a scenario local law enforcement and other safety advocates are fighting to end. Continue reading