Personal Injury Law of Florida more or less revolves around torts - civil wrongs recognized by law as basis for a lawsuit. These wrongs result in an injury and sufficient grounds for a claim by the injured party. The basic principle of tort law is to give relief for the damages incurred by the injured person and discourage others from committing alike harms. An experienced personal injury lawyer in Florida can provide sufficient legal advice regarding the state law because the injured person has got the legal right to sue for damages he or she has endured.
Some general provisions of Florida personal injury law:
Personal injury law is a state law made through judges and by legislatures. There are three general types of torts that law recognizes:
A) intentional torts B) negligent torts, and C) torts based on strict liability.
Personal Injury Attorneys of Florida passionately pursue justice for those who are harmed. The law of Florida strictly say that if a plaintiff sues under the theory of strict liability, he or she claims that the defendant is liable regardless of fault. The issue of the defendant's negligence is immaterial. The defendant is liable if the defendant's activity in any way caused the plaintiff's injury.
Other important provisions of Florida personal injury law:
There are three very important personal injury laws:
Medical and professional malpractice law which deals with unprofessional or unethical conduct by professionals. In the United States, medical malpractice lawsuits consist of majority of the malpractice lawsuits. Medical malpractice lawsuits can be exceptionally expensive to pursue, with costs often exceeding $100,000.00. An injured patient is well served if he goes with a competent medical and professional malpractice attorney of Florida.
The product liability law that provides the right to a person hurt by a defective product to sue manufacturer of the product. Manufacturers are strictly liable solely for defective products which cause injuries. Therefore, a threshold obligation for an injured plaintiff is to demonstrate a product to be defective. Exactly what comprise a defect remains imprecise, but courts agree and specialist defective products attorneys of Florida are of the opinion that there are three separate types of defects: manufacturing defects, design defects, and defects in warning.
Manufacturing defects happen when a product is not manufactured according to its design: a screw is forgotten, a protective cover is not properly fastened; somewhere a mistake occurs, and the product is still sent into the stream of commerce.
A product with a design defect may be decently manufactured, but the design itself is unsafe. Personal Injury Attorneys of Florida claim that manufacturers have a duty to safely design products for their intended use and for misuse, if such misuse is predictable. A very appropriate example is sited by a noted design defects claims lawyer of Florida. He says that a kitchen cleaning agent must be designed to safely clean countertops and stovetops, but it can be foreseen that a child can drink the product, so a manufacturer must design the product in such a manner that it is safe when drunk or should have a child-proof cap.
A defect in warning involves a manufacturer's failure to sufficiently instruct or warn a consumer about a product's dangers. According to opinion of manufacturing defects Attorneys of Florida, a consumer has the right to be properly instructed of any risk in using the product. Only then can he or she make an informed judgment as to whether, or in what way, to use a product. This obligation to warn includes products that have already been sold. If a manufacturer detects a product's potential hazards after the product has been introduced into the market, it's the duty of the manufacturer to warn those early consumers. Personal injury lawyers of Florida contend that manufacturer may even have to recall the product, as has happened in the automobile and processed food industries.
A prior warning is not required in product dangers that are "open and obvious". But what make up "open and obvious" is not strictly defined. Something that is obvious to one person may not be foreseeable to another. Consequently, some manufacturers will warn consumers about even remote risks so as to defend against potential lawsuits.
Transportation Law, which deals with automobile, maritime, railroad, and aviation accidents. According to automobile accidents statistics of 1994, there were 206,183 serious automobile accidents reported in Florida, resulting in 223,458 injuries and 2,722 deaths. Recognizing that accidents often lead to lawsuits, Florida adopted a no-fault insurance system in which insured persons receive payment for injuries or damages from their own insurance company regardless of who was at fault. According to the opinion of Florida's Transportation Law attorney a no-fault insurance enable persons to receive payment for most medical, disability, or death expenses quickly and without having to sue in court.
Under Florida's system, every person who operates a vehicle in Florida for more than 90 days must have what is known as "personal injury protection" (PIP) insurance. This insurance covers the insured, the insured's relatives living in the same household, anyone driving or riding in the insured's car, and anyone not in a motorized vehicle who is hurt as a result of the use of the insured's car. An eminent personal injury lawyer of Florida says that the degree of PIP coverage is: up to ten thousand dollars per person for (1) medical expenses; (2) lost income; (3) funeral, burial, or cremation costs. The insured has no personal obligation to the extent that PIP benefits are owed for an injury.
After receiving a PIP injury claim, an insurance company is obligated to send the claimant a “bill of rights' within a 21 days time limit. It's the duty of the insurance company to explain all the benefits the insured is entitled and how quickly the company will pay. The Florida Department of Insurance is authorized to fine insurance companies for delay in payment of benefits. If a person has a grievance with an insurance company for PIP benefits, he or she may demand mediation before going to court. A good personal injury lawyer of Florida can guide in the matter. The insured can also request in person for mediation by contacting the Department of Insurance by calling (800) 342-2762.
It is significant to note that no-fault insurance does not forestall a person at fault in an automobile accident from being sued. A specialist transportation law attorney of Florida can represent the effected person in any of the following injuries, and the person responsible for causing such injuries can be sued for tort damages in court:
- Substantial or permanent loss of an important bodily function
- Injury that is permanent within a fair degree of medical certainty
- Permanent scarring or disfigurement
- Death
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