Attorney Blog

West Palm Beach Car Accident Instructions to Client

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35289 — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Once you have been in a West Palm Beach car accident, it is important that you listen to your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer who will probably give you some instructions to help your case. While you are being treated for your injuries,keep your attorney informed as to your progress and be sure to keep all of your medical appointments unless it is absolutely necessary to cancel as missed appointments can hurt your case later. Accuratetly report your symptoms and injuries and let the doctor know that causes good and bad days, pain and difficulties. Be honest with the doctor and let him/her know about any relapses after periods of recvoery and the location of your pain and diability and how it affects your work, lesiure, family life, etc. Try to recover as soon as possbiel because the law required you to mitigate your damages. Lastly, be sure to review all of the doctor's reports for any inaccuracies.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Independent Medical Evaluation

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35159 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

In a West Palm Beach car accident case, the insurance company may ask that you indergo an independent medical evaluation of your injuries. Your West Palm Beach car accident attorney will probably agree, but he/she should place parameters around the evaluation prior to it occurring. This may be done by an agreement of the parties which my include the plaintiff being entitled to copies of the cover letter from the defendant along with any questions or comments being posed to the doctor by the defendant, copies of the report and accompanying cover letter, that wither party may use the doctor at trial or in a deposition, and that the cost of the evaluation is being absorbed by the insurance carrier. Other restrictions may be placed on the evaluation as well depending upon the particular circumstance of your case.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Law Response When Liability Not Clear

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35153 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes in a West Palm Beach car accident case, liability is not as clear and your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer's response to the insurance adjuster's initial offer may indicate so. Notwith standing that liabilty may not be crystal clear and the adjuster may assess some comparative negligence to your case, you still have damages that need to be addressed and your West Palm Beach car accident attorney should know how to evaluate your case taking into consideration that liability may be an issue and that you may be comparatively negligent. Physical damage to the vehicles and police reports along with witnesses are helpful in determining liability and comparative negligence in case.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Written Response with Clear Liability

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35150 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

In some cases, the insurance adjuster will paly hardball and attempt to devalue your case even though liability is clear and there is no comparative negligence on your part. In this in this instance, the only issue is your damages of which your medical bills and lost wages should be verifiable. The amount placed on your pain and suffering then becomes the harder issue to settle.

West Palm Beach Car Wreck Written Response to Insurance Adjuster

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35149 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Typically, once a client has completed treatment after having been injured in a West Palm Beach car accident, the trerating doctor will issue a report indicating the client's injuries, treatment, and the long-term impact and recommendations for future treatment. Based upon this, your West PAlm Beach car accident attorney will write a letter to the insurance adjuster called a demand letter asking for settlement at a certain amount. The insurance adjuster will usually wite back and either the case will settle at the initial demand amount or the parties may negotiate. If the insurance adjuster does not accept the initial demand, he/she will make a counter-offer and indicate why they feel that amount is fair. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will then convey the offer to you and you will either accept the offer or make your own counter-offer indicating why you feel the insurance adjuster's offer is unreasonable.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Early Neutral Evaluation In Addition to Mediation

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35148 — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Once a lawsuit has been filed in a West Palm Beach car accident case and all discovery has been propounded and responded to, the next course of action is usually mediation if the parties are unable to settle on their own. Mediation is a pre-requisite to trial. To have a successful mediation, your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer should prepare as if he/she is ready for trial and have all necessary documentation such as medical records, medical bills, loss of income documents, videos, diagrams,and photos to demonstrate clear liability. Your West Palm Beach car accident attorney should also have assessed any special damages, comparative negligence claims, pre-existing conditions and any other factor which may affect the value of your damages.

West Palm Beach Car Accident First Party Bad Faith

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35004 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes, a plaintiff may have to sue their own insurance company for payment associated with injuries sustained in a West Palm Beach car accident under their own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage. If your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer is not able to settle your claim with your own insurance company, he/she may write a letter putting your insurance company on notice of a first party bad faith claim. Such a letter would indicate that the insurance compnay has been provided with all of the necessary information and records to fairly settle the claim and that they have failed to do so in a timely manner and therefore, your West Palm Beach car accident attorney intends to file suit agansit them for unfair claims settlement asking for compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys fees, and interest.

West Palm Beach Rear-End Collision Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)35003 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

A lot of West Palm Beach car accidents occur as a result of what you would call a rear-end collision meaning the defendant's car came into contact with the rear of the plaintiff's car usually because the defendant was not able to stop in time to avoid hitting the plaintiff for whatever reason. This may happen at an intersection where there is a red light that the plaintiff has come to a stop at and the defendant is unable to stop in time probably because he/she is traveling too fast for the conditions or not paying attention, or following too close. When this happens, the plaintiff may suffer injuries to the neck, back spine or some other area and may need medical attention and treatment. The plaintiff may then sue the defendant if they are unable to settle the claim for damages as a result of the injuries sustained in the car accident for pain and suffering medical bills (present and future), lost wages (present and future), and for permanent injury if any.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Failure to Yield Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34995 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

West Palm Beach car accidents can occur in many different ways one of which is a result of the defendant failing to yield. In such a case, a typical complaint might first identify the plaintiff and defendant and their residences, jurisdiction and venue, and then lay out the date and facts of the collision such as the defendent negligently operated his motor vehicle and struck the plaintiff's car when he failed to yield the right of way to the plaintiff by failing to stop at the intersection and lookout for traffic. As a result of this negligence, the plaintiff sustained injuries to hte neck, back, shoulder and arm thereby incurring medical bills, loss of income, pain and suffering (all present and future) and possible permanent injuries .

