If you’ve been injured in a car accident, a slip-and-fall accident, or some other type of incident, you may be entitled to damages from the responsible party or your insurance company. But what do you do first? How do you get started? These are questions that nearly every first-time accident victim has to ask before speaking to an attorney.
This article will provide you with detailed information about the common types of personal injury cases, how to make claims when you should accept a settlement, and more. However, if you’ve been injured in an accident in Broward County, contact Long, Jean & Wechsler, P.A. Our attorneys will talk to you about your specific case in a free consultation. Should you choose our firm to represent you, there are no out-of-pocket costs for our legal services.
What is Personal Injury Law?
Personal injury is an area of civil tort law that focuses on accidents. Personal injury attorneys seek damages on behalf of clients who have been injured due to the negligence of another. This can include calculating damages, collecting evidence, negotiating with insurers, and, if necessary, litigating the case in court. It is the goal of the personal injury lawyer to restore the client to their pre-accident state as perfectly as possible through compensation. This includes seeking damages for actual costs, like hospital bills, lost wages, and property damages, as well as intangible damages, like emotional suffering or physical pain.
Defendants have a financial and often reputational incentive to downplay their liability in accident cases, which is why injured parties require representation in their pursuit of compensation.
Important Factors in Personal Injury Cases
While your attorney will have extensive knowledge about personal injury law, it’s helpful for accident victims to understand key concepts for their own education.
Elements of a Personal Injury Case
In order to have a viable case, your attorney must be able to prove the following four elements of personal injury law:
- Duty of Care – This means that the defendant had the responsibility to try to avoid causing the accident.
- Failure of Duty – In other words, the defendant had a duty of care but failed to live up to that duty.
- Causation – The defendant’s failure of duty contributed to the accident. In Florida, a plaintiff can seek compensation for damages, even if they are partially responsible.
- Damages – There must be a monetary or intangible cost resulting from the accident.
To demonstrate how the four elements work in a civil case, imagine a driver running a red light at Atlantic Avenue and US 1, striking another vehicle, and injuring the driver. Every driver has a duty of care to operate their vehicle in a safe manner. Running a red light is a breach of that duty. In this example, the breach of duty caused the impact, resulting in injuries and property damage. All four elements are present.
Contingency Fees
Personal injury lawyers work on a contingency basis. The law firm you are considering should disclose its contingency fee schedule during the consultation. Florida law firms follow the state bar guidelines, which allow contingency fees from 33.33 to 40% for fees under $1 million dollars, with different rates applying to larger settlements.
Contributory Negligence
Under Florida’s contributory negligence law, when a plaintiff is partially at fault, their compensatory damages are reduced proportionate to their degree of fault. For example, if a plaintiff shows that they have $100,000 in damages, but they are 20% at fault, they can only collect $80,000.
Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations determines the amount of time that a plaintiff has to file a lawsuit. For most accident cases, the plaintiff has four years from the date the accident occurred. In wrongful death claims, the statute of limitations expires two years from the date of death, not the date the accident occurred.
For medical malpractice cases, the statute of limitations expires two years after the accident or within four years if the accident was discovered after the date of the incident. For example, if a surgeon leaves an instrument inside of a patient, but it’s not discovered until later, the patient has four years from the date of the surgery to file suit.
Common Types of Personal Injury Cases
It’s important to remember that not all personal injury injury attorneys handle all case types. For instance, LJW does represent medical malpractice cases, but many law firms around South Florida don’t. Here are some of the case types we handle, but it’s not an exhaustive list. For more information about the types of cases we handle, contact our Pompano Beach personal injury law office.
Car Accidents
Personal vehicle vs. vehicle cases are among the most common types of personal injury cases in the Sunshine State. In 2023, there were over 250,000 injuries from crashes, with about 10% of these occurring in Broward. Even if you were partially at fault in a crash, you will be entitled to damages for your injuries.
Truck Accidents
With their rigs and loads, commercial trucks can legally weigh up to 80,000 lbs — 20 times the weight of the average personal vehicle. That means that commercial trucks can cause serious injuries even at a low speed. If you’ve been injured by a commercial vehicle, it’s essential to have an attorney well-versed in the state and federal regulations affecting commercial trucking.
Motorcycle Accidents
Motorcycles are smaller and, therefore, more difficult for other drivers to spot. They also offer little protection to the rider.
Additionally, riders almost always sustain injuries from the secondary impact of hitting the road or another object. Almost all motorcycle accidents result in physical injuries.
Slip-and-Fall Cases
Because slip-and-fall accidents are the most common type of premise liability cases, the terms are often used interchangeably.
The proprietor or custodian of an establishment is responsible for maintaining the safety of their premises. That means that floors are clean and well maintained, there is adequate lighting, and there is sufficient warning for any hazard that they can’t immediately deal with.
Medical Malpractice Cases
When patients visit their doctor or a medical facility, they have the right to expect competent, professional medical care. This does not mean a clinician is required to guarantee results, but they should provide knowledgeable advice and administer appropriate treatments. If you are the victim of medical malpractice, it’s imperative that you have a lawyer who has extensive experience with medical malpractice.
Workplace Injuries
Florida’s workers’ compensation law allows workplace accident victims to claim against their employer’s insurance, even if the employee is 100% at fault. Most businesses are required to carry workers’ comp insurance if they have a staff of four or more. For the construction industry, the employer must carry it, even if they have a single employee.
Product Liability
The manufacturers of products are responsible for designing and manufacturing safe products. Additionally, they are obligated to inform the public about proper usage and known safety concerns. When they fail in this duty, and a consumer is injured, they may be liable for damages. Product liability cases often develop into class action lawsuits and multi-jurisdictional cases, but your fight for justice should begin with LJW. We can review your case and determine whether it qualifies for a known class action suit.
Wrongful Death
When an accident results in death, it can be devastating for their loved ones. In addition to the deceased person’s medical expenses and pain and suffering, we can pursue damages for funeral costs, loss of companionship, and more.
Impacts of Personal Injury on Victims
When many people think of the impact of an accident on a victim, they might consider the monetary expenses and the physical pain. While those are a large part of victim compensation packages, the reality is that even moderate injuries involve other categories of damages. Here is how a personal injury attorney in Florida would break down your damages.
Economic Damages
These are the monetary costs of an accident. They can include items like medical bills, lost wages, property damage, modifications to your home to accommodate you during your recovery, and any other financial cost associated with the accident. There are no caps for economic damages in Florida.
Non-Economic Damages
Many people refer to non-economic damages as “pain and suffering.” Naturally, there are costs to an accident that go beyond out-of-pocket expenses. Non-economic damages include the cost of your physical pain, emotional trauma, loss of physical capacity, and diminished quality of life. In wrongful death cases, the surviving family members may be entitled to damages for loss of companionship. There are no caps on these types of damages.
Punitive Damages
In some instances, the courts determine that the negligence was so egregious (or the act was intentional) that the defendant should be punished by awarding punitive damages. Punitive damages are non-compensable in that they are intended to penalize the defendant. In Florida, punitive damages are capped at $500,000 or three times the amount of compensable damages, whichever is greater.
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Most cases do not complete the litigation phase. In most instances, the attorneys from both sides agree that it’s in their clients’ best interests to engage in alternative dispute resolution. These are the most common forms of ADR:
Negotiation
Once an LJW attorney thoroughly assesses your damages, they will present a letter of demand to the responsible party or their insurance. Negotiations over the settlement will begin immediately. This may continue until the case is settled through other means, or it may result in an acceptable settlement.
Arbitration
This is an out-of-court proceeding that allows both parties to present evidence to a neutral third party called an arbitrator. The parties agree to abide by the arbitrator’s decision.
Mediation
This method involves presenting evidence and arguments to a mediator. A mediator is usually an attorney or retired judge specializing in personal injury law. If the parties can’t come to an agreement, the mediator terminates the process. Unlike arbitration, mediation is non-binding. The parties can walk away from the table and either seek litigation or attempt another ADR.
Should ADRs fail, you’ll want an attorney who is confident trying your case in civil court. In Broward County, that starts with a call to Long, Jean & Weschler, P.A.
Dealing with Insurance Companies in Personal Injury Cases
If you’ve been injured in an accident, you may be approached by an adjuster, even if you haven’t filed a claim. While the most skillful adjusters approach accident victims from the point of concern, it’s important to remember that they represent the insurer. They will inevitably offer you a check that they say will cover your injuries, missed work, and a little extra to help you through the next few weeks, but until you talk to an attorney, you have no idea what your case is worth. Do not accept a settlement offer without speaking to an attorney. Your case may be worth many times more than the amount of the check. If you accept, you’ll have to sign a waiver of liability, which will prevent you from seeking further damages.
If you have a settlement offer from an insurer, contact LJW for a free case evaluation. You’re under no obligation to accept our services, but you owe it to yourself to have an attorney review the terms of the settlement.
Settling a Personal Injury Case
Most settlements occur as a result of extensive negotiations after the discovery phase of the case. By this time, all parties are aware of the details of the case and can determine what they think it’s worth. If the parties aren’t too far apart, the negotiations will go smoothly. If not, they may have to move on to an alternative dispute resolution.
Pompano Beach Personal Injury Lawyers
For years, LJW has been representing personal injury clients around South Florida on a contingency basis. If you were injured in an accident in Broward County, contact us for a free, no-obligation case evaluation today.
