Personal injury plaintiffs bear the burden of proving the defendant was negligent. See Florida Standard Jury Instruction 415.11 – Civil Cases. Negligence is determined by measuring the defendant’s conduct against the behavior of a “reasonable person” under similar circumstances. In Florida, the burden requires proof by the greater weight of…
Earlier this year our law firm participated in a one week jury trial against a condominium association and a general contractor seeking damages for personal injuries sustained by our client, an elderly woman. The association hired the general contractor to rebuild a wood dock that ran, unimpeded, behind each condo…
Florida civil trial juries are given wide latitude in resolving factual conflicts. A verdict supported by evidence will be allowed to stand even if other evidence backs a contrary result. However, inconsistent and inadequate verdicts must be modified or reversed. An “inconsistent” verdict can only be corrected by the jury…
In Parrish v. City of Orlando, 53 So.3d 1199 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011), the plaintiff suffered a comminuted proximal humerus fracture in her left shoulder from tripping and falling on an uneven sidewalk. The jury awarded $51,929.02 for past medical expenses, and $130,000 for future medical expenses. However, the jury…
Getting the injured party fully compensated for the cost of future medical care is a primary concern in most personal injury cases. The Plaintiff has one shot in court to get the jury to award an adequate amount of money to cover the cost of these future medical expenses. Expert…
Claiming that the plaintiff’s injuries are preexisting is a favorite defense tactic. Less responsibility for them. Some injuries, like herniated intervertebral discs and torn or frayed shoulder tendons, are extremely susceptible to this tactic. The defense argument is that the conditions are the result of natural aging and/or prior accidents.…
In Miranda v. Arizona, the Supreme Court of the United States established a formal warning that is required to be given by police in the United States to criminal suspects in police custody (or in a custodial situation) before they are interrogated. The court ruled that the person in custody…
By amending §768.81 Florida Statues, the Florida Legislature eliminated, effective 2006, the application of joint and several liability in most personal injury cases. Under the joint and several doctrine, in cases involving multiple defendants each negligent defendant was wholly responsible financially for the negligence of every other defendant. This concept…
Injured workers have experienced a steady erosion of their rights under Florida’s workers’ compensation system since its inception in 1935. Some periods have seen greater losses than others. None, however, were as ugly as the Jeb Bush years, when he served as the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to…
There is a reason why the following inquiry is a standard interrogatory for personal injury cases in the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure: Did you consume any alcoholic beverages or take any drugs or medications within twelve hours before the time of the incident described in the complaint? If so,…