West Palm Beach Automobile Collision--Passenger with a Disc Injury

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34993 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

In a complaint for damages against a defendant involving a West Palm Beach rear-end collision with disc injuries to the passenger, you would expect to find the following information contained in a complaint:

the names and residences of the plaintiff and defendant, jurisdiction and venue, the date and facts of the West Palm Beach rear-end collision such as defendant negligently operated motor vehicle and struck the rear of the plaintiff's car and caused injury to the plaintiff who was a passenger. The defendant failed to see hte plaintiff's car and operate at a reasonable speedfor the conditions and was following the plaintiff's car too close. As a result of the defendant's negligence, the plaintiff suffered serious and disabling injuries to the neck and back including the L4-L5 level of the spine. The plaintiff incurred medical bills (present and future), loss of income (present and future), disability, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life (present and future) and permanent impairment.

West Palm Beach Complaint for Rear-End Collision For Mother and Children as Passengers

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34988 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

In a West Palm Beach rear-end collision comlplaint involving a mother and her children, you would expect to see the following details contained within a complaint agaisnt the defendant for damages:

the names of the plaintiffs and defendant with their residences, jurisdiction and venue, the date and facts of the West Palm Beach car accident such as the plaintiff was operating a vehicle near a street by the children's school when she was rear-ended by the defendant who caused a collision with her car for failure to maintain proper speed, control over the vehicle, lookoit for the plaintiffs' car, and was therefore the proximate cause of the accident. You would then explain the plaintiff's injuries and that she has pain and suffering both present and future, medical bills (present and future), lost wages (present and future) and permanent impairment. Each plaintiff would have their own count in the complaint against the defendant. If the plaintiff is married, the spouse may have a loss of consortium claim for the loss of care, comfort, society, and companionship. There would then be a claim for damages agaisnt defendant and a prayer for relief in favor of the plaintiff.

West Palm Beach Automobile/Pedestrian Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34980 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

West Palm Beach car accidents do not always invlove two or more vehicles. Sometimes an auto accident might involve a car and a pedestrian. In this instance you would expect to find the following information in a complaint by the pedestrian against the car driver:

the names of the plaintiff and defendant and their residences, the jurisdiction of the court, the date and facts of the accident such as that the defendant was negligent when he/she failed to yield to the plaintiff in the crosswalk while the pedestrian had the right of way and was driving too fast and failed to look out for the plaintiff, plaintif suffered injuries, pain and suffering, incurred medical bills (present/future), and loss of income (present and future).

Each complaint will be tailored to the specific facts of a casem but this is some general information you would expect to see in a West Palm Beahc automobile/pedestrian accident case.

West Palm Beach Request for Production from Defendant to Plaintiff in a Car Accident Lawsuit

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34969 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

If your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer decides it is necessary to file a lawsuit in your case, he/she will almost certainly receive a request for production from the defense attorney once the discovery process has begun. This is a request for documents or other tangible evidence regarding your car accident. The types of documents you could expect to have to produce are the following:

memos, notes or other correspondence from any labs, hospitals, or clinics that examined, treated or tested you within the last 10 years,reports from any doctors, physical therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, etc. who may have treated you within the last 10 years, copies of statements for bills, or checks refelcting payment of medical expenses related to the accident, any documents reflecting damages not of a medical nature, all statements of a witness or party whether written or recorded, every report of decription of the accident including police agencies and DMV, all notes, memos, reports, reflecting treatment/exam of psychologist, psychiatrist, or other related provider for injuries related to the accident, tax returns and W-2s for the last 5 years,employment records, records verifying loss of income, workman's compensation claims, videos/charts/photos of the accident, prior lawuits within the last 10 years, repair bills/estimated for repair to your motor vehicle.

Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer may need to object the producing some of these documents. He/ she will know the law and what his acceptable ot produce and what is irrelevant or privileged/protected.

West Palm Beach Plaintiff's List of Activities Affected by Car Accident

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34873 — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

If you find yourself the victim of a West Palm Beach car accident in which you have sustained substantial injuries, your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer should ask you how your injuries has affected your ability to perform certain activities. You should indicate to your attorney which activities have been substantially limited or impaired since your West Palm Beach car accident. Activities can include anything such as yoour ability to perform sports like running, playing tennis or basketball, exercising, gardening or going shopping or to a movie. It may impact more day to day activities like showering, cooking, taking care of your children, etc. Should you have to proceed to trial on your case, you will need to provide your West Palm Beach car accident attorney a list of before and after witnesses. These persons should be objective, impartial and have had the opportunity to observe you before and after your accident.

