Articles Posted in Personal Injury

Law is one of those unique institutions that is both fluid, and firm. It seeks to provide fair justice to all, but it must adapt to the changing circumstances of the time.

Sometimes, change occurs through legislation. Other times, it happens incrementally, with individual case rulings setting acceptable standards and precedents. When jurisdictions conflict, sometimes the U.S. Supreme Court steps in, either formalizing or rejecting the standard.

All of this is to say that the law of our founding fathers may be principally the same, but in many ways, looks very different. The problem, however, is that not all of this change has been entirely organic. Our Coral Springs personal injury attorneys know that, unfortunately, there has been substantial pressure from outside forces – particularly those with big business interests – which in the last three decades has fought hard not only to limit plaintiff’s access to a fair justice system, but also to convince the public this is a good thing.
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The criminal and civil justice systems serve inherently different purposes. While the criminal system seeks to penalize a defendant for actions that violate the law, the civil system is designed to offer financial compensation to those who have been harmed by the wrongdoing of others.

In some cases, criminal actions can give rise to a civil lawsuit. While the criminal justice system sometimes proffers restitution to the victim, that is not its primary purpose. However, when a conviction is obtained in a criminal case, it can serve to bolster the stance of a plaintiff in a civil case stemming from the same incident. It may even allow the plaintiff in some cases to circumvent a trial altogether under collateral estoppel, which our Hollywood personal injury lawyers know is the principle that the courts need not litigate the same facts twice.

This was the case for the plaintiff in Lane v. Ballot, heard recently by the Alaska Supreme Court. Although this is an out-of-state case, the same general legal principles apply.
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Adults who serve alcohol to minors or allow underage drinkers to imbibe on their property need to understand that in Florida, they might be held liable for any resulting injuries.

Hollywood injury lawyers are aware of many cases in which parents hosted parties where underage drinking took place, followed by a crash, followed by a lawsuit wherein the parents were found to be negligent and held responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars or more in damages.

However, injuries may not solely be in the form of car accidents, as the recent case of Stafford v. Roadway. This was a social host liability lawsuit that went before the Connecticut Supreme Court, which was tasked with weighing whether an adult who allowed an underage person to drink in his home should be held liable for burn injuries that underage drinker sustained later that night.
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Filing a medical malpractice lawsuit in Florida involves meeting a very specific set of criteria. It’s a more intensive process than filing a general personal injury lawsuit because this type of litigation tends to be very complex.

Among the differences: There is a shorter statute of limitations, a requirement of certain expert witnesses to affirm a breach of duty by the medical professional, and the possibility that the hospital could claim sovereign immunity as “special taxing districts.” There may also be caps on certain types of damages.

However, Palm Beach injury lawyers note not every injury that occurs in a hospital, clinic, doctor’s office or nursing home is the result of medical malpractice. Health care professionals being sued will try to argue otherwise, in order to have the plaintiff abide by these stricter standards. Determining the kind of case you have may be a bit more complicated than it appears, but an attorney with experience can help.
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In the last several decades, the variety of beauty treatment providers has exploded. No longer are care regiments limited to the local hair salon down the street.

Consumers have their choice of hot wax and lasers and injections and white-hot bulbs and powerful chemicals and more. Of course, as our beauty salon injury lawyers in Fort Lauderdale are fully aware, many of these treatments can pose dangers when not properly applied or adequately overseen.

One of the biggest questions that must be answered before filing such an action is whether the “salon” is actually a medical facility. This is sometimes not always an obvious distinction. Examples might be places that provide laser hair removal treatments, Botox injections or weight loss programs involving medication. The reason it’s essential to answer this is because if so, it will necessitate a different approach by your attorney.
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In the last 10 years, there have been close to 2,000 Americans who dies because they accidentally took tom much of a drug all too well known for its “safety”: Acetaminophen. This drug is considered one of the nation’s most popular pain relievers, according to ProPublica.

As the active ingredient in Tylenol, it’s considered safe when it’s taken at recommended doses and millions of Americans take this drug each and every day with no bad side effects, but when you look at the big picture (and when you pair it with alcohol) the drug can destroy you.

Our Delray Beach personal injury attorneys understand that there are close to 200 Americans who are killed each and every year by accidentally taking to much. This drug has a narrow safety margin, which means that the dose that can help you is much too close to the dose that can harm you. For some time now, officials with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have known about the studies conducted to show consumers just how dangerous this drug is. Officials with Johnson & Johnson, McNeil Consumer Healthcare and Tylenol have also been aware of these studies. Still, for more than 30 years now, officials with the FDA have delayed or neglected to enact and kind of measures to help to reduce the number of injuries and death from this common household drug. Back in the 70s, these same officials started a comprehensive review to enact rules for the drug, but they have yet to finish.
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It may take days, and sometimes even weeks, after suffering a concussion before you feel like you’ve fully recovered. But pictures of your brain may say otherwise.

According to the Smithsonian, there’s a good chance that lingering abnormalities may be detectible by MRI as long as four months after a concussion. A new study published in the journal Neurology shows us just how serious and complex the healing process can be — even for a mild concussion.

Our Jupiter personal injury attorneys understand that behavioral symptoms typically heal more quickly than physiological injuries in the brain. There are many factors that play into the healing process of a concussion, including severity of injury, victim age, how healthy they were before the concussion, and how they take care of themselves after the injury. Ignoring your symptoms and trying to “tough it out” often makes symptoms worse. Be patient because healing takes time. Only when your symptoms have reduced significantly, in consultation with your health care professional, should you slowly and gradually return to your daily activities, such as work or school.
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There are so many scares wrapped up in Halloween, and we’re not just talking about scary movies and haunted houses. We’re talking about the very real risks that accompany children and their trick-or-treat activities.

First off, children are more than twice as likely to be hit by a car and killed on Halloween. But aside from the pedestrian safety, which we’ve discussed on our Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Attorney Blog, you’ve got to worry about the risks involved with dangerous costumes, tricky candy and dangerous properties.

Our Pompano Beach personal injury lawyers understand that the excitement of children and adults at this time of year can sometimes make them not as careful. We’re here to offer some safety tips that can help to ensure that you and your family enjoy a safe and memorable Halloween.
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As we’ve recently reported on our South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog, lawn mowers are causing some serious problems across the nation, especially in the state of Florida. We recently reported about a man who was involved in a mower-car accident along the 8820 block of Northlake Blvd west of the Bee Line Highway.

In another incident, a 2-year-old boy was injured in a lawn mower accident in Lake Placid, according to The Palm Beach Post. In this accident, the child’s mother was mowing the lawn when she ran over his leg with the mower. The young boy remains at the Tampa General Hospital in critical condition.

Our Palm Beach personal injury attorneys understand that there have been at least two other lawn mower accidents in the state of Florida this year that involved young children. Back in April, a toddler lost both legs below the knees after her father ran over her legs. In another instance, a 4-year-old lost part of her leg after her father backed over her with a riding lawn mower.
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