What is a reasonable settlement?

Posted on November 11, 2011 by JULIE KURTZ

Seevers v. Montiel, Florida First District Court of Appeal – What happens if coverage for your injury is denied?  A woman injured in an automobile accident recently won over $500,000 in attorneys fees and interest, after her reasonable settlement offer was declined.  The appellate court stated, “section 768.79, Florida Statutes, which provides incentives to a party to accept a reasonable settlement offer before trial and imposes significant costs on the party who rejects a reasonable offer to settle a dispute before trial.”  How your case is resolved, either by settlement or after a trial can have a substantial effect on what you recover.  Don’t get injured twice.

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DUI License Suspension Upheld

Posted on November 11, 2011 by Patrick Canan


After a DUI arrest the DMV suspended the driver’s license and the driver appealed the ruling to the Circuit court. Then, according to the appellate court, the Circuit court failed to apply correct law in reversing
license suspension on ground that arresting officer lacked sufficient basis to
initiate stop of licensee’s vehicle.  Only founded suspicion is necessary to
effectuate a DUI traffic stop, and the findings of the hearing officer clearly
supported the existence of that basis. Tips provided to dispatcher by two
individuals who identified themselves and reported that a possibly impaired
person was attempting to drive away from a convenience store were sufficient to provide founded suspicion for DUI stop. Circuit court applied incorrect law in connection with investigative stop when it relied on cases involving anonymous informants and erred in failing to impute knowledge of dispatcher to the arresting officers and in failing to conclude that officers acted upon a founded suspicion

 

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Your Right to Receive Medical Records

Posted on October 26, 2011 by admin

Houston v. GEO, et al., Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal – Just this week, the Fourth DCA agreed with a prison inmate who argued that his pro se medical malpractice complaint was wrongly dismissed without an evidentiary hearing for the inmate’s failure to provide a corroborating expert opinion, even though the inmate alleged that he was denied timely copies of his medical records.  In Florida, medical malpractice cases generally are required to follow a strict pre-suit procedure.  Part of that procedure includes obtaining copies of all relevant medical records and having those records reviewed by an expert.  If you do not timely receive copies of medical records which are necessary to a proper investigation of your case, that can substantially effect how your case proceeds.  An experienced medical malpractice attorney can evaluate the facts of your case and help you determine whether or not you should proceed with litigation.

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Don’t Sign Blindly

Posted on October 26, 2011 by admin

Tampa HCP, LLC, et al. v. Bachor, Florida Second District Court of Appeal – How often do you read the medical authorizations, consent forms and other documents you sign before receiving medical treatment? The contents of those documents may determine how you can recover from a healthcare provider in the event of medical malpractice, and maybe even limit the amount of compensation you can receive. Before receiving healthcare treatment, read all forms carefully and make sure you understand what you are signing. If you were injured as a result of medical malpractice, your attorney will need to review all consent forms and other documents you signed to best advise you on how to proceed.

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Is your injury covered by insurance?

Posted on October 21, 2011 by admin

American Safety Casualty Insurance Company v. Mijares Holding Company, LLC, Florida Third District Court of Appeal – Where an accident occurs can be an important fact in analyzing how you can be compensated for your injuries. Most often, insurance policies provide you with money you are entitled to after an accident. However, not every policy has the same coverage, or the same amounts of coverage. More importantly, you must determine if the at-fault party’s policy excludes the type of injury you sustained. So, it is important to make sure you understand your insurance policies and have the coverage you need to protect yourself in the event of an accident or serious injury. An attorney experienced in personal injury claims can investigate how best to help you recover against your own insurance policy or someone else’s.

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Is it malpractice or simple negligence? The answer matters.

Posted on October 21, 2011 by admin

Joseph v. University Behavioral LLC, Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal – Our own Fifth District Court of Appeal recently held that “the fact that a wrongful act occurs in a medical setting does not necessarily mean that it involves medical malpractice.” In the Joseph case, the Fifth DCA discussed the difference between medical malpractice cases, and simple negligence cases which occur in a medical or healthcare setting. If you are injured in a healthcare facility, in which legal category does your case fall? The answer depends on the circumstances of the incident and nature of your injury. It is important to determine which category your case falls into, because each category has different time limitations, and different requirements which must be met before filing suit.

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What type of expert do I need for my medical malpractice case?

Posted on October 21, 2011 by admin

Bery v. Fahel, Florida Third District Court of Appeal – Once again, Florida’s appellate courts have highlighted the importance of closely following the medical malpractice pre-suit investigation procedures. Every medical negligence case must be thoroughly investigated, and include an evaluation by an expert in the same field of medicine as the alleged malpractice. Since medical malpractice can result in serious injuries, or even death, it is imperative that your case be adequately investigated by attorneys familiar with the pre-suit procedure and the requirements of Florida law.

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Car Accident Jury Selection

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Patrick Canan

This case stems from an automobile accident. . Based on that incident, the injured party sued other driver, claiming henegligently operated his truck and improperly changed lanes causing his vehicle to strike the car driven by the injured party. After a four-day trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the Defendant, finding no negligence on his part.
The injured party subsequently filed a motion for new trial based on juror
nondisclosure. That motion alleged, in part, that a juror failed to disclose:
(1) prior felony convictions, and (2) that he had been involved in several
automobile accidents in the past. The motion further alleged that one of the
accidents occurred fewer than two years before the trial and the juror was found
to be at fault for improperly changing lanes.

The Fifth District Court of Appeal reversed the trial court and granted a new trial because  the “undisclosed information prevented counsel from making an informed
judgment, which in all likelihood would have resulted in a peremptory challenge.”

The Fifth District Court of Appeals serves many trial courts including those in St. Johns County and St. Augustine.

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All the Facts are Important

Posted on September 8, 2011 by JULIE KURTZ

Jones v. Basha, Inc., Florida 2nd DCA – Just yesterday, the Second District Court of Appeals held that a property owner defendant was not liable for an injury that took place on its property because there was no evidence to suggest that defendant exercised any control over the premises or public access. Its important to remember that the circumstances surrounding an accident or injury are important to determine whether or not you can recover compensation. Everyday we evaluate cases for the facts that will support, or refute, a defendant’s liability. As in the Jones case, it is important to investigate every aspect of the situation to determine how an injury occurred and who may be responsible.

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Medical Experts are Essential to Malpractice Case

Posted on September 6, 2011 by JULIE KURTZ

Spalding v. Zatz, 5th DCA September, 2011 –

The 5th DCA recently held that a medical malpractice victim was not entitled to a new trial even though the defense expert’s trial testimony materially varied from his deposition testimony, and plaintiff made no contemporaneous objection to the testimony. The appellate court found that the plaintiff had failed to timely move for mistrial, and instead cross-examined the defense expert regarding the change in testimony and even focused on the change in closing argument. Thus, the testimony did not rise to the level of fundamental error where plaintiff could not claim surprise at the expert’s opinion and plaintiff was already prepared to address topic of opinion with contrary evidence.

Once again, Florida’s courts have highlighted the importance of expert opinions in medical malpractice cases. Victims of medical errors need experienced attorneys who can manage the complex and unique circumstances of each medical malpractice case. That means, knowing how to ask the right questions, at the right time.

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