If you or a loved one sustained personal injuries due to the negligence of another person, contacting an Ocoee personal injury lawyer with the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine will help you understand your legal rights.
Types of Personal Injury Cases
Establishing a Personal Injury Case
To determine if you have a legal claim for a personal injury in Florida, we must prove that your case meetings the following criteria: duty, breach of duty (negligence), causation, and damages. If we can demonstrate all four of these elements, we will have a strong case for a personal injury claim.
The four elements of a personal injury case in more detail are as follows:
- Duty: The liable party must have had a duty to not cause injury. A landlord must create a habitable environment for a tenant, and a doctor has a duty to provide accurate and adequate medical care. A motorist must obey the traffic laws and not be a hazard to the public. In all of these examples, a person has a duty to ensure the safety of another.
- Breach: Florida Statute section 768.81 governs the laws of negligence within the state of Florida. Negligence is a legal term that means that someone has failed to behave with the care as an ordinary person with prudence would have behaved in the same circumstances.
- Causation: In order to prove a personal injury claim, you must prove that the harm caused to you or a loved one directly resulted from someone’s negligence and the breach of duty they owed you.
- Damages: The final piece to a personal injury claim is that you suffered actual damages. Damages can include any physical, emotional, or financial harm caused by the negligent actions of another.
Contacting the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine will connect you to a member of our legal team for a free consultation.
Florida Personal Injury Law
While Florida’s personal injury laws establish guidelines to compensate injured victims, they are numerous and complex. Here are some important laws an Ocoee personal injury lawyer on our team will keep in mind when filing your lawsuit.
Florida’s Comparative Negligence Law
Florida Statute section 768.81 indicates that Florida has established a pure comparative negligence rule. This rule of law states that the amount of compensation you receive from a personal injury lawsuit decreases according to the amount of your fault for the accident. This means that even if you are 15% at fault, you are still entitled to 85% of your damages. This Florida law should not deter you from pursuing your personal injury claim.
Florida Serious Threshold Injury
Because Florida is a no-fault state, Florida courts will assume that your no-fault policy will cover the compensation owed to you. Your personal injury lawyer can help you demonstrate that your injuries are serious enough to receive “pain and suffering” compensation.
Four categories rise to the serious threshold injury standard in Florida:
- Significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function
- Permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability
- Significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement
- Death
This law is not an exact science, and oftentimes we will arrange for expert witnesses to testify on behalf of our clients. An Ocoee personal injury lawyer will help you build a case that factors Florida’s serious threshold injury laws into account and protects your right to pursue the compensation to which you are entitled.
Florida Statute of Limitations
A statute of limitations is a law that gives a deadline for you to file a lawsuit. If you pass this date established by law, the Florida courts will likely dismiss your case. According to Florida Statute section 95.11(3)(a), if you or a loved one suffered a personal injury due to someone else’s negligence, you generally have four years from the date of the accident or injury to file a lawsuit.
However, there are some exceptions to this four-year rule. The Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine can help you navigate complicated statute of limitations laws, determine your just compensation, and help you understand your rights.
Action Plan After a Personal Injury
There are several ways you may sustain a personal injury due to someone else’s negligence. However, in almost all cases, filing a police report, seeking medical attention, and contacting an attorney will help you better establish your personal injury claim.
File a Police Report
If you have had an accident or injury, you should contact the police, if appropriate. Oftentimes, the police will document evidence and interview witnesses. An official police report is extremely persuasive if you pursue any legal action regarding your personal injury.
Seek and Document Medical Evaluation
If you have an accident or injury, you need to seek immediate medical attention. The documentation and medical evaluation provided by a doctor or medical professional is excellent proof of your personal injury for your legal case. Additionally, you should always document all medical visits, diagnostic tests, and additional symptoms that will help establish your personal injury claim and connect your injuries to your accident.
Contact an Attorney
If you have suffered a personal injury due to the negligence of another, one of the most important items in your action plan is to contact an Ocoee personal injury lawyer. Deadlines for filing claims are strict, and if you miss a deadline, you may lose your ability to file a lawsuit and obtain the compensation owed to you.
Personal injury laws in Florida are challenging to navigate without legal assistance. The Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine will help you understand your legal rights and help you determine your options to receive just compensation. Call the Law Offices of Anidjar & Levine today for your free consultation and to find out how our legal team can help you.
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