South Florida Personal Injury Blog

According to Florida discrimination attorneys, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects individuals against employment discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race, color, national origin, and religion. In the State of Florida, The Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 takes it one step further and adds age, handicap and marital status. Further, both also protect against pregnancy discrimination.

Well, there are two more classifications that are seeking protection under a new bill filed by Representative Kelly Skidmore in the Florida House of Representative. This new bill sees to add “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the Florida civil rights statute.
Currently in Florida, according to Florida Discrimination Attorneys Alitowski & Moore, it is legal to discriminate against someone because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Though within some cities, these categories are getting more protection at a local level, it is not in all cities and thus not uniform throughout the state.
This new House bill will assist in protecting all Floridians who want to make discrimination in Florida illegal
http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gaysouthflorida/2009/11/florida-competitive-workforce-bill-filed-to-add-anti-discrimination-protections-statewide.html

As per this recent article, Florida discrimination attorneys claim that the debate and interest in civil rights is heating up all across the country. Whether the noise is coming from the right or the left, it is here and it is loud.
http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=4859&MediaType=1&Category=26
From Alaska, to Michigan, to Florida, the debate on whether to write laws that give more rights to gay, lesbian or transgender people is very contentious and very active. Both sides are heavily invested in this issue. The two sides are mainly broken down into a religious, conservative and mostly church side versus a civil rights and mostly liberal side.
It is unlikely that the Federal government will intervene into this issue anytime soon. With the health care debate, the 3 current wars that the United States is in, and the current economic and housing crisis that we are in, the Federal government does not seem to have enough room to discuss or put this into its agenda. Currently there are 38 states where it is legal to fire or not hire someone because of their gender identity or expression.

If you have been discriminated against based on your sexual orientation or gender identity, please call and speak to a Florida discrimination attorney at the Law Offices of Andrew S. Alitowski at 888-ASK-ANDREW (275-2637) or contact us online. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
If you are injured…Ask Andrew!!!

[Broward County employment discrimination/retaliation question continued from November 11, 2009]

A claim of retaliation, if it is supported by sufficient evidence to be submitted to the jury, raises the value of the plaintiff's potential recovery in two ways. First, a plaintiff who has been the victim of retaliation has a greater chance of winning the sympathy of the jury on the underlying claim of discrimination. And second, proof of retaliation also goes a long way toward justifying an award of punitive damages, which are available only upon proof that the defendant acted "with malice or with reckless indifference to the federally protected rights of an aggrieved individual. As with claims of discrimination, the crucial issue in retaliation claims is whether the plaintiff has presented sufficient evidence to survive a motion for summary judgment or a motion for judgment as a matter of law, in order to have the claim submitted to the jury.

Employment Lawyers that will fight for you.

The city of Pembroke Pines in Broward County is facing a class action lawsuit due the red light cameras installed by the local government, says Fort Lauderdale car accident attorney Andrew Alitowski. Although the city claims that the cameras save lives, many remain skeptical of both that assertion and the municipality’s reliance on public safety as the real reason the cameras were installed to track motorist’s violations.

The red light cameras purport to snap photos of the license plate of any car that goes through the intersection after the light has turned red, says Broward injury lawyer Alitowski. The system then generates a traffic citation, which is sent by mail to the registered owner of the vehicle – and does not take into account who may have been driving the motor vehicle. The possibilities for trouble here are not hard to spot: although parents of a teenaged driver might want to know that their child is not driving as safely as he claims, there are times when a non-primary driver – like a friend who borrowed the car or even a thief if the vehicle has been stolen – will trip the red light cameras. Still, the registered owner of the car is expected to foot the bill for the violation. If he or she disagrees with the citation, it is taken up before the special magistrate, who is employed by the city.

According to Broward car accident lawyer Alitowski, the lights may catch those drivers who run a red light by very little time – perhaps even less than a second. Although the city of Pembroke Pines maintains that the installation of the cameras has prevented car accidents, the city admits that it did not maintain statistics before and after installation of the cameras in order to prove the assertion. Motor vehicle accidents caused by running stop lights often occur several seconds or more after the light has changed.