Interrogatories in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Discovery

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34864 — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Discovery in a West Palm Beach Car Accident can involve a number of requests for information--one being interrogatories or questions addressed to a party by the other side which are answered under oath. Some of the information you would be expected to know or provide in a West PAlm Beach car crash case might include:

your name, address, date of birth and whether you are married or not. You usually have to answer whether you wear glasses or some other corrective lenses and whether you have ever been indicted or plead guilty to a felony punishable by death or imprisonment for 1 year or more for a crime involving dishonesty or false statement. You may be asked whether you are aware of any written statements which are relevant to the case and whether you or your West Palm Beach car accident attorney possess pictures or photos depicting the accident which is the subject of your claim. You must identify any experts including doctors and their opinions who may be called as witnesses.

You may also be asked whether you were under the influence of alcohol, drugs, medicine, etc. within 24 hours preceding the accident if you were driving. You will be asked to descirbe the accident and any conditions present such as bad weather, lighting, road conditions, etc. and whehter you believe another person may be to blame or partially to blame for the accident. You will be aksed to estimate your speed of travel and whether you have a valid license and have ever had your license revoked or suspended. If there was any damage to your vehicle, you will need to provide costs, and describe the extent of damage along with a copy of your car insurance policy.

What to Expect from the Defense in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34545 — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

There are numerous defense strategies the insurance companies will employ while litigating a West Palm Beach car accident case. They will hire chiropractors, biomechanics, accident reconstructionists and other experts in an effort to delay, deny and defend your right to recovery. One of the major things the defense typically focuses on is the severity of the impact by looking at the change in velocity of your vehicle or Delta V. This is done to attempt to show that the impact was not sufficient to cause injury even though force of impact is not alone a reliable gauge of injury and studies have shown that there is no correlation between whiplash grade and Delta V and that there is no threshold above or below which an injury is more or less likely to occur.

The defense may also attempt to show that you suffer from a pre-existing condition and that complaints are related to that and not a new injury. Insurance companies will often hire doctors who may say that the plaintiff has received a lot of unecessary medical care and accumulated unreasonable medical bills. The attorneys at Sharmin and Sharmin, P.A. only handle car accident cases and are experienced at anticipating and deflecting the typical insurance defense strategies.

CME in your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34220 — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

A CME is a compulsory physical examination that you may undergo while in litigation in your West Palm Beach car accident case. A CME must be reasonable as to time, place and location of the plaintiff and the condition of subject to the examination must be in controversy. There is no requirement that the CME must be performed in the same county as the plaintiff. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will object if the request is unreasonable.

Strict Liability for Ownership of Dogs on Your West Palm Beach Property

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34215 — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Strict liability for owning a dog is not solely limited to dog bites. If your dog runs off your property and into the street and the driver of the car swerves to avoid hitting the dog and as a result is in a West Palm Beach car accident, you as the owner may be liable to the injured parties.

West Palm Beach Car Accdident Rear-End Collision

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34213 — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes when a person is sued in a West Palm Beach car accident, they will claim someone else caused them to hit the other driver in a rear-end collision. Usually, this other person is not identified or involved in the accident. This is known as a fabre defendant. However, unless the car in front of the at-fault driver suddenly and unexpectedly stopped, or suddenly and unexpectedly changed lanes of there was mechanical failure of the tortfeasor's car, then the car that hit you from behind is at fault and is the proximate cause of the West Palm Beach car accident.

West Palm Beach UM Demand Call 1-800 HURT 911

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34106 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

If it determined that after investigation, that the other driver who injured you in a West Palm Beach car accident does not have insurance or is underinsured, your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer may make a demand on your own insurance policy if you selected UM benefits. A UM demand might include medical reports and bills, lost wages information and any witness statments. It may also include the police report.

West Palm Beach Auto Accident Insurance Policy Information

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34105 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

One of the first things your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will do once he/she has been retained to represent you is to write a letter to your insurance company and the at-fault party's insurance company to determine if there is coverage and if so, what type and in what amounts. This is important for determining all of your coverage rights and benefits. In the event the other driver is underinsured or uninsured, you will have to look at your own policy to see if you elected UM benefits for recovery. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will request the insurance policies along with a certified copy of the declarations page and an outline of benefits.

WItholding Medical Records in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34102 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Pursuant to Florida law, a medical provider may not withold records conditioned upon a fee for services rendered if a patient or a patient's representative makes a request. The only exception is for psychiatric records. A psychiatrist may provide a report of an exam and treatment in lieu of records unless a written request by the patient or the patient's representative is made them the doctor must deliver the records to any subsequent treating psychiatrist. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will know how to handle any need for or requests for medical records.

