Personal Injury Cases in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Personal injury incidents are unexpected and can happen in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at any time. Residents going about their daily lives can be victims of personal injury incidents such as car accidents, slips and falls, or boating accidents. Fort Lauderdale is also a scenic vacation destination in Florida.
Personal injury incidents can dampen any trip to the beaches. The experienced Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers at The Russo Firm can help when the unexpected happens.
Personal injury incidents can cause catastrophic damages, such as medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering, that can result in significant financial, physical, and psychological impact.
An experienced Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney can help you file a personal injury claim to recover compensation for damages caused by a negligent party.
At The Russo Firm, our personal injury lawyers have decades of helping Fort Lauderdale personal injury victims pursue fair compensation for damages.
Why Choose The Russo Firm for Your Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Claim?
The personal injury lawyers at The Russo Firm have in-depth knowledge of the city of Fort Lauderdale from years of living here and helping personal injury victims.
We know the best practices in the claims process to put you in a position to recover compensation. We can assist you with assessing damages, assigning liability, and negotiating with the at-fault party’s insurer.
Our personal injury lawyers want to hear from you, so they can sculpt legal counsel around your specific situation. We do not have a “one size fits all” approach to the personal injury claims process. Our legal team is accessible to talk with you, review your case, provide updates, and answer your questions.
Contact The Russo Firm today to learn how our experienced Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers can help you pursue compensation for damages. Call our Fort Lauderdale office at (954) 767-0676 for a free consultation.
The Russo Firm Case Results
You can recover compensation in a personal injury claim through a settlement negotiated with the at-fault party’s insurance company or a court award. At The Russo Firm, we have personal injury lawyers with experience earning compensation for our clients through both means.
Settlement negotiations can be challenging, as an insurance company will do anything in its power to limit your settlement to keep its profits up. One tactic they use is offering a lowball early settlement to end the negotiations before you can get fair compensation. We understand this tactic and can see through the attempt to limit your settlement.
During settlement negotiations, we will always keep your best interests in mind and negotiate until you receive compensation that can cover the full cost of your damages. If a settlement cannot be reached, we can represent you in court and come up with a legal strategy that can maximize your potential court award.
The following are some of the case results we have earned for our clients:
- $3.3 Million for Car Accident Caused by Drunk Driving
- $2.4 Million for Medical Malpractice Misdiagnosis
- $2 Million for Wrongful Death Trucking Accident
- $1.75 Million Product Liability Jury Award
- $650,000 for Car Accident Jury Award
Types of Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Accidents
Many personal injury incidents can occur in Fort Lauderdale due to one or multiple parties’ negligence. If you are injured due to the negligence of another party, you suffered a personal injury incident. These can range from incidents involving vehicles, social media bullying, consumer products, and medical devices and drugs.
The following are some of the Fort Lauderdale personal injury incidents our firm handles:
- Car accidents
- Trucking accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Bus accidents
- Boating accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Medical malpractice
- Product liability
- Lyft accidents
- Defective drugs
- Defective medical devices
- Social media harm
- Nursing home abuse
- Premise liability
If you were in one of the above personal injury incidents, you could file a personal injury claim to pursue compensation for damages.
A Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer can use their local knowledge and experience in litigating personal injury claims to help put you in a position to recover compensation for your personal injury damages.
Florida Personal Injury Laws
Florida laws govern the many types of personal injury incidents, with each having its own set of rules. These laws govern the process following a personal injury incident, outlining who can be liable, and the amount of time you have to file a claim.
No-Fault Law
According to Florida statute 627.7407, Florida is classified as a no-fault state. This means that all drivers must purchase personal injury protection (PIP) insurance. PIP is a type of auto insurance coverage that helps pay for medical expenses and, in some cases, lost wages and other expenses related to injuries resulting from a car accident, regardless of who is at fault.
PIP is designed to provide quick and easy access to funds for medical treatment and other costs after an accident. However, you can still file a car accident claim to pursue compensation for car accident damages if you were severely injured due to another party’s negligence.
Florida Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Claims
Each personal injury incident has a statute of limitations, which is how long you have to file a personal injury claim to pursue compensation. The time can begin to run either on the day of the incident or the day you realize you were injured by the negligence of another party.
According to Florida Statute § 95.11(4)(a) (2023) you have two years to file personal injury claims involving actions founded on negligence and two years for any action of professional malpractice or that resulted in wrongful death.
The Rules of Negligence in Florida
Most Florida personal injury claims fall under comparative negligence, meaning a court has to assign a percentage of lame for every party involved in a personal injury incident. A party that contributed to a personal injury incident can still pursue compensation because of comparative negligence. Their settlement or award will have their percentage of blame deducted.
However, not all personal injury incidents are subject to comparative negligence. Product liability and dog bites are subject to strict liability, meaning the at-fault party (the company responsible for a defective product or a dog owner) is held liable for damages no matter what their intentions were at the time of the incident.
Common Types of Personal Injuries in Fort Lauderdale
You can sustain physical and psychological injuries from a personal injury incident. Both can affect your standard of living.
