Personal Injury

Published on: February 12, 2016

Jenkins v. C.R.E.S. Mgmt. LLC – Premises Liability for Criminal Attack

Those who have suffered a violent criminal attack know how it can upend your whole life. The physical injuries can be devastating and the emotional scars may last long after the body has healed.

The criminal justice system exists for the purpose of holding accountable those who have broken our laws, especially when that results in harm to others. Meanwhile, the civil justice system allows for victims to seek financial compensation for the losses they have sustained. In many such cases, it’s worthwhile to look beyond the person who committed the crime to determine whether there are other entities (usually the owner of the property where the attack occurred) who breached a duty to take reasonable measures to prevent such such an attack where it was foreseeable.

But how could a property owner possibly know someone would independently commit a criminal act? After all, no one can legally be expected to have psychic powers. However, the foreseeability test takes into account whether the property owner could have reasonably foreseen the attack based on a history of past similar crimes at the same location. A good example of this was recently seen in the case of Jenkins v. C.R.E.S. Mgmt. LLC, before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Continue reading →

Published on: February 3, 2016

Brawl in Florida Bar Leads to Lawsuit Against Pop Star

By Dean Freeman

A bouncer at a popular Key West bar is suing former Backstreet Boy Nick Carter after the pop star allegedly attacked staffers and tried to choke the plaintiff for kicking him and his friend out of the establishment for being unruly and disrespectful.

According to The Daily Mail, the bouncer claims the singer physically assaulted him while he was escorting the pair out of the bar, Hog’s Breath Saloon. This was after he reportedly attempted to headbutt the manager of the bar after the staff refused to serve him or his friend any drinks, as they had arrived inebriated. He allegedly became irate and refused to leave after being asked to do so 10 times, staffers said.

Carter, who was recently the runner-up on the popular show, “Dancing With the Stars,” reportedly apologized for his actions, saying he was finding it difficult to “balance a healthy lifestyle” and he is “not perfect.” At the scene, where he was arrested for misdemeanor battery, Carter reportedly told the officers staff at the bar, “acted like Navy Seals.” Continue reading →

Published on: January 22, 2016

Ketler v. PFPA – Enforcing a Liability Waiver

By Dean Freeman

Waivers of liability are contracts signed that release one person or business from responsibility for certain negligence that may cause harm to another.

These are often thrust in front of people who participate in recreational activities like parasailing, skydiving or rock wall climbing. However, they are increasingly being used by companies that aren’t necessarily offering a potentially dangerous service or activity. For example, many gyms require patrons to sign such waivers before they will allow them to become members.

That’s what plaintiff in Kelter v. PFPA did, three years before he was seriously injured when a piece of heavy equipment broke while he was using it. Continue reading →

Published on: January 12, 2016

Hot Coffee Injury Lawsuits Still Pouring In

By Dean Freeman

It’s been more than 20 years since a 79-year-old New Mexico woman was awarded millions by a jury after suffering severe burns from scalding coffee served by fast-food restaurant McDonald’s. The claim had been widely derided publicly as frivolous, though what many people didn’t understand was the severity of the woman’s injuries (requiring extensive skin grafts) and the fact the chain had been repeatedly warned that its brew was blisteringly hot.

Now, another popular chain, Starbucks, has been on the receiving end of a number of hot coffee lawsuits. The results have been a mixed blend.

Most recently in South Florida, a man alleges he suffered severe burns when a barista at a drive-through in Pompano Beach did not make sure the lid was securely on the cup. The employee then reportedly failed to make sure plaintiff had a good handle on the cup before letting go, resulting in severe burns to his groin. Continue reading →

Published on: December 15, 2015

Inmate Abuse, Neglect and Death Cited in Lawsuits Against Florida Prisons and Jails

By Dean Freeman

Florida’s prison system and jails are coming under fire amid a host of inmate injuries and deaths that are alleged to have been caused by abuse and neglect. The Miami Herald reports there were nearly 350 inmates who died in Florida prisons last year. While not all of those are attributed to wrongdoing, it is a record high, despite the fact the number of inmates as a whole has remained largely unchanged.

One of those cases, involving a man who died after suffering severe burns after being locked by guards in a scalding hot shower, has resulted in a federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The 50-year-old inmate at the Dade Correctional Institution in Miami suffered from schizophrenia and was allegedly being punished for refusing to clean feces off the floor of his cell.

An investigation by the Miami Herald, which involved spending more than a year interviewing dozens of witnesses, pouring over hundreds of records and analyzing a number of claims, the paper found alleged abuses included:

Sexual assaults by officers against inmates;
Racially motivated beatings;
Withholding food from inmates in a mental health ward;
Refusing to secure medical treatment for inmates in dire need.

Continue reading →

Published on: November 29, 2015

Cruise Ship Injury Verdict $21M for Defective Door

By Dean Freeman

A cruise ship injury resulted in a$21.5 million verdict in favor of plaintiff after jurors in the federal lawsuit determined the cruise line was grossly negligent for failing to fix a faulty door, which was a known problem.

In Hausman v. Holland America Line-USA et al., tried in the Washington Western District Court in Seattle, plaintiff not only produced evidence of his own injury, but of similar injuries suffered by dozens of other passengers before him involving the same type of sliding glass doors that struck him. These other cases occurred across the company’s fleet, with the issue being faulty sensor settings.

Plaintiff alleged he suffered a minor brain injury when he was struck by the door as he exited behind several cruise members. Surveillance video of the incident, which occurred in open water, shows plaintiff approaching the doors and then being struck in the face and side of the head when the doors shut unexpectedly. Defense argued in trial plaintiff walked into the closing doors. Continue reading →

Published on: November 19, 2015

Estate of Gagnon v. Anthony – Comparative Fault in Personal Injury Lawsuits

By Dean Freeman

The principle of comparative fault is key in many Florida personal injury lawsuits. Comparative fault is the degree to which an injured plaintiff is responsible for his or her own injuries.

For example, a pedestrian is struck by a drunk driver. The driver may well be liable, but if the pedestrian was not using caution to cross safely in a designated crosswalk, he may be found to have committed contributory negligence. The way this affects a case varies greatly from state-to-state.

Florida, thankfully, has one of the more plaintiff-friendly interpretations. Our courts use a model called “pure comparative fault.” What that means, per F.S. 768.81(2) is that if a plaintiff is at-fault, that percentage is going to diminish proportionately the amount to which plaintiff is entitled to recovery. However, unlike many states, plaintiffs can recover damages so long as their own fault is less than 100 percent. So a person who is 99 percent at-fault for their own injuries can still recover 1 percent of the damages from the other liable party. Continue reading →

Published on: October 23, 2015

Report: 106 Miles of Unsafe Sidewalks Span Fort Lauderdale

By Dean Freeman

Fort Lauderdale’s city manager has proposed shelling out $2.1 million in risk insurance funds to cover the cost of sidewalk repairs, following a new report indicating more than 100 miles of it in the city are unsafe.

That will only begin to cover the costs of fixing the walkways, though. The consultant’s study that opined a quarter of the city’s 425 miles of sidewalks are badly damaged (cracked, uneven or pocked), and the cost to fully repair those areas is going to be $16 million. But even paying that much won’t give the city the safe walkability label for which it’s striving. Even if the city doubled the number of sidewalks that currently exist, that wouldn’t be enough to place sidewalks on all the roads in the city that lack them. By some estimates, that cost could swell to $100 million.

But it’s a major concern when you consider two things:

Florida has the highest rate of pedestrian accidents, fatalities and injuries in the nation.
The city has spent $1.3 million in five years to settle trip-and-fall claims related to sidewalk falls, but it’s only spent about $750,000 in repairs during that time – with about $94,000 of that reimbursed by homeowners who live adjacent to those sidewalks.

Continue reading →

Published on: August 28, 2015

Chin v. Koryo Corp. et al. – Construction Site Fall Nets $2.8M Verdict

By Dean Freeman

A man who suffered a leg amputation after falling 30 feet on cement while working at a construction site in New Jersey has been awarded $2.8 million from the building owner and general contractor.

The plaintiff worker in Chin v. Koryo Corp. et al alleged as a native of Korea who spoke limited English, defendants failed to provide him with proper training and a safe workplace environment in which to perform his duties.

One aspect that harmed his case, however, was the finding of comparative fault stemming from the fact he helped construct the bosun chair, comprised of wood and rope, from which he fell. That fact resulted in jurors in his injury case finding him 30 percent at fault for his own injury. Another issue that damaged his case was the defense assertion that he could find other suitable work, as evidenced by his helping a friend find and purchase a new car, thereby receiving a finder’s fee. Continue reading →

Published on: August 17, 2015

Westfield Ins. Co. v. Vandenberg – Boating Injury Insurance Dispute

By Dean Freeman

In the boating injury case of Westfield Ins. Co. v. Vandenberg, the question was raised to the U.S. Court of Appeal for the Seventh Circuit regarding whether the construction company insurance held by a defendant in the injury lawsuit could be liable to pay defendant’s share of damages.

The appellate court answered no.

Plaintiff previously agreed to a $25 million settlement agreement, to be paid through the assignment of claims against defendants’ insurance companies. This decision means plaintiff will have to rely on payments from the other insurers. Continue reading →