UM Benefits and Subrogation After Your West Palm Beach Car Accident

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34090 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

If you have underinsured motorist coverage (aka UM benefits), your insurance company may choose to subrogate by refusing to settle your claim. If the underinsured UM carrier chooses to subrogate, they must pay to the injured party the amount of the written offer from the UM liability carrier within 30 days of receipt of notice of a proposed settlement. Oftentimes, when you are involved in a West Palm Beach car accident, the other party either has no bodily injury protection benefits or your injuries exceed their limits. This is when you would look to your own insurance company to determine whether you purchased UM coverage for the remaining benefits. If you have been injured in a West Palm Beach, Florida car accident, contact a West Palm Beach car accdident lawyer immediately to determine your rights and entitlements from all available insurance policies.

West Palm Beach, Florida--Accident in a Rental Car

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)34086 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Here's a scenario: You do not own a car and therefore do not have car insurance. You are injured while driving your friend's rental car with permission but you are not listed as an authorized driver on the rental agreement. Can you receive coverage if injured? It depends on whether your friend used their own insurance or purchased insurance from the rental company. If from the rental company, there is probably an exclusion and you will not be covered. If your friend used their own insurance, you may be able to claim coverage as a permissvie user as this would be considered a temporary substitute vehicle. The best advice is to contact a West Palm Beach car accident lawyer to determine your rights and entitlements under the law.

Prima Facie Evidence of Negligence in a West Palm Beach Car Crash Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33945 — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Prima Facie evdience of negligence statutes protect the general public rather than a particular class. Violations of these statutes is evidence of negligence but the defendant may rebut the presumption in a West Palm Beach negligence case.

Service of Process in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Lawsuit

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33944 — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

After your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer has filed your lawsuit, the defendant msut be given notice and served with the complaint called service of process. Most West Palm Beach car accident attorneys work with process servers to deliver the complaint to the defendant or registered agent. It is important that service is rendered properly to avoid any claims by the defendant that they did not receive notice. The defendant has a duty to contest improper or voidable service or it is waived so long as notice can be proven. The concern is to make sure the defendant in the West Palm Beach car accident lawsuit receives due process to answer the complaint or make any affirmative defenses which may exist.

3rd party liens on Your West Palm Beach Personal Injury Accident Proceeds

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33588 — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

When a person is injured in a West Palm Beach car accident, they usually are treated by a doctor or doctors to help diagnose and treat their injuries. These doctors' fees may exceed any benefits the client may have through PIP or medical coverage and may assert a lien through what is commonly called a letter of protection against the client's personal injury proceeds. If a West Palm Beach car accident lawyer has a client with 3rd party liens on his/her case, the attorney must protect the lien even if the client does not want the attorney to pay the doctor.

Property Damage in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33581 — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Usually when a person sustains bodily injury in a West Palm Beach car crash, there is also property damage to their vehicle. Your West Palm Beach personal injury attorney may handle this portion of your case as well, but you should always ask to make sure. Sometimes, the other party's insurance will be responsible for the property damage but will delay repairs for whatever reason. If this happens, your West Palm Beach car crash lawyer may file a civil remedies notice or (CRN) and you may be entitled to loss of use during vehicle down time if it was not drivable since the date of the accident. You may also be entitled to other damages as well. Be sure to contact a reputable West Palm Beach personal injury lawyer if you have sustained injury as a result of someone else's motor vehicle negligence.

What are your damages when your leased car is involved in a West Palm Beach car crash?

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33406 — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

If you have leased car and are invloved in a West Palm Beach car accident, you may be wondering what damages you can recover. Remember, it is best to seek the aid of a West Palm Beach personal injury car accident attorney to establish your claim and get you themaximum recovery you deserve. If your leased car is damaged or totaled in a West Palm Beach car crash, you may be able to recover the following damages from the tortfeasor of you do not have what is called gap insurance: all lease damages, dimunition of value, loss of use of time, new plates and new title charge.

Personal IInjury--Personal Injury Protection Benefits in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case Involving an Innocent Spouse

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)33143 — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

If your spouse is injured in an accident in a car owned by you and she lives with you and is named on the policy, she may recover PIP benefits under the policy. However, if you let the coverage lapse during the time of the accident, she will likely be denied benefits. If she is injured in another person's vehicle and your insurance has lapsed, she may be able to recover PIP benefits from the other owner whose car she was injured in. If you or your spouse have been involved in a West Palm Beach car accident, contact a West Palm Bach car accident lawyer to determine your rights.

Complaint in a West Palm Beach Rear-End Collision with a Mother and Child as Pasengers

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)28854 — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

When you have a mother and children injured in a West Palm Beach rear-end collision, you can bring all claims in one complaint. The spouse can even bring a claim too. Your West Palm Beach car accident attorney would first establish the jurisdiction of the Court usually by residency and then describe the facts which led to the accident. A claim for negligence would be established along with causation, injuries and damages. The spouse of the injured party may also have a claim for loss of consortium, companionship, etc. The child passengers would have their own claims for negligence and would establish the same facts, describe causation, injuries and damages as well.