A physical injury can make it hard for you to walk, run, climb stairs, drive your car, and do daily tasks. A psychological injury can affect your quality of life and cause you to suffer depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The following are some of the severe injuries caused by a Fort Lauderdale personal injury incident that you can pursue compensation for:
- Spinal cord injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Broken bones
- Shoulder injuries
- Facial injuries
- Knee injuries
- Soft tissue injuries
- Back and neck injuries
- Internal injuries
- Mental disorders
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Infections
What Compensation Can You Recover in a Personal Injury Claim?
Compensation for personal injury claims or a wrongful death lawsuit may include economic and non-economic damages. You can receive compensation for medical bills and lost wages that result from a catastrophic or disabling physical injury.
Your lawyer can also help you receive compensation to pay for visits to a therapist or mental health specialist who can help you with psychological injuries.
Economic Damages
Sometimes referred to as special damages, these are quantifiable damages that you can attach a monetary value to. They include medical bills, lost wages, lost earning potential, property damage, etc.
Non-Economic Damages
These are intangible costs without a specific monetary value but still cause damage to your everyday life. Some non-economic damages can include pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of consortium, loss of society, loss of enjoyment of life, etc. These are sometimes referred to as general damages.
Wrongful Death Damages
Under Florida law, wrongful death occurs when a person’s death is caused by the wrongful act, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty of another party. This can include actions such as negligence in a car accident, medical malpractice, or intentional harm.
In Florida, various types of damages may be recoverable in wrongful death cases. These can include economic damages such as medical and funeral expenses, loss of support and services, and lost income or earnings of the deceased. Non-economic damages may pay for your pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of companionship or consortium for surviving family members.
Additionally, in rare cases, punitive damages punish the wrongdoer for intentional misconduct or gross negligence and deter similar behavior.
Filing a Personal Injury Claim in Fort Lauderdale
You can file a personal injury claim with the at-fault party’s insurer to seek compensation for damages not covered by your insurance. Florida operates under the theory of negligence, which means you must be able to prove the other party’s negligent behavior led to your personal injury incident and your damages.
Under the theory of negligence, you must prove:
- The at-fault party owed you a duty of care.
- They breached the duty of care.
- You received damages during the Fort Lauderdale personal injury incident.
- Your damages were a direct result of the at-fault party’s breach of duty of care.
Some evidence that can help prove liability in a personal injury claim includes photos and videos of the incident, medical records, insurance statements, police reports, vehicle accident reconstructions, and online correspondence records.
How Can Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Lawyers Help with Your Claim?
In the aftermath of a Fort Lauderdale personal injury incident, you will be faced with worries about your physical and mental health as well as how you will pay for the damages. This is not something you have to handle on your own.
An experienced personal injury attorney can take the stress off your shoulders and allow you to focus on healing.
A personal injury incident can result in severe injuries, such as broken bones, knee injuries, and mental disorders, that can cause significant issues in your daily life. Personal injury damages can also cost upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars, which most people will not have available to pay for medical bills, lost wages, and lost earning potential.
Hiring a personal injury lawyer can help with the claims process. Avoid handling it alone, which can lead to mistakes that could limit your potential settlement. A Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyer has experience handling personal injury claims, settlement negotiations, and court cases that can help you recover compensation for your personal injury damages.
The following are some of the ways a Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney can help with the claims process:
- Assessing your damages
- Determining the liable party
- Collecting evidence
- Handling discovery
- Interviewing witnesses
- Negotiating with the at-fault party’s insurer
- Representing you in court
Effective managing the claims process can help you secure fair compensation that can pay for the full cost of your losses. Hire an experienced Fort Lauderdale personal injury attorney to put yourself in the best position for fair compensation.
Establishing Liability in a Fort Lauderdale Personal Injury Accident
A key component of successfully handling a personal injury claim involves establishing liability. This means identifying the at-fault party and holding them accountable. Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers can help you collect tangible evidence to prove the at-fault party’s negligence.
The liable party in a personal injury claim is the one who behaved negligently and caused the personal injury incident as a result. Negligent behavior is any action that breaches a duty of care and leads to a personal injury accident.
Following are some of the possible liable parties in a Fort Lauderdale personal injury incident:
- Negligent driver
- Defective product manufacturer
- Defective product designer
- Defective product seller
- Defective product distributor
- Property owner
- Healthcare professional
- Employer
- Government entity
A personal injury attorney can help you identify the liable party when they hear the story of what happened with your accident. The liable party isn’t always as easy to define as a speeding driver who drove right into you. Once the liable party is identified, your lawyer can put together a plan that best suits your case to recover compensation from the at-fault party’s insurance company.
Contact The Russo Firm for Help With Your Personal Injury Claim
The experienced personal injury lawyers at The Russo Firm can help you pursue compensation by using their local knowledge of Fort Lauderdale locations, knowledge of Florida personal injury laws, and experience handling personal injury claims.
We will keep in constant communication, shaping legal counsel around your developing case. Our goal is to represent your interests and put you in the best position to recover compensation for personal injury damages.
At The Russo Firm, we offer free consultations to Fort Lauderdale personal injury victims to see how we can help them earn compensation for their damages. Contact us by calling us at (954) 767-0676 or leaving a message on our online contact page.
The Russo Firm – Fort Lauderdale
110 E Broward Blvd #1700
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
P: (954) 767-0676