Miami personal injury lawyers

September 18, 2014

Florida Supreme Court Strikes Down Caps on Medical Malpractice Damages

Normally in a jury trial involving personal injuries, a jury is free to award as damages whatever amount they see just and fit, based upon the evidence presented. Traditionally there has been no cap or maximum on an amount that can be awarded, again, so long as the award is supported by the evidence presented.

However, with the push of doctor and insurance lobbyists, a few years ago, Florida passed a cap on certain damages that could be recovered by victims and their families in a medical malpractice claim.

About the Cap

September 9, 2014

Bad Jury Instructions Can Lead to Problems Later On

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

When a personal injury case gets submitted to a jury, the jury doesn’t just automatically know what questions it must decide on, nor does it know what kind of law applies. It’s up to the parties, at the conclusion of a trial to instruct a jury to give them guidance on how to rule. That’s normally done by submitting jury instructions.

Both parties must agree to the instructions, and when they can’t it’s often a judge that will make the final decisions.

Those instructions are vitally important. As you can imagine, subtle wording can persuade a jury, and misstating the law, or what the parties have to prove to win, can be the difference between winning and losing. And when jury instructions are incorrect or inaccurate, it can create huge problems, such was the case in a recent appeal to Florida’s Third District Court of Appeals.

August 12, 2014

The Confusing Laws for Victims With Only Emotional or Mental Damages

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

Victims of injuries very often suffer not only physical injuries, but emotional ones as well. Anxiety, fear, post traumatic stress disorder, and any number of mental ailments are natural consequences of injury, and damages for these injuries can be recovered from a liable party in a personal injury suit. But what if you have only mental or emotional injuries, without physical injury? In these cases, the law makes it much tougher to recover damages.

Situations Where Victims Might Have Only Emotional/Mental Damages

In many cases, someone may suffer no physical injury or impact at all, but still have mental or emotional injury. Emotional damage can stem from an event that happened to you, or from witnessing something happen to a loved one. Some common examples of situations where there may only be emotional damage would be:

July 31, 2014

Child Injured in Sumo Suit Raises Liability Questions

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

A Florida charter school is being sued by a student for personal injuries arising from a traumatic brain injury suffered during an organized and sanctioned school function featuring, of all things, Sumo Wrestling. The tragedy brings up questions about who is at fault when events such as these go wrong; our Miami injury attorneys may be able to provide valuable answers.

What Exactly Happened?

The event featured large, inflatable suits, which children (and adults) fit themselves into. The size of the suit is supposed to allow them to smash into each other in the same way that a sumo wrestler might, and also allows the user to tumble, roll around, and bounce off the floor and walls, presumably protected by the large inflatable “body” that they are fitted inside of. The activity is often used at carnivals or festivals, and can even be rented for private functions.

July 17, 2014

Malpractice Suits Are Often About More Than Compensation

by Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.

A recent article from Forbes discussed the topic of medical malpractice lawsuits, particularly, how the motivation in filing a malpractice lawsuit is not always about a monetary damage award. Although many areas of personal injury law have emotional aspects to them which go beyond monetary awards, medical malpractice lawsuits and the emotion involved in them can be especially motivated by more than simply a damage award. It is critical to secure the services of a skilled Miami malpractice attorney to succeed in your case.

Recent Case of Malpractice

The Forbes article discussed a daughter whose mother was in a hospital. The mother was not doing well, and the patient’s daughter called the treating doctor to change medications. She was met with a refusal to even respond, with the treating doctor saying that it was a weekend and he needed a break. The mother eventually did survive, but the daughter, upset with the standard of care, and wanting to effect a change, opted to file a formal complaint with the governing medical board as opposed to filing a lawsuit.

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.