Miami Accident Lawyer Blog

July 8, 2014

Florida Governor Approves Law Limiting Liability For Nursing Home Abuse

Our Miami nursing home abuse attorneys have previously discussed unfortunate incidents in which elderly individuals were the victims of nursing home abuse and/or neglect. In August, we discussed a case in which a Florida jury awarded more than $1.1 billion to the son of a woman who had suffered abuse at the hands of a negligent Polk County nursing home. Apparently, that was not the first time the operators of that nursing home were under fire for such misconduct as a different Polk County jury awarded a $114 million verdict against the companies in another nursing home abuse case.

Falls Can Be a Sign of Nursing Home Abuse

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, falls are the leading cause of injury death and the most common cause of nonfatal injuries and hospital admissions for trauma in adults over 65. Further, the CDC estimates that 20-30% of falls result in moderate to severe injuries such as lacerations, hip fractures, or head traumas, and are the most common cause of traumatic brain injuries.

July 3, 2014

New Study Finds That Brain Injuries Increase With Bike-Sharing Programs

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Over the last year, our Miami personal injury lawyers have discussed the dangers associated with bicycling in Florida. Last September, 24-year-old bicyclist Jacob Landis was severely injured after being struck by a hit-and-run driver while riding his bicycle in the final leg of a cross-country cycling trip in Polk County, Florida. In October, a young couple, Rob Lemon and Hilary Michalak, died after being struck by a motorist while riding their tandem bike on the Memorial Causeway in Clearwater, Florida.

Florida a Dangerous Place for Cyclists

According to report by the NHTSA found that Florida’s bicyclist fatality rate consistently exceeded that of the rest of the United States and often ranked highest among the states. In 2011, Florida bicycle fatality rates were almost triple the national average, and, between 2010 and 2011, the bicycle fatality rate increased from 0.40 fatalities per 100,000 persons, to 0.63. In the same year, Florida made up only six percent of the U.S. population in 2011, but accounted for 17.4 percent of all U.S. bicycle fatalities.

June 24, 2014

Twin Toddlers Drown In Deerfield Beach Swimming Pool Accident

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

As our Miami injury attorneys have discussed before, although swimming can be a great way to relax on a hot summer day, it is important for people appreciate the risks associated with this activity, especially for children. These hazards have been highlighted by a recent incident in which twin toddlers drowned in a swimming pool accident at a Deerfield Beach apartment complex.

Tragic Accident Involving Twins

Harmani and Harmony West, both just two years old, drowned in the pool of Tivoli Park, the apartment complex where they lived with their mother. According to authorities, the girls were found floating in the pool by a couple visiting from North Carolina. Efforts were made to resuscitate the children, who were immediately taken to Broward Health Medical Center, where they were pronounced dead. Preliminary investigation revealed that the pool area was gated, but the lock on the gate was broken, allowing the girls to access the pool area.

June 20, 2014

Florida Jury Awards $11 Million In Dram Shop Lawsuit

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Last year, this blog discussed the unfortunate death of two Brevard County teens Rachel Price and Jamaree Cook, who were killed when Price’s vehicle collided with a pickup truck being operated an intoxicated driver. In response to that incident, our Florida car accident attorneys examined a State law allowing a person that has been injured or killed in a car accident caused by an intoxicated driver to recover punitive as well as compensatory damages.

That law, codified at Section 768.72 of The Florida Statutes, states that plaintiffs in civil actions are precluded from recovering punitive damages unless there is a “reasonable showing by evidence” that provides a “reasonable basis for recovery of such damages.” This standard is more specifically delineated in Florida’s pattern jury instructions which state that punitive damages may be warranted if a jury finds by the greater weight of the evidence that the defendant’s conduct that caused the injury to the plaintiff was:

Gross and flagrant as to show a reckless disregard of human life or of the safety of persons;

June 13, 2014

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Declares May Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has declared the month of May to be Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, in an effort to encourage motorists to be mindful of motorcyclists while simultaneously encouraging motorcycle safety. Our Miami motorcycle accident attorneys wish everyone in the state to exercise safety when going out for a ride.

According to NHTSA statistics, in 2012, 4,927 motorcyclists were killed in traffic crashes, a continued increase from 4,630 in 2011. The 2011 deaths accounted for 15 percent of the total highway fatalities that year, despite motorcyclists representing only 3 percent of all vehicles on America’s roads.

As this blog has discussed before, motorcycle accidents are particularly dangerous due to the limited amount of protection they provide to riders compared to more traditional modes of transportation such as cars and trucks. Motorcycles are also far less visible in traffic than cars, resulting in an increased risk accident. One report concluded that the risk of a motorcyclists’ likelihood of being killed in a traffic accident is sixteen times that of the driver of an automobile.

June 4, 2014

Report Concludes That Florida Is The Most Dangerous Place For Pedestrians

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Late last month, our Miami car accident attorneys discussed another unfortunate accident in which thirty-six year-old woman Keythe Perez was struck and killed by a vehicle while crossing Palm Beach Boulevard in Fort Myers, Florida. The incident marked the sixth pedestrian killed in Lee County since the beginning of the year, and the fifth in a little more than a month.