The fines generate significant amounts of revenue: the city expects to make about $1 million annually from them, although it has held off installing the last few cameras due to the pending litigation. Pembroke Pines has issued over 1500 citations based on the photos since the cameras were installed in March of this year. Motorists in some other states have been successful in their lawsuits over the cameras, so there is hope for the litigants.

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Fort Lauderdale Video Production Firm Hits The Mark When it Comes to Day in The Life Videos

The importance of “Day in the Life” videos in personal injury cases can’t be over emphasized. The emotional impact can be multiplied many times over standard trial testimony if done correctly. Attorneys know that this type of exhibit must be produced with not only attention to the art of producing video but also to evidentiary rules that can stand in the way of admissibility. Spending a significant amount of money on evidentiary production only to have it disallowed by the court in your client’s case would certainly be a devastating experience.

Video producers are artists, lawyers are well, something far less interesting or even likeable. The legal production video is one of the few things in this world that brings professionals from opposite sides of the career universe together. The shooting and editing of legal presentation videos are, simply put, one of the specialty areas of video production. The requirement that the production team must have skilled attorneys on staff monitoring the creation process, prevents many vendors from being eligible to accept such projects and opting instead for the less liable gigs such as weddings and Bar Mitzvahs.

I recently spoke to Martin, one of the video production planners at Group Project, a South Florida video production company that produces legal presentation work.

“From the outside, making a “day in the life” video seems like the easiest thing in the world for a new Fort Lauderdale video production company. You just go where the subject of the piece is, turn on the camera, and record them. A videographer right out of film school may hope to catch something that is telling about the affliction in which the subject might be suffering, much like a wildlife photographer hopes to catch an animal doing something exciting. If that is the mindset of the team, the video shouldn’t even be shot because it’s going to get excluded.”

He is right. If you don’t understand the latest rules governing the admissibility of evidence, your videographer is going to eventually “throw a rock” at the subject to get it to do something… so to speak. The problem is that judges are not stupid. Neither is opposing counsel. Each will spot such filming practices a mile away.

“You are very limited by the court system”, claims Martin, but that is where you have to get creative… very creative. It is true that our team attorney keeps the videographer from coloring outside of the lines, but within those lines our creative team paints a picture that will knock you over with its emotional impact.”

Car accidents are among the most devastating sudden problems a family can have, says Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney Andrew Alitowski. The psychological, emotional, physical, and financial impact can be tremendous, he says, noting that the sudden nature of car accidents means that they are disasters for which many people find themselves entirely unprepared. An experienced car accident attorney or motor vehicle accident lawyer can guide you through the process.

Psychologically, some motor vehicle accident survivors find themselves reliving the smashing of metal on metal or the sound of shattering glass while they try to concentrate on work or school matters. Others have sleep disturbances, says Fort Lauderdale accident lawyer Alitowski. The worst psychological consequences can include symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which is brought upon by a serious, traumatizing event.

Financially, families are often pulled too tight to have the savings to immediately handle the medical bills, the cost of replacing a much-needed car, and other expenses out of pocket. In an ideal situation, auto insurance and medical insurance can cover the up front costs to help a family stay afloat, but for the underinsured and uninsured, the costs can soar to insurmountable levels in the hours after the collision, according to Broward accident attorney Alitowski.

The physical damage from a car accident can last a lifetime. Unfortunately, the most horrific car accidents can result in the death of loved ones, which may give rise to lawsuits on that basis. Although no amount of money can replace a family member’s presence, funds can cover children’s expenses, help with mortgage payments a newly-single parent will be unable to cover herself, and other costs that are difficult to manage when circumstances change dramatically.

In other instances, Fort Lauderdale motor vehicle accident lawyer Alitowski says that the types of injuries often sustained in car accidents are painful and difficult to treat and cure. Whiplash, head injuries, torn rotary cuffs, internal injuries, and other problems are among the types that our clients may manifest after the car accident.

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