Sample Complaint in a West Palm Beach Auto Accident with a Pedestrian

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)28851 — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

If you were involved in a West Palm Beach car accident as a pedestrian and your West Palm Beach car accident attorney must file a lawsuit, there are several things he/she will include in your complaint. Your attorney will first identify the plaintiff and defendant and then recite the facts of what happened including the date, time, and place of the accident. Your attorney will likely plead negligence on the part of the driver and then discuss your injuries and damages.

Interrogatories from Defense Counsel in Your West Pal, Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)28053 — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

Another discovery tool used by defense attorneys to gather info and evidence in your West Palm Beach car crash case is through interrogatories which are questions about you and your injuries which must be answered under oath and filed with the court. Some of the types of questions you could expect to answer have to do with who you are, address/spouse/kids/employment, people who investigated your case, any admissions, all witnesses in your case and likely testimony, photos/videos/movies about the accident, all elements of damage and anything which substantiate your claims. Your West Palm Beach car accident trial lawyer will know which questions are appropriate and which questions should be objected to.

Request for Production of Documents from Defense Counsel in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)28050 — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

If your West Palm Beach auto accident attorney files a lawsuit in your car crash case, most likely the defense counsel will file a Request for Production of Documents, a discovery tool to gather facts and evidence about your accident. Some of the documents you might expect to be asked for include, but are not limited to the following: copies of hospital/health facilities and clinical reports, doctor/psychologist/therapist reports, medical billing statements for treatment, proof of payment for medical services, proof of damages not of a medical nature, statements of witnesses, police/accident/DMV reports, proof of loss of income, repair bills/estimates, cell phone records for the month of the accident.If you have been in a West Palm beach car accident, keep all documents related to your accident and injuries. Your attorney will know what will most likely be requested.

Plaintiff's Checklist of Activities Affected by West Palm Beach Car Accident Injury

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)27985 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes after a West Palm Beach car accident, a person who has sustained injuries will have difficulty with activities he/she used to have no problem performing. Your West Palm Beach car accident attorney will probably give you a list of activities to evaluate your ability before and after your injuries. They will also want to know what persons could testify as to your ability to perform the activities before and after the accident. It is important to name persons who are objective, impartial, and have had the ability to see you both before and after the accident engage in the activities.

Some of the activities you might be asked about include: sports like football, basketball, aerobics, weight lifting, biking, walking, etc.; hobbies like sewing, knitting, fishing, reading, sailing, etc.; social activities like dancing, going out to eat or the movies, driving a car, going on cruises or to parties, etc.; emotional and physical problems, house chores, personal hygiene activities, any activities involving your children.

Palm Beach County Auto Accident Interrogatories

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)27984 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST

Discovery is a process in lawsuit which allows attorneys to seek and gather evidence and information relevant to proving your case in court. One discovery tool used by West Palm Beach auto accident attorneys to gather information is through questions called interrogatories. Interrogatories are questions answered under oath by the person to which the questions are directed usually the plaintiff or defendant.

Some of the questions you might expect to see in a West Palm Beach car accident case are: name, age, spouse, social security number, address, employment info, any felony convictions for dishonesty or false statements, whether you made any recorded statements about the accident, experts and their opinions, under the influence of drugs/alcohol/meds at time of accident, insurance policy, what happened during the accident.

Plaintiff's Checklist for Deposition in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)26924 — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:00:00 EST

Your attorney should advise you and prepare you for your deposition prior to its scheduled time. These are some of the things your attorney should advise you to do and not to do during a West Palm Beach car accident deposition.

Dress like you are going to court. Be calm and polite. Never lose your temper with the opposing attorney.
Answer only the question being asked. Never offer additional information not asked for. It's the defense attorney's job to ask specific questions.
If you cannot remember the answer to a questions, say so. Do not feel pressure to make up an answer.
If you do not understand a question, say so.
Do not exaggerate. Don't guess at speed, distance, time, and measurements. That's for experts.
If asked to draw a diagram of the accident scene, do so but explain it's to the best if your recollection and that you are not an expert.
Your attorney cannot help you during the deposition. If there is a legal basis to object, your attorney will do so.
Review your medical history and think about the changes in your life since the accident.
Most importantly, be HONEST AND TRUTHFUL.

Defendant's Deposition in a Florida Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)26923 — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:00:00 EST

There are specific questions your West Palm Beach car accident attorney will ask the defendant in your Florida automobile case during his/her deposition. The following are some of the more general questions you could expect the defendant to answer:

Name, age, marital status, children
whether any documents were reviewed in preparation for the deposition
insurance info
whether there were any passengers
details about the collision (before and after)
description of the accident scene
witnesses
damage to the vehicle
post-collision activities
draw a diagram of the accident

Defendant's Deposition in a West Palm Beach Automobile Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)25481 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST

One person your West Palm Beach car accident attorney will most certainly want to depose is the defendant. Some of the information your accident lawyer will seek from the defendant is: background info like name, age, spouse, children, whether any documents were reviewed before the depo, insurance policy info, whether there were any passengers in defendant' s car and who, the collision, activities before and after the accident, statements of any witnesses, description of the accident scene, witnesses, damages to vehicle, post-collision activities, and to draw a diagram of the accident scene.

West Palm Beach Deposition Outline for Defense Doctor/Independent Medical Exam Doctor

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)25480 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST

A deposition is yet another discovery tool used by a plaintiff's West Palm Beach car accident attorney to gather information which my be helpful in settlement negotiations or at trial. In a deposition, the plaintiff's attorney ask one of the defense witnesses or some other person relevant to the case, a series of questions under oath. These depositions are typically transcribed by a court reporter so that they may be used at trial to impeach a witness or damage their credibility on the witness stand. The rules of evidence are more lenient; therefore, the attorney can ask questions that he/she might not otherwise be able to in court. The insurance company is entitled to have the the plaintiff evaluated by their own doctor. This process is called an independent medical examination. Some of the questions your attorney might ask the IME doctor at a deposition might include: background, board certification, specialty, surgeries, how many IME's performed, what percentage for Plaintiff and Defendant, how much charge for IMW, how much time spent with patient, was a report generated, who wrote the report, conclusions based on report, etc.

Request for Admissions in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)25472 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST

Another discovery tools used by West Palm Beach accident lawyers is the Request for Admissions. This is where either side asks the other to admit or deny certain statements. Responses are due within 30 days of the request date unless otherwise agreed to by the parties or ordered by the court. Some of the types of statements a plaintiff's attorney might ask the defendant to admit or deny are:

that the plaintiff incurred certain medical bills, that plaintiff had a loss of income as a result of injuries sustained in the car accident, plaintiff's car suffered certain damages, that defendant failed to stop at the red light, that plaintiff can no longer perform certain duties, etc. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will tailor your questions to your specific case facts but these are generally the types of information your attorney will be seeking.

Request for Production of Documents in a West Palm Beach Automobile Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)25471 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST

Once a lawsuit has been filed and the defendant has filed an answer to the complaint, the discovery process typically begins. This is where the plaintiff and defendant ask each other for documents or things they believe are relevant to proving their case or to discover other material evidence that may be relevant. The discovery process can be lengthy and tedious, but it is critical to proving your case. An example of some of the things a West Palm Beach plaintiff's accident attorney might ask for are:

photos of the cars involved in the accident, automobile policy of the defendant, the declarations page of the defendant's automobile policy,statements of witnesses, defendant's driving record,repair estimates for defendant's car, police reports, employment record of defendant, photos/videos of the accident scene taken subsequent to the accident. This is just a sample of the types of things a West Palm Beach car accident lawyer might request from the defendant. Each side generally has 30 days to produce the documents requested unless otherwise agreed or ordered by the court.

Direct Examination of Your Before and After Witnesses in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)25469 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 08:00:00 EST

One of the most critical elements of your case once it reaches trial is to elicit credible testimony from witnesses in your favor. The objective with your before and after witnesses is to show the jury what you were like and what you were able to do before your West Palm Beach car accident in comparison to after. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will want to know the names of persons who knew you before and after the accident that can testify as to the changes you have undergone and the impact on your quality of life. The best witnesses would be those who know you but are not necessarily your best friends such as a neighbor, coworker, or acquaintance from a social club,etc. The credibility of your witnesses is crucial to persuading the jury of your damages and pain and suffering. Having a skilled West Palm Beach car accident lawyer to conduct and effective direct examination eliciting convincing testimony is critical as well.

Direct Examination of Employers and Co-workers in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)23644 — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:00:00 EST

Oftentimes, persons injured in a car accident will injuries that affect their ability to work. In order to determine, how a car accident has impacted your ability to earn a living, car accident lawyers will look for witnesses who knew you before the accident most likely your employer and co-workers. They will ask them questions about your work history prior to and after your West Palm Beach car accident, record of attendance before and after, pay rate, any physical problems or accommodations they have made for you, and whether they have observed any changes in you since the accident.

Using an Accident Reconstruction Expert in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)23642 — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes it is necessary to hire an expert to assist the jury in understanding how a West Palm Beach car accident occurred or when the defendant and plaintiff do not agree as to how the accident happened. Some of the questions you might ask of the other party's expert through formal discovery or interrogatories as they are called are:

1. name and educational background
2. professional licenses
3. lectures, speeches, publications
4. prior court testimony
5. all contact the expert has had with the other side
6. whether there are other professionals assisting the expert
7. has the expert written a report

Your West Palm Beach accident attorney will determine whether you need an expert in your case. A good expert can make or break your case depending upon who he/she is testifying for. An experienced West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will do his/her homework and look closely at their experts and the opposing party's experts to determine their strengths and weaknesses as they relate to your accident case.

West Palm Beach Auto Accident Client Questionnaire

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)22134 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Whenever you have been involved in a West Palm Beach car accident, you should immediately consuly with an experienced car accident litigation lawyer. He/she will need a lot of information about your accident particularly if you were injured. The following is some of the information an attorney will need from you in order to effectively represent you against the defendant and his insurance carrier usually:

Date of the accident/Week
Time
Weather conditions
Location
Where were you going, number of times driven that route
how the accident happened
distances, speed, conditions on road and weather, defects
visual obstructions
speak with other driver
statements as to fault
police investigation/reports/statements
who called the police
witnesses/names/addresses
defendant's insurance
your insurance
speak with defendant's insurance company/statements
photos of vehicle
repairs
any medications you were on or alcohol or drug use
injuries
employment
lost wages
medical bills

This is just a sampling of the type of information your West Palm Beach accident attorney will need to work your case.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Expert Witness

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)22133 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Often in car accident litigation, attorneys must call expert witnesses to testify at a trial. Some of the information that is important when choosing an expert is the following:

Name
address
education
course and curriculum
All degrees and teaching positions
licenses and certifications
employment (duties)
names and identification of employers
consulting work (attorneys, government, regulatory agencies, etc.)
publications. studies, reports
seminars/lectures
professional memberships (offices and honors)
awards, prior court experience
fees and references

It is important to have this information to qualify your witness as an expert and to foresee how the defense is going to attempt to discredit your expert.

West Palm Beach Auto Accident Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)22132 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

In your West Palm Beach auto accident complaint, the plaintiff and all defendants are identified first. Jurisdiction is then pled and then all Counts against all defendants are laid out by describing the events that led to the plaintiff's injuries, why the defendants are resposnible and owed the plaintiff a duty of reasonable care and how that duty was breached leading the the plaintiff's injuries. The plaintiff's damages are then articulated.

Palm Beach County Car Accident--Loss of Consortium Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)22130 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

A loss of consortium claim is brought by the plaintiff and his/her spouse . The complaint usually identifies the plainitiff, the plaintiff's spouse, the defendant and sets forth the court's jurisdiction. It then pleads in Count I for negligence and establishes the facts setting forth the plaintiff's injuries and why the defendant is responsible and that the plaintiff has suffered damages as a result. COunt II is the loss of consortium claim and sets forth the facts of why the plaintiff and his/her spouse are entitled to damages for lost care, society, consortium, companionship and services o f the spouse. An experiences West Palm Beach car accident attorney will consult with you and your spouse regarding a potential loss of consortium claim and advise you as to what information he/she will need from you to defend the claim.

Palm Beach County Auto Accident Closed Head Injury Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21927 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

A complaint should first identify the plaintiff and defendant and set forth that the court has jurisdicition over the amount in controversy. The facts leading to the plaintiff's injuries should then be laid out and it should establish why the defendant owed the plaintiff the duty of reasonable care, how the defendant breached that duty, and that the defendant was the direct and proximate cause of the plaintiff's injuries. The plaintiff's injuries should then be describes, usually cervical and lumbar spine injuries, and the damages the plaintiff has suffered (medical treatment and bills, loss of earning capacity, lost wages, all past and future should be calculated) and then a prayer for attorneys fees and costs.

West Palm Beach Auto Accident Whiplash Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21925 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

The first thing you should do in a complaint id identify the plaintiff and defendant and set forth the Court's jurisdiction over the case. Then the facts leading to the injury should be laid out so as to establish why the defendant is responsible and how he/she failed to exercise reasonable care and that the defendant breached his/her duty to the plaintiff which resulted in the plaintiff's injuries and that the defendant was the direct and proximate cause of the injuries. Then describe the plaintiff's injuries and damages such as medical care, lost wages and earning capacity, medical treatment, and any other damages specific to the plaintiff. A skilled West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will know how to properly draft your complaint to insure maximum recovery for your injuries.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Wrongful Death Complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21924 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

In a West Palm Beach wrongful death case, the plaintiff is usually the heir of the decedent's estate or the administrator of the estate. The complaint should identify the plaintiff and defendant and establish the court's jurisdiction. Then it should set forth in detail the circumstances leading to the wrongful death and why the defendant is responsible or rather was negligent in causing the person's death. There is then a prayer for damages (statutory and pecuniary), pain and suffering, and a prayer for interest, costs and attorneys fees.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Complaint--Common Carrier

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21923 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Each car accident case is unique and has its own set of facts and circumstances; however, when filing a complaint in court against the other party, there are typically common criteria that must be included to avoid having the complaint dismissed. The complaint should include the name of the plaintiff and defendant, that the amount in controversy exceeds the jurisdictional limits of the court, the facts setting forth the plaintiff's injury, that the defendant had a duty to the plaintiff and that the duty was breached and because of the breach the plaintiff suffered injury and will continue to suffer and accumulate medical bills and lost wages. In general, it is a good idea not to plead to specifically and only put enough information in your complaint so as to avoid having it dismissed.