In response to the growing number of traffic accidents involving pedestrians, Smart Growth America, a national organization dedicated to researching ways in which to improve America’s neighborhoods, commissioned a study, entitled “Dangerous by Design,” to look at where pedestrian fatalities happen and who’s most at risk in every U.S. county, metro area, and state.

According to the report, in the decade from 2003 through 2012, 47,025 people died while walking on our streets, representing 12.3 percent of total traffic deaths. During the same period, 676,000 pedestrians were injured in traffic accidents, or one every approximately eight minutes.

May 30, 2014

Increasingly Warm Weather Leads To Higher Risk Of Swimming Accidents

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

As the weather continues to heat up, many Florida residents are heading to their local pools and beaches to cool off. Although swimming can be a great way to relax on a hot day, it is important that the risks associated with this activity are fully appreciated, and that anyone injured in a swimming accident contact a Miami personal injury attorney immediately.

The risks associated with swimming are especially high for children, especially when they are inadequately supervised or permitted to swim without appropriate safety equipment. According to statistics published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, drowning is the second leading cause of death among children aged one to nineteen, with over a thousand such children drowning every year.

As this blog has discussed on several occasions, premises liability is a legal term that references a property owner’s duty to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition. Owners and operators of private pools and breaches are no different, and owe certain duties to guests of their property.

May 20, 2014

Another Florida Pedestrian Killed In Recent Spate Of Motor Vehicle Accidents

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Earlier this month, thirty-six year-old woman Keythe Perez was struck and killed by a vehicle while crossing Palm Beach Boulevard in Fort Myers, Florida. This unfortunate incident marks the sixth pedestrian that has been killed in Lee County since the beginning of the year, and, even more shocking, the fifth in a little more than a month. Based on those numbers, motor vehicle crashes involving a pedestrian death now account for 37.5% of all traffic fatalities that have occurred in Lee County this year. Our Miami pedestrian accident attorneys can help those injured in pedestrian accidents.

In 2011, the city of Fort Myers adopted an ordinance in 2011 reducing the speed limit on all streets to 25 miles-per-hour. However, Palm Beach Boulevard was one of four roadways that was exempted from the measure, which was seen by some as a significant issue given the high volume of pedestrian and bicycle traffic on that road. The incident involving Keythe Perez gives some credence to these concerns and raises questions regarding the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists in an environment of ever-increasing motorists.

In November of last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) published a press release in which it discussed findings related to U.S. highway traffic accidents in 2011 and 2012. According to the release, highway traffic fatalities jumped more than three percent (3.3%) from 32,479 in 2011 to 33,561 in 2012, with nearly three-quarters (72%) of the increase involving motorcyclists and pedestrians. At the time of the study, the NHTSA estimated that fatalities for the first half of 2013 would be lower than those that occurred during the same time period in 2012, but that pedestrian fatalities would increase for the third straight year by 6.4% over 2011.

April 21, 2014

Florida Federal Court Decision Discusses Insurer’s Attempt To Avoid Extending Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Earlier this year, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida issued a decision in the case of Arnold v. Wausau Underwriters Insurance Company, discussing a circumstance under which an insurance company attempted to avoid extending uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage based upon some dubious paperwork. Our Miami car accident lawyers have extensive knowledge on this topic.

In the Arnold case, the plaintiff, Timothy Arnold filed a claim with Wausau Underwriters Insurance Company, for uninsured motorist coverage after Arnold was involved in a car accident while working for his employer, RJA. At the time of the accident, RJA held an insurance policy with Wausau, however, a dispute arose as to the terms of that policy.

Specifically, Arnold claimed that the policy provided $1 million in uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Wausau, on the other hand, contended that RJA had agreed to modify the policy two months after it was executed, and executed a form declining all Florida uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. Based on the alleged modification, Wausau denied Arnold uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage for the accident.

Arnold sued Wausau in federal court, alleging that Wausau had breached its contract with RJA by failing to extend coverage for Arnold’s accident. Both Arnold and Wausau moved the District Court to grant judgment in their favor prior to trial. The Court denied both parties’ motions and ordered the case proceed to trial.

April 8, 2014

Federal Trucking Agency Launches Program To Hold Carriers Responsible For Safety Violations

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Last month, this blog discussed the newly-passed Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration hours-of-service (“HOS”) safety requirements for commercial truck drivers, limiting the number of hours a truck driver is permitted to operate his or her vehicle during any given period of time. Since then, our Miami truck accident lawyers have been keeping an eye out for new developments related to this issue.

Last year, the FMCSA, launched the Compliance, Safety, Accountability Program (“Program”) which scores the safety of trucking carriers and is designed to increase accountability for carriers that continually violate safety regulations. Carriers that receive poor safety scores under the Program often suffer negative consequences such as loss of business from customers that don’t want to work with a carrier that has a poor safety record, greater insurance rates, and additional scrutiny from law enforcement and inspectors.

Although the Program appears, on its face, to be a step in the right direction towards increasing trucking safety standards, recent reports by not one, but two, government agencies have concluded that the Program may suffer from some problems affecting its accuracy. Both the Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) and the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) have issued results of their audits of the Program, concluding that it suffers from several problems stemming from poor data quality.