Our Latest Blogs
Injuries at the amusement park: A hall of mirrors
The catastrophes are well covered: The obese teenager falling hundreds of feet to his death. A 6-year old dies after being thrown from a roller coaster in Kissimmee. But really, how safe are you, or aren’t you, when you go to an amusement park in Florida? Truthfully, it’s hard to tell. There are no reliable […]
Don’t be a sitting duck on I-95
As showcased on ABC News, Semi-tractor trailer trucks, those big 18-wheelers pose a particular hazard on the highway because their size and weight can cause huge damage in a crash, and because they have big blind spots. A big semi-tractor has blind spots in front of it, behind it, to the left and to the […]
Med mal: Was your consent to surgery “informed consent”?
Poor Mr. Yentes. He developed complications after undergoing a robotic prostatectomy, and sued his doctor for not revealing that the doctor had never performed the procedure, or had only performed it on a limited basis and that there would be a proctor (teacher) attending as well. If he had known, Mr. Yentes claimed, he never […]
So if I’m injured while riding in a Lyft or Uber, am I covered or what?
Ride share drivers’ personal auto insurance generally does not provide coverage to the ride share driver, because their personal insurance is not designed to cover them when engaged in commercial activity. But in general, yes, ride share services such as Lyft and Uber both have insurance coverages in place that provide ample protection to passengers […]
Negligent Security Cases Gutted
God forbid, you’re assaulted at a hotel, mall or apartment building. Prior to now, if you sued the property owner for negligently failing to provide sufficient security to deter the crime, the property owner could not defend himself by blaming the assailant for the injuries. The landlord’s hands were tied: Nowhere on the verdict form […]
Crackdown On Letters Of Protection
There is a longstanding and widely used practice in the world of personal injury called Letters of Protection. Suppose you’re hurt in an accident and you don’t have medical insurance. Under those circumstances, some physicians (who typically cater to personal injury victims) accept a written promise from the injured patient and his attorney to pay […]
Rolling The Dice At Mediation
The new law denying injured persons any damages if they are more than 50% at fault could cause the plaintiff to shoot craps in mediation or negotiation. The injured plaintiff now faces the risk of taking and recovering nothing unless she can convince an insurance company or a jury that she was not more than […]
A Right To Damages Taken Away
The biggest change in Florida personal injury law is the change in the law of comparative negligence which now says that an injured party may not recover any damages if the injured party is more than 50 percent at fault. This will affect every single case where both parties were partially at fault, and where […]
“The truth about attorney referral fees”
I just sent a referring attorney a check for $50,000.00 as a referral fee. He was thrilled. $50,000.00 is quite a windfall for a lawyer for “just making a phone call.” But bar rules contemplate that the referring lawyer not just make a call, but participate and assume “secondary responsibility” for the case and client. […]
Can you win punitive damages if you’re hit by a drunk driver?
The tragic death of five teenagers on the Palmetto Expressway because of a drunk driver going the wrong way puts a spot light on the issue of punitive damages for drunk driving in Florida. Florida law clearly recognizes that persons injured by a drunk driver are not only entitled to “compensable damages” –damages intended to […]
On the road: The ten most dangerous intersections in Miami-Dade and Broward
In 2020, more than 24,000 (twenty-four thousand!) people were injured in car accidents in Miami-Dade County. For those of us who driver daily in South Florida traffic with its crazy drivers, here’s a warning about ten spots where we need to be particularly careful: • In Midtown Miami: NE 2nd Ave. and NE 36th Street […]
Med mal: The botched Brazilian butt lift– why it’s so hard to collect
Because of lax regulation–surgical centers have to register, but not be licensed–South Florida has grown into destination for medical tourists looking for discount pricing on the popular but complicated procedure, the Brazilian butt lift. When correctly performed by a board certified surgeon, the procedure can be safe, effective and expensive at a cost of $5,000.00 […]
Our Latest: When an open wound won’t heal
It started as a small cut. But the client was elderly, in her 80’s, and had pre-existing blood circulation problems. With the passage of time, the opening in the skin grew larger, and larger. And treating and dressing the wound became more and more difficult. The poor woman wound up with a 6-inch long and […]
Death on the sidewalk: car vs. pedestrian
Not far from my home in North Miami Beach, a shrine marks the spot where a 10-year old boy named Anthony Reznik was struck and killed in the crosswalk by a driver who blew a red light. No such shrine marks the spot just a few blocks from my office in North Miami where three […]
Can they subpoena your cell phone records after an accident?
The answer is yes, but with certain restrictions. Florida law recognizes a right to privacy, and courts are supposed to weigh and balance the competing interests in protecting personal information with the need to discover relevant evidence–evidence that could be critical in determining fault. In one leading case, the court permitted an expert to inspect […]
Our Latest: Six-figure settlement for unbelted driver ejected in crash with DUI
Our client, a kind and gentle man from Peru, was working the night shift operating a Miami airport shuttle bus when he was hit broadside by a drunk driver blowing a red light at high speed. The impact sent our client through the open driver’s side window onto the pavement 30 feet away. He lost […]
Checking a doctor’s past malpractice claims
Not generally well known is the fact that the Florida Department of Insurance maintains a database of liability claims against physicians that’s freely available to the public. Every year, doctors and their insurers must report any claim, final judgment, settlement, insurance payment and any claims handling expense in excess of $5,000.00. – They must report: […]
Medical malpractice: Whose doctor is it? The University of Miami’s or Jackson Memorial Hospital’s?
If you’re a patient at Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital, it could have made a big difference whether your physician is acting on behalf of the University or on behalf of the Hospital. The University is a privately-owned, deep pocket institution, fully collectible, and entitled to no special treatment under law. Whereas Jackson Memorial is a […]
On the road: Is the bar where they were drinking responsible if your minor injures someone while driving drunk?
Can the bar that unlawfully sold alcohol to a minor defend itself in a dram shop suit by blaming the minor? No says a Florida appellate court, holding that by willingly and unlawfully selling alcohol to a minor, the bar becomes liable for injuries caused by the minor driving while intoxicated, and cannot shrug off […]
On the road: the most important insurance coverage you need
So you think you’re “fully insured,” right? Think again. With so many crazy drivers out there, remember that Florida doesn’t require bodily injury coverage, and as a result, there are millions of drivers out there who are uninsured if they injure you. Uninsured motorist coverage provides coverage in your favor if, God forbid, you’re injured […]
