South Florida Personal Injury Blog

South Florida personal injury lawyer Andrew Alitowski has encountered a wide variety of intentionally inflicted injuries during his career in the Palm Beach/Broward/Miami-Dade metropolitan area. Often, people may think of these injuries as crimes, rather than as civil actions, but the two frequently overlap. An example that may clarify this concept is the O.J. Simpson murder case. Simpson was acquitted of criminal charges because the jury did not believe that the prosecution proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed murder. Nonetheless, when the family of Ronald Goldman filed a civil suit against him for wrongful death, they won damages because they were able to show that it was more likely than not that Simpson was responsible for Goldman’s death.

Perhaps the intentional tort the Fort Lauderdale public is most familiar with is battery. Battery is defined as intentionally causing harmful or offensive contact to a person. Occasionally, it can also be harmful or offensive contact to something on the person, such as a woman’s purse. The person who caused the contact – the defendant, if he is being sued – need not have hit the plaintiff with his bare hands to recover for battery. Although that is one possibility, the defendant could also have made the contact with an instrument. For instance, if Danny purposely shoved Wanda into Peggy, Danny would be liable to Peggy for her injuries. Wanda would not be responsible to Peggy, but Danny would also probably be liable to her for any injuries she suffered, as well. Similarly, if Danny intentionally hit Peggy with his car, he could be held civilly liable for her damages in that scenario, too. If you have suffered a battery, contact south Florida personal injury lawyer Andrew Alitowski.

Assault is likely the next best known intentional tort in Broward County. To show assault, the plaintiff must demonstrate that the defendant intentionally caused the plaintiff apprehension of offensive or harmful contact. Another way of saying this is that the plaintiff was reasonably afraid that she was going to suffer a battery. For instance, if Denise approached Pamela waving a realistic toy gun and threatening to shoot her, Pamela has a cause of action against Denise. Despite the impossibility of a real shooting, Denise intentionally made Pamela fear just that.

Intentional inflection of emotional distress is another tort worth discussion. Although it is usually part of a bigger lawsuit – rather than a stand alone issue – the residents of south Florida have almost certainly heard of it. In most cases, the defendant’s conduct must be outrageously outside of the standards of decency and calculated to cause the plaintiff extreme distress. The plaintiff will often demonstrate physical symptoms of her distress, such as the inability to sleep or stress-related headaches, although such symptoms are not necessary. For instance, telling the plaintiff that her father was murdered in an extremely horrific way, such that plaintiff suffered blood pressure-related complications, could set the stage for a successful intentional infliction of emotional distress lawsuit.

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Any Broward personal injury lawyer knows that vicious dog bites are not only common, but a source of intense stress. Some victims were chased by inadequately supervised dogs. Others were assured that they were harmless – “all bark and no bite” – by the owners. When bitten by an unfamiliar dog, the situation is even more dire. In addition to the fear at the time of the attack, and the ongoing pain, the victim of a dog bite will also have health concerns and medical bills. For instance, has the dog been recently vaccinated? Do we know who the owner is? Is the owner cooperative? Do I need painful, pricy rabies vaccinations to protect myself? These are just some of the questions clients of our Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney ask themselves.

First of all, seek medical attention and follow the advice of your doctor. When possible, you will want to find out the history of the dog, including the owner and all veterinarian records. Any Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer will tell you that safeguarding your health is the most important aspect of any animal bite ordeal.

A Broward personal injury attorney can help you enforce your rights. Under Florida law, the owner of a dog is liable for the injuries inflicted if you are bitten. This is true so long as you were either in a public place or you were lawfully on private premises. For instance, if you were visiting your friend for dinner when her German shepherd bit you in the kitchen, your friend is liable for the injuries. Likewise, if you were bitten on a public street, sidewalk, park, or other public property, the owner is liable.

If the owner had a “Bad Dog” sign, indicating a dangerous animal’s presence, the owner may only be liable if she was negligent in her supervision or containment of the animal. A Broward personal injury attorney knows that the sign serves as a warning to outsiders who may be unfamiliar with the dog’s dangerous tendencies. The exception to this is children under six years of age: those very young children are always protected by the law. The owner will be liable regardless of whether she was negligent in containing or supervising the dog, if the dog caused injury to the child under the age of six.

Similarly, the owner is liable for damages the dog causes to your pets or your livestock. If your neighbor’s dog comes onto your property and attacks your cat, your toy poodle, or your cattle, for instance, the owner will be liable to you for your damages. Our Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer is familiar with the complexities of dog bite cases and the amount of damage just one dog can cause to your person, your animals, and your property.

The owner’s liability for his dog’s behavior does not depend on whether or not he had prior knowledge of the dog’s dangerous tendencies. In some states, the owner must know of the dog’s danger; in Florida, such knowledge is irrelevant. Our Broward personal injury lawyer knows the ins and outs of dog bite liability in Florida.

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The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts studies and reports on auto accidents and applicable laws in U.S. states. A recent report released by the organization calls on states to raise the legal driving from age 16 to 17. The study revealed that teenagers who receive new licenses at the ages of 17 or 18 are less likely to have accidents than 16-year-olds with new licenses.

The number of crashes suffered by 16-year-old drivers is ten times higher than the number of crashes experienced by drivers between the ages of 30 and 59. More than 5,000 teenagers die in car accidents annually in the United States. In Florida, car accidents are believed to be the leading cause of teen deaths. According to the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles, drivers between the ages of 15 and 19 have the highest rate of crashes and the highest number of driver fatalities.

Some Florida driving school instructors believe that teenagers are in more accidents simply due to their lack of experience, while the IIHS sites the lower number of accidents among teens in the state of New Jersey, which is the only state in the U.S. that has raised the legal driving age to 17.

The highest number of accidents in Florida, however, involves drivers who are 18 or 19 years old. The IIHS believes this is because of the state’s graduated licensing system, which restricts the number of hours younger drivers can be on the road. As a result, drivers who are 16 or 17 are often driving with their parents. Teen auto accidents in Florida were reduced by 23 percent when graduated licensing began in 1996.

Nevertheless, the IIHS believes that car accidents in Florida could be further reduced if a law which increased the driving age to 17 was combined with the extra safety provisions in place regarding learner’s permits, restricted driving hours, and the necessity of 50 hours of experience driving with an adult before a driver’s license is granted.

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When an accident occurs, the injuries are usually turned into dollar figures. These dollar amounts are called “monetary damages” or “compensatory damages.” Determining the amount of the damages for doctor and hospital charges, car repair or replacement, and the fees charged by attorneys is easy. These are called “Economic Damages” (sometimes also called “Pecuniary Damages”) because they reimburse the injured party for “out of pocket” expenses incurred as a result of the accident. Lost income is also often included in Economic Damages when the person suffering the injuries must miss work.

But damages are also often awarded for “pain and suffering,” which is not so cut and dry. These damages are called “Non-Economic Damages” (sometimes also called “Non-Pecuniary Damages”). It can be difficult to apply a dollar figure to pain or to suffering, so this is where your personal injury attorney comes in. It’s the job of your lawyer to convince the responsible party’s lawyer that you deserve a certain amount of money for your pain and suffering. Much will be made of the severity of your injuries and how long they have caused or will cause you pain. If the injury results in any kind of permanent disability, the amount of money awarded for pain and suffering will be greater.

Non-Economic Damages for pain and suffering may also include something called “loss of consortium.” This means that the spouse of the injured party is also entitled to compensation if the person injured has been unable to participate in the marriage sexually or otherwise as a result of the accident.

These are not the only kinds of damages, though. If you’re in an auto accident, you may also receive “Punitive Damages,” which are allowed in Florida. These kinds of damages apply if the responsible party was very reckless in causing the accident. It may take an excellent personal injury lawyer to prove that the responsible party was truly reckless and negligent in the accident.

This is why it’s important to choose an experienced attorney to help you get the best possible settlement in your car accident case.

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If you are injured in an accident – whether it’s a car accident, on the job, or elsewhere – you may be entitled to money from the person or people responsible for the accident. This money is typically called “damages,” and the amount you request is called your “claim.”

Your personal injury lawyer will talk to you about a settlement, which is the amount of money you receive from the responsible person or people. After you have agreed to a settlement amount, you let the responsible parties off the hook for the accident and agree to never ask for more money from them. In order to start a case against the responsible parties, you must file a lawsuit against them with the local court in which you are the plaintiff, and they are the defendants.

As the plaintiff, it’s up to you and your attorney to prove that the defendants were responsible for your personal injuries. This proof will determine the amount of monetary damages that you receive. This is true whether or not you end up in court. The better you can prove that the defendants were responsible for your injuries, the less likely you will have to go to court at all.

Your personal injury lawyer will always try to avoid going to court because it is much less expensive. Instead, he or she will attempt to negotiate a settlement with the defendants or the defendants’ lawyer for your monetary damages. Usually, these negotiations are done with the lawyer for the defendants’ insurance company. This is especially true in automobile accidents where auto insurance companies are involved.

If the defendants’ lawyer refuses to pay you monetary damages in an amount that you and your lawyer believe is high enough, you may decide to go to court. Then, a judge or a jury will decide who is at fault for the accident and how much money, if any, you are entitled to receive. This happens most often when fault is not clear-cut. Sometimes, the defendants’ attorney may claim that you or someone else was partially at fault for the accident. There may be more than two parties, such as in a crash involving three or more cars. In a case like this, a judge or jury may be required to decide where the fault lies and how much money is appropriate for each person who suffered injuries.

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If you’re in an accident, you may hear the word “tort.” No, it isn’t a dessert. It’s a legal term for a harmful or negligent act. Florida tort law basically says that if someone causes you injury, you should receive monetary compensation for those injuries.

A tort is not a crime. Someone can cause an injury to someone else without breaking the law, but sometimes a tort does indeed involve a crime. If someone runs a red light, for example, that’s against the law. That person may receive a ticket from a police officer, but if running the red light also causes an accident, the crime is a tort as well.

The “tortfeasor” is the legal term for the person who causes the injury, and the injured party has a right to sue the tortfeasor for compensation, also called “damages.” These damages may involve bodily injury and/or injury to property.

In most automobile accidents, the torts are called “negligent,” which means that the tortfeasor failed to be careful enough to prevent the injury from occurring. Sometimes, a court is required to determine if someone was truly negligent and if their actions really caused the injuries in question. Even if someone is injured, the court may find that the tortfeasor took reasonable precautions to prevent the accident. In this case, the alleged tortfeasor may not have to pay for the injured person’s damages. This is why a personal injury lawyer is important – to help you prove that the tortfeasor is responsible for your injuries. Usually, attorneys can obtain settlement funds for their clients without going to court because court nearly always takes longer and is more expensive.

“Proximate cause” is another term that people see in personal injury cases. It means that the tortfeasor’s actions were a direct cause of the injuries. A court may find that the alleged tortfeasor did not directly cause the injuries and is, therefore, not responsible for paying for the damages. In other cases, it may be found that both the tortfeasor and the injured party are responsible for the accident. This means that they may have to share the cost of the injuries. The court may assign a certain percentage of the blame to each individual.

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