Plaintiff to Defendant Interrogatories in a West Palm Beach Car Wreck Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21920 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Interrogatories are another tool used by attorneys to gather evidence. Interrogatories are questions to the other party that must be answered or explained under oath and the number you may direct to the other party are usually limited by the rules of procedure unless you get permission from the court to exceed that number. A plaintiff in a West Palm Beach car accident case, might ask the defendant some of the following questions: name, address,type of car own, make model, year, mileage, money paid for the car, whether it was inspected, what damage occurred to the car during the accident, estimates or repairs to the car, compensation for injuries, identification of expert witnesses to testify for the defendant at trial. A skilled West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will know which questions to ask the defendant in your case to narrow the issues for trial and attempt to lock the defendant into their answers at trial.

West Palm Beach Car Accident Request for Admissions

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21833 — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Either party in a West Palm Beach car accident lawsuit may request documents from the other party to be received within 30 days of the request for review, inspection, or copying. Such a request could include documents showing damage to your vehicle, estimates, repairs, bills, etc. You may also be asked for medical bills proving injuries and payments for those, along with evidence of lost wages. What you are asked to produce is largely based on the relief you are seeking from the defendant. A good West Palm Beach car accident attorney can assist you in responding to such a request and will know which documents the defendant is entitled to have and which ones to raise objections.

Request for Admissions in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21829 — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

A Request for Admissions is a discovery tool used by attorneys to gather evidence and narrow the focus and issues in a trial. A Request for Admissions may ask the defendant to authenticate certain documents or to admit to the truthfulness of certain statements. You might ask the defendant to admit to the police report or whether he owned the vehicle which caused the crash or whether he had permission to use the vehicle. Your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer will determine whether this particular discovery tool will be useful in your case.

Plaintiff's Request for Admissions in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Collision

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21658 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

The plaintiff may serve a Request for Admissions upon the defendant asking them to answer certain questions within 30 days of service of the request. Failure to admit, deny, or otherwise state why defendant cannot answer to the truth of the statement(s), will deem the questions admitted without further Court order. Failure to admit the truth of a statement will allow the plaintiff's West Palm Beach car accident attorney to ask for attorney's fees and costs for having to prove the truth of the matter.

Such questions the plaintiff might consider asking are: whether the defendant's negligence caused the accident, that defendant's negligence was the proximate cause of the accident and the basis of the lawsuit at hand, that defendant owned the vehicle or had permission to use the vehicle at the time of the accident, that defendant was not paying attention to traffic conditions, medical expenses of the plaintiff, etc.

Request for Admissions in Your West Palm Beach Rear-End Collision Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21653 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Discovery is an important tool in litigation used to collect evidence that may be presented to the Court or a jury at a trial or during settlement negotiations in your West Palm Beach car accident case. One such tool is a Request for Admissions which asks either the plaintiff or defendant to admit the truth of certain statements usually within 30 days of service of the request. Such statements might include the date of the accident, who was driving, whether there were any visual obstructions, whether the defendant could stop without hitting plaintiff's car, that defendant failed to stop or apply brakes soon enough to avoid hitting plaintiff's car, not enough distance between the two cars to avoid collision, etc.
Having a reputable West Palm Beach car accident trial attorney is critical not only for gathering discovery but responding to it as well. Remember, the other side is typically an insurance agency that does not want to give up money easily, so they will propound discovery upon the plaintiff as well.

Inspecting the Premises in a Palm Beach County Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21652 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Either the plaintiff or defendant may request that the Court issue an order allowing them to the enter the premises of the other party to examine the motor vehicle which is the subject of the complaint and which was involved in the accident. The request may also ask that an expert witness and other agents of the plaintiff or defendant be allowed present at the inspection to photograph or examine the vehicle involved in the West Palm Beach car accident.

Inspection of Your Vehicle After Your West Palm Beach Car Accident

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21651 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

A defendant may request to have the plaintiff's or victim of the Palm Beach County car accident's vehicle inspected and be permitted to photograph, videotape, test and sample the vehicle. They may also request to have an expert witness present to test or sample the vehicle. A reasonable timeframe for doing so shall be set--usually within 30 days of the request.

Request for Physical or Mental Exam in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21650 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Either party may request by filing a motion to have the other party submit to a physical/mental examination before a doctor of the injuries complained of in the case. Good cause must exist for the Court to order such an exam such as the plaintiff may complain of spinal cord injuries but has only been treated by a chiropractor or general practitioner. It would be reasonable to have the party examined by a specialist in spinal cord injuries. Having a seasoned West Palm Beach car accident attorney to guide you through the various exams and procedures will save you from guessing at what the other side is doing and will insure you are treated fairly and understand what you are entitled to.

What is a Pre-trial Discovery Conference in Your West Palm Beach Car Wreