Duty is a question of law in Florida. An affirmative duty to help a person in need cannot be imposed on just anyone. An appellate case illustrates just how strict the prohibition against imposing such an affirmative duty is. In the case, the plaintiff was drinking with a man and…
As we have explained in earlier posts, Florida has become a comparative negligence state. This means that a plaintiff whose own conduct contributes to his injuries will have his or her award reduced by the percentage of fault that can be attributed to him. In a case decided last year,…
The birth of a child is often a joyous event for a couple. Unfortunately, there are cases when obstetricians make errors that lead to permanent problems for the child. Last year, a Florida Court of Appeals considered the birth of a boy who, at his birth, seemed to have limited…
In Florida premise liability cases, the obvious danger doctrine allows a landowner to avoid liability where the condition that caused the injury was known or obvious to the person who was injured. In a recent case, a woman sued a market after tripping on a mat outside the public entrance…
A Florida appellate court recently addressed this issue in the context of a personal injury plaintiff who claimed her financial situation did not permit her to seek or receive consistent treatment for claimed injuries. The case arose out of a car crash in which the defendant claimed his car was…
Under certain circumstances, after a trial, a personal injury plaintiff may make a motion for a new trial, sometimes focusing on a new trial for a specific issue in the original trial. One reason for a new trial is a trial judge’s finding that the verdict rendered by the jury…
In Florida, there is a rebuttable presumption that the rear driver caused a rear-ending car accident–that the rear driver’s negligence was the sole proximate cause of a collision. When this rule was put in place, Florida was a contributory negligence state. That meant that when a plaintiff was at all…
As if getting into a car accident and suffering serious injuries weren’t bad enough, some people in Florida find that they are further injured when they go to the hospital to treat their injuries from a car accident. In some cases, the original person or people who caused the accident…
Under Florida common law, a lawsuit that does not have much connection to Florida may be subject to “forum non conveniens,” which is Latin for “inconvenient forum.” It comes up only after a plaintiff is able to effect service of process of a lawsuit on a defendant who is present…
Unfortunately, accidents on the road, whether you’re in a car, scooter, truck or walking around as a pedestrian, are all too common on Florida’s busy streets. One common kind of loss you might experience after a serious accident in which you are injured is lost wages. After an accident you…