Florida is considered a No-Fault state which means each driver is required to pay for and have what is called Personal Injury Protection Insurance (PIP). This coverage will pay for 80% of your medical bills up to $10,000 no matter who is at fault for the accident.

Creditors have a requirement by law to file a Statement of Claim with the probate court within 30 days of receiving a Notice to Creditors and within 90 days of the Notice to Creditors being published. If a Creditor has filed a Statement of Claim with the probate court, the Personal Representative can then file an Objection to the claim.

If a person dies without a will, that is considered an Intestate probate, and Florida Statutes 732.101 - 732.108 governs the distributions of a decedent’s assets. If a person dies with a will, which is considered a Testate probate, then those in the will receive exactly what is written.

If a person is in danger of being taken advantage of due to their mental incapacity or is having difficulty caring for themselves, a guardianship may be necessary to protect them. After the guardianship is approved by the court, the alleged incapacitated person is then called the ward and the Judge determines the rights that will be removed, and the rights that the ward will retain . The Guardian that is then appointed will be able to act on behalf of the ward.

When it comes to deciding the parental rights and responsibilities with regards to the children, the court requires a Parenting Plan. This plan will include child support, time sharing (child visitation) and all aspects of the relationship between the former spouses and their children.

You have the right to remain silent. Any information that you give a police officer, other than your identifying information, will be used against you in the prosecution of your case. A criminal defense attorney who is retained early on during your legal case will be able to speak on your behalf and perhaps resolve your case successfully for you.

In the state of Florida, drivers are not required to have Bodily Injury or liability insurance and therefore many injured people are left with no recourse at all. This is why having Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist coverage (UM/UIM) is very important. This insurance is vital and will allow you to bring a claim and/or lawsuit against your own insurance company for your permanent injuries if the party that caused your injuries did not have bodily injury insurance.

If you are bitten by a dog in a public place or in a place that you were invited to be, the dog owner is strictly liable. There are no defenses and the dog owner must pay for your damages. The only exception is if the owner had displayed in a prominent place on his or her premises a sign easily readable including the words “Bad Dog.” There are always exceptions, so contact your Ft. Lauderdale and Miami dog bite lawyers to review your case with you.

In order to recover damages for pain, suffering, mental anguish, and inconvenience because of bodily injury, sickness, or disease arising out of a car accident, you must prove that you suffered a permanent injury. Contact our Miami and Ft. Lauderdale personal injury attorneys today to review your case with them. The attorneys are well-versed in reading medical records and working with your Doctors in order to explain permanent injuries to insurance companies and juries.

THIS LAW HAS CHANGED PURSUANT TO HOUSE BILL 837 WHICH WAS SIGNED INTO LAW ON MARCH 24, 2023 BY GOVERNOR DESANTIS. THE NEW MODIFIED COMPARATIVE FAULT LAW WILL BE SUBJECT TO AN UPDATED BLOG SHORTLY.

Florida Statute 627.4137 requires that an at-fault party and their insurance agent provide the name and coverage information of each known insurer within 30 days of a written request, and they must also forward the request to their liability insurance carrier. Upon receipt of this information, your Miami-Dade and Ft. Lauderdale personal injury attorneys will work with your medical records and your physicians in order to present to the insurance company and/or jury your injuries and the damages that you sustained in order to obtain the largest possible settlement and/or verdict.

After the jury awards a number for economic damages, the judge, outside the presence of the jury, then reduces the amount awarded by any collateral sources that may have already paid for these losses. Collateral sources are different types of insurance that may have already paid for your treatment such as; health insurance and disability insurance. This prevents a double recovery. Your Ft. Lauderdale and Dade County personal injury lawyers will make sure these setoffs are correct and that you obtain the largest number possible.

The Complaint is the initial document filed to begin a lawsuit and sets forth the facts in support of the cause of action. In order to bring a lawsuit for negligence, you must prove the following elements: 1)Duty, 2)Breach, 3) Causation and 4) Damages.

During litigation both sides will conduct an investigation which is called Discovery. This is the opportunity for both sides to gather all of the information about the case, both good and bad. Our MIami and Broward litigation lawyers will take the necessary depositions of each and every witness and cross examine them in order to get to the truth of the matter.

Lawyers use the term damages when discussing amounts of money to be awarded to an injured person. There are economic damages such as money for medical bills and loss wages and there are non-economic damages which are damages for pain and suffering. Pain and suffering is a vague term, however an experienced personal injury attorney will be able to give the jury various ways to quantify pain so that the injured party receives the largest verdict possible.

After your case is presented to the jury, it is their responsibility to render a verdict. The judge will read to the jury the Jury Instructions which will be prepared jointly by the lawyers, and the judge has the ultimate say on the final instructions. Our experienced litigation attorneys will review the instructions with the jury during closing arguments so that they understand the case and award the largest possible verdict.

At the end of the trial, the jury will have to decide on the verdict. During closing arguments we, at Kreutzer Law Offices, will review the jury instructions with the jury and we actually show the jury a copy of the verdict form. Therefore, the jury will be in the best position after the closing arguments to award a large verdict.