Personal Injury

Published on: October 29, 2024

Fort Myers Injury Lawyer Warns of Florida Golf Cart Owner Liability

Golf cart owners in Florida, listen up! You could be held legally responsible if someone is hurt in a golf cart accident involving your golf cart, even if you weren’t the one operating it. As a Fort Myers injury lawyer can explain, you have a duty as the owner of that golf cart to avoid handing over the keys to someone who is careless. That could include someone you know if they drive recklessly, has a history of drunk driving or a teenager without much driving experience; this same law applies even if the person who you loan the cart to has a good driving record and has no history of driving issues. This is especially true if the golf cart is going to be operated on a public road with cars.

Golf carts were designated as “dangerous instrumentalities” – the same as motor vehicles – in the 1984 Florida Supreme Court case of Meister v. Fisher. Because a dangerous instrumentality is deemed inherently dangerous, their owners can be found directly and/or vicariously liable when someone is hurt while operating it negligently. It doesn’t matter if the owner wasn’t the operator, so long as the operator had the owner’s permission.

That point was underscored in a recent Florida injury lawsuit that resulted in a multi-million dollar damage award.

The case in question was out of Miami-Dade County, where a 12-year-old boy suffered catastrophic and permanent injuries in a golf cart accident in 2016. A motor vehicle struck a golf cart full of minors at an intersection – but only after the golf cart operator, 16-years-old, blew past a stop sign. The golf cart flipped and the occupants – all under 18 – were ejected. Two were left in critical condition, including the plaintiff in this case.

Golf Cart Owner Ordered to Pay $50 Million for Florida Golf Cart Accident

The owner of the golf cart was the 16-year-old’s step-uncle. A trial court determined the golf cart owner authorized the teen to drive the golf cart around the neighborhood with the golf cart owner’s son and three other friends. One of those was the plaintiff.

After the accident, the boy’s parents sued both the operator of the golf cart and the owner in the case of Gonzalez v. Chiong. (The driver of the car was not negligent in this case, and therefore was not named as a defendant.)

Before trial, the driver of the golf cart/his parents entered into a consent judgement with the injured boy’s parents for $18 million. Attorneys for the golf cart driver asserted his operation of the golf cart was covered under his parents’ auto insurance policy, as it was a “non-owned auto.” The insurance company, of course, pushed back, arguing that the policy didn’t cover golf cart accidents because a golf cart “doesn’t meet the definition of a private passenger auto.” The trial court agreed with the insurer, granting them summary judgment, but that was later reversed by the 11th Judicial Circuit Court, which ruled the golf cart was covered under the auto insurance policy.

Trial proceeded against the owner of the golf cart proceeded, with plaintiffs arguing he owed the young passenger and his parents a duty of care, negligently breached that duty by entrusting the golf cart, and therefore should be liable for his injuries. The trial court sided with plaintiffs, ordering the golf cart owner to pay a total of $46 million in past and future economic and non-economic damages, and another $4 million to his parents for loss of consortium.

It’s important to note that while the court in this case found the golf cart owner directly negligent for entrusting the golf cart to his 16-year-old step-nephew, other courts have applied the dangerous instrumentality doctrine in Florida golf cart accident cases and found the golf cart owners vicariously liable. That means the court wouldn’t even need to find that the owner was negligent in handing over the keys to another. It would be sufficient to show they gave the operator permission, and that operator subsequently acted without care and caused someone else to get hurt. Continue reading

Published on: September 6, 2024

Injuries in Schools: Fort Myers Injury Lawyer Discusses Liability

by Leland Garvin

injuries in schools Fort Myers injury lawyer School is back in session in South Florida! We all are hoping for a happy, healthy, productive school year. Of course, it seems inevitable that there will be at least some injuries in schools.

If your child is injured at school, it may be possible to take legal action, but a lot of it depends on the severity of the injury and how it all went down. As a parent, you understand there are occasional playground accidents or gym class mishaps. If it’s just a bump or a scratch, there may not be much you can do about that. But if your child was seriously injured, violently assaulted or required hospitalization or surgery as a result of their injuries, you should really get a Fort Myers injury lawyer on the phone to talk through your options.

As government agencies, many schools are protected by state sovereign immunity laws. But that doesn’t mean they’re absolved of legal responsibility to keep kids safe. They can still be held accountable when they breach their duty of care and someone gets seriously hurt as a result.

Was the School Negligent?

The school district, employees and even some school contractors owe a duty to use reasonable care to make sure your child isn’t at an unreasonable risk of harm. Teachers, counselors, coaches, administrators – they must provide a safe environment and do what’s reasonably necessary to keep them safe.

If the school breaches the duty to keep your child safe and your child is injured as a result to the point of sustaining damages (financial impacts), the school may be found negligent – and thus liable to provide compensation.

It’s a good idea to talk with an experienced attorney about whether you’ve got a case before making any big decisions. Remember that injury lawyers are paid on a contingency fee basis, meaning that we offer free initial consultations and you pay nothing unless/until you win your case. So there’s no risk in reaching out to a local lawyer just to ask whether you have grounds to take further legal action.

Accountability for Injuries in School

Examples of injuries in schools that might warrant a civil claim for damages:

Accidents involving school property. Examples of dangerous school property could include rusted playground equipment, faulty gym equipment, dangerous science experiments, uneven flooring, etc.
Negligent supervision. If students aren’t reasonably supervised, they could be injured by another student, teacher or staff member. They might also just get themselves into an unsafe situation. This applies in the classroom, in specials, in the hallway, during pickup/drop-off and even on the bus. This claim can arise too when teachers or other school employees fail IEP guidelines intended to keep students safe.
Sports injuries. PE and school-sanctioned sporting events are a common source of school injury lawsuits.
Transportation accidents. School bus accidents and injuries, school bus stop injuries, chaotic pickup and drop off lines that lead to kids getting struck in the school parking lot – any of these could result in school district liability for child injuries.
Medical malpractice. It doesn’t happen often, but if the school nurse fails to follow the applicable standard of care for their professional medical position, the school may be sued for medical malpractice.
Assault, battery, bullying, etc. When incidents of violence happen on school grounds, schools may be held liable if the harm was foreseeable and they failed to stop it. Bullying typically escalates over time, giving school officials opportunities to become aware and intervene.
Sexual abuse/molestation. If a child is sexually assaulted or attacked at school or by a school employee, parents can pursue civil liability separate from and in addition to criminal charges.

Published on: August 28, 2024

Proving Proximate Cause in a Fort Myers Personal Injury Claim

by Leland Garvin

Fort Myers personal injury lawyer doctor examines broken leg In Fort Myers personal injury cases, proving proximate is key.

Causation generally is a key element in any personal injury claim. Injury cases mostly stem from allegations of negligence. To prove general negligence, we have to show the defendant owed our client a duty of care, they failed to use reasonable care, and that failure caused our client’s injuries. Causation is the crux of what connects the conduct of the defendant to the injuries of the plaintiff.

If the defense can prove something else was a greater factor in causing the plaintiff’s injuries, they’ll likely win the case – no matter how egregious their fault or how serious a plaintiff’s injuries. To prove causation, we have to show that but for the defendant’s actions, the harm would not have occurred.

Definition of Proximate Cause

So what is proximate cause?

Fort Myers personal injury lawyers use this term to assert that the defendant is legally responsible for our client’s injuries because their actions were either a substantial factor causing the harm AND/OR, the harm caused was a natural and foreseeable consequence of the defendant’s actions.

That doesn’t mean the defendant’s actions were the sole cause. Sometimes injuries have multiple causes. But the proximate cause is the one that we aim to prove when we’re pursuing a case for legal (financial) responsibility for the resulting harm. Continue reading

Published on: August 19, 2024

What’s the Cost of Hiring a Cape Coral Personal Injury Lawyer?

by Leland Garvin

It’s reasonable that anyone considering any type of service would first inquire how much it’s going to cost. Hiring a Cape Coral personal injury lawyer is no different in that regard. But it’s important to understand that there are some key differences in how, when, how much, and even if you pay a Florida injury lawyer – compared to other service providers, but even compared to lawyers in other practice areas.

Personal injury lawyers practice a type of law called “torts.” A tort is some act or failure to act that causes harm to someone else and rises to the level of a civil wrong (as opposed to criminal) for which the court can impose liability. The most common torts arise from personal injuries stemming from negligence, the failure to use reasonable care when one had a responsibility to do so. Typical tort cases are motor vehicle accidents (motorcycle accidents, car accidents, bicycle accidents, truck accidents, etc.), medical malpractice, and premises liability/dangerous property cases.

How Attorneys Determine Fees

How much a Cape Coral personal injury lawyer charges for taking on a case will depend on several factors, including:

The attorney’s experience, reputation, and ability.
The fee customarily charged in that area for similar legal services.
The time and labor required, the difficulty of the question involved, and the skill required to handle the case successfully.
The potential value of the case, and the results obtained. (Generally cases involving serious injuries, multiple insurance policies, and clear fault/injury cause are going to have a higher overall value – though this can be offset by elements like complexity, numerous injured parties, etc.)

Understanding Contingency Fees

You do not pay upfront attorney’s fees for the services of a Cape Coral personal injury lawyer. Injury lawyers typically assess the value – and viability – of your injury claim upfront for no cost. They’ll tell you if they think you can win, and whether they can help. If they agree to take you on as a client, you still don’t pay attorney’s fees upfront. Those are only paid at the end of the case, and only as a percentage of what you win. This is referred to as a contingency fee structure. Continue reading

Published on: July 16, 2024

The Risk of Rushing to Settle Your Naples Personal Injury

by Leland Garvin

Whether we’re talking about a motor vehicle accident, medical mistake, or slip-and-fall, one of the surest paths to unfair financial compensation is signing off on the insurance company’s initial settlement offer without first running it by a Naples personal injury lawyer.

This might be OK if the only losses you’ve suffered are property damage and some minor injuries. But if you were hospitalized, had bones broken, had to take off work for a while, etc., it’s important to avoid signing away your rights to pursue full and fair damages by agreeing to the first settlement offer insurers put in front of you without having a lawyer look at it.

Insurance companies commonly try to take advantage of the fact that you are in shock, traumatized, concerned about money, and don’t realize your case may be worth a lot more. If you sign off on the first settlement agreement they thrust in front of you, you could well be signing away your right to a great deal more money.

At the very least, having a Naples personal injury lawyer review it will give you peace of mind that the deal you’re inking isn’t going to be to your detriment down the road. Settling an injury case too quickly means you might not have a complete sense of the full scope of your losses – in which case a settlement can mean you’ll be losing money.

It’s not about being greedy. It’s about making sure you don’t end up paying out of your own pocket for an injury caused by someone else’s carelessness.

Most Naples Personal Injury Cases Are Resolved Via Settlement

Published on: March 13, 2024

What Factors Can Affect Damages in Fort Myers Personal Injury Cases?

by Leland Garvin

One of the first questions a lot of people ask when they’re first considering filing a Fort Myers personal injury lawsuit is, “What is my case worth?”

In legal terms, we would phrase “the amount owed” as “damages.”

To answer this question, your Fort Myers personal injury lawyer would certainly start by examining the type of injury, who was at fault, how much you’ve racked up in medical bills, and the wages you’ve lost while you’ve had to take off work to recover. Determining the full scope of damages can quickly get complicated.

That’s partially because not every loss is tangible. You may be entitled to compensation for your physical pain and suffering or even for the emotional anguish you went through as a result of the incident. Those things aren’t easily measurable in dollars and cents (even if that’s how they’re ultimately paid).

Other factors that must be considered:

The type and severity of injury.

Minor injuries shouldn’t be dismissed, of course. But the reality is that unless your injury landed you in the hospital, resulted in a permanent injury, significant loss of function, permanent scarring, and/or forced time away from work, it’s unlikely to result in a significant settlement without the hiring of a skilled personal injury attorney.

If you are in a car accident in Florida, you actually can’t step outside the no-fault system to pursue damages against the at-fault driver unless the extent of your injuries meets or exceeds the serious injury threshold, as outlined in F.S. 627.737. This requires evidence that your injury consisted of a significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function, significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement, permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability, or death.

However, this same rule won’t apply to motorcycle injury victims because they do not carry the no-fault personal injury protection (PIP) insurance. So again, the type of injury can impact how your case proceeds and how much it’s worth.

It’s also worth pointing out that certain types of cases may be more difficult/complicated to successfully pursue. For instance, a case of medical malpractice or product liability is going to require more resources, expertise, expert witnesses, attorney time, etc. They may also yield higher damage awards as there will likely be more recoverable assets/insurance coverage, but all of this will be weighed in determining the value of a case. Continue reading

Published on: February 20, 2024

Florida Brain Injury Lawyer Breaks Down Brain Injury Lawsuit Deadlines

by Leland Garvin

Doctor reviews brain scans of a patient represented by South Florida brain injury lawyer A traumatic brain injury can make it seem as if time is literally standing still. Many of the 2.5 million people diagnosed with a TBI in the U.S. each year describe a sense of “depersonalization” or “derealization” that disrupts their sense of time – along with their memory, balance, sleep cycles, mood patterns, brain function, and more. Unfortunately, as a Florida brain injury lawyer can explain, that doesn’t always mean you’ll have more time to file a civil negligence claim for damages related to that injury.

Traumatic brain injury or “TBI” is a contributing factor in an estimated one-third of all injury-related deaths in the U.S. A 2012 study published in the Journal of Safety Research revealed the cost to society for care and lost productivity due to brain trauma is enormous: $76 billion annually. Not all TBI sufferers are permanently impacted, but the National Institutes of Health report an estimated 5.2 million people in this country are disabled due to their TBI.

Although we don’t know exactly how many TBI injuries are caused by another’s negligence, we do know a fair number of Florida litigants include TBI claims. A longitudinal study published in the journal Frontiers in Neurology found that approximately 40 percent of TBI victims in one city had filed a personal injury lawsuit related to their claim.

A Florida brain injury lawyer can also tell you that many of the most common types of actionable injury claims involve head trauma: Car accidents, motorcycle accidents, bicycle accidents, pedestrian accidents, slip-and-falls, hotel and resort injuries, golf cart injuries, construction accidents, nursing home falls, medical malpractice claims, criminal assaults on business property, etc. Depending on how serious your injuries were and whether someone else was at-fault for what happened, it may be possible to take legal action against at-fault parties in civil court to recover damages for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more.

Factors That Impact How Long You Have to File Your Florida Brain Injury Lawsuit

Published on: December 13, 2023

5 Must-Know Facts About Florida Personal Injury Law

by Leland Garvin

Florida personal injury law explained by Fort Myers injury law firm

The first introduction many people have to Florida personal injury law is when they find themselves injured and in need of an attorney or being sued. Especially for an injured party emerging from the traumatic fog of that experience and still healing, it can feel overwhelming trying to follow along with the intricacies of the vocabulary, statutes, timelines, court procedures, etc.

Here, our Fort Myers personal injury lawyers offer up 6 facts about Florida personal injury law that we find are most relevant to the plaintiffs, who are our clients in these cases.

1. No-Fault Laws Don’t Absolve Anyone From Liability in a Car Accident.

There’s a common misconception that Florida’s no-fault car insurance law, F.S. 627.736, means that there is no finding of fault in car accident cases. This is false. What is true is that with the personal injury protection (PIP) coverage that is required of all registered vehicles in Florida, up to $10,000 in damages can be paid to the policyholder for things like medical bills and lost wages – and this is paid regardless of fault. However, as you likely already know, $10,000 is nowhere near enough to cover one’s losses in a crash, especially if the injuries are serious.

According to the National Safety Council, the average economic cost of a disabling car accident in 2021 is $155,000. That includes wage and productivity losses, medical expenses, property damage, and uninsured costs for employers. The average cost of a fatal crash is $1.8 million. Even in cases where injury is “possible but not evident,” the cost was $24,000 – 150% more than what PIP covers.

Florida’s no-fault law just means you need to go to your PIP insurer first. If your injuries meet the “serious injury threshold,” you can step outside of that system and take legal action against the at-fault drivers.

2. Florida Now has a 2-Year Statute of Limitations.

Published on: November 27, 2023

“Can the Defense in My Fort Myers Injury Lawsuit Spy on Me?”

by Leland Garvin

Fort Myers injury lawsuit spying by defense The uneasy feeling of being covertly watched is one that’s inspired more than a few catchy songs, but you should know it’s a possibility if you’re the plaintiff in a Fort Myers personal injury lawsuit.

Whether we’re talking about a matter of medical malpractice, a car accident injury, or a dangerous product case, there’s nothing in Florida law that will technically block the defendant from conducting some type of surveillance on you. In fact, you should probably expect it. In personal injury cases, the goal of “spying” is to rebut damage claims. Florida courts have generally held that because of the public interest in exposing fraudulent personal injury claims, plaintiffs can anticipate that a “reasonable” investigation is likely to include independent verification of their injuries.

But that doesn’t mean your privacy goes out the window. By working with a Fort Myers injury lawyer, you’ll get a much better sense of what these investigators are likely to look for and ways you can shield your privacy. We will help ensure that your rights are protected, and injury case defendants won’t get away with playing dirty.

What Are the Surveillance Rules in a Florida Injury Lawsuit?

Fairly common surveillance tactics in Florida injury lawsuits:

Monitoring your social media pages to see what sort of activities you’re up to. They may scour the posts and pictures for clues about not only your physical capabilities, but your mental/emotional state – which can be a significant component of damages in a Fort Myers injury lawsuit.
They might have an investigator post up to watch/record you as you leave your home, enter your place of employment, or carry on with daily activities.
They might request surveillance footage of local businesses or government agencies that might show you moving throughout a typical day – grocery shopping and lifting bags, walking through the park with a backpack on, unloading items from your vehicle at a local print shop, etc.

However, this “spying” is not without limitation. Continue reading

Published on: October 9, 2023

5 Fast Ways to Sabotage Your Fort Myers Personal Injury Claim

by Leland Garvin

Fort Myers injury claim lawyer As longtime Fort Myers personal injury lawyers, we recognize that most claimants in these cases are in uncharted waters. It’s not every day (thankfully) that a person is seriously injured in something like a car accident, slip-and-fall, or criminal attack on another’s property. And it’s not unheard of when these things happen for the person to try and file a claim for damages on their own. There’s no law that says you must hire a personal injury attorney for these cases. But doing so is like traversing an unfamiliar path without a guide.

The injury claims process is foreign to so many people, and thus opens the door for inadvertent mistakes that can sabotage their chances of full and fair financial recovery for injuries.

Some of the most common mistakes we’ve seen torpedo Florida injury claims: