Articles Tagged with Fort Lauderdale wrongful death attorney

Few occurrences are quite as traumatic as the serious injury or death of a child. Parents navigating the aftermath and exploring avenues of accountability and compensation from those at fault need to understand there are a few ways in which Florida child injury lawsuits differ from other claims.Florida child injury lawsuit

As our Fort Lauderale personal injury lawyers can explain, many underlying legal principles, causes of action and deadlines are the same. But when a victim is a minor, there may be some special considerations and extensions.

Here, we detail three ways that Florida child injury lawsuits may be different than adult personal injury filings.

1. Statute of Limitations for Child Injuries in Florida

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The parents of a toddler who drowned in a retention pond earlier this year have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the owner of the property, alleging negligence for failure to install a fence that would have protected their son and prevented his drowning.wrongful death Fort Lauderdale

A Fort Lauderdale wrongful death attorney can explain that these types of cases are what we refer to as premises liability claims. They posit that a property owner owed a duty of care to those who entered that site, failed in that duty and injury or wrongful death ensued.

Normally, this duty of care extends only to lawful guests, which means if someone trespasses on a property, they aren’t owed much of anything (except that the property owner not actively try to hurt them by setting traps, etc.). But this type of case involves a special kind of premises liability claim under what’s known as the attractive nuisance doctrine.

Essentially, F.S. 768.075 holds that landowners generally owe no duty to trespassers under most conditions. One exception is where it pertains to young children if there is a feature on the property likely to attract children, such as a swimming pool or pond. F.S. 823.08 also outlines a number of potential attractive nuisances, such as abandoned iceboxes, clothes dryers and other similar airtight objects in which children might want to play, but would be extremely dangerous. Continue reading

A double wrongful death lawsuit in Florida has been filed by the representative of the estates of a mother-son duo who were shot and killed in a murder-suicide by another man who allegedly was trying to rob the son. securityguard

The homicides occurred in Stuart at the exclusive Yacht and Country Club, where the gunman apparently gained status as a resident, despite not owning a property there and having an extensive criminal background.

The wrongful death lawsuit alleges negligence on the part of:

  • The construction company;
  • The property owners’ association/ security company;
  • The actual homeowner.

As described in The Daily Business Review, this was, “the perfect storm of failures” by these three defendants. Specifically, the plaintiff alleges negligent security. That is, defendants owed a duty to protect the victims from a foreseeable harm by adhering to existing security procedures.  Continue reading

A Florida jury awarded $10 million to plaintiff in a wrongful death lawsuit against the Domino’s Pizza parent company for the negligence of a franchisee employee. hotvehicles

The ruling is significant not just for the amount of damages awarded, but for the fact the jury decided the Michigan-based corporation could be held liable for the actions of a person it didn’t directly employ. The difference here, according to court records, was the degree of control Domino’s reportedly held over its franchises.

Usually, companies can be held vicariously liable for the actions of its employees under the doctrine of respondeat superior. But franchisors generally aren’t considered the “employers” of those who work for franchisees. However, this kind of complex corporate structure isn’t unique to the pizza delivery industry. Trucking companies, nursing homes and others routinely set up these complex business models with numerous companies, with one of the goals being  to distance the main entity from any liability and ultimately reduce the damages any injury plaintiff might receive, as those smaller entities will have less of an ability to pay.  Continue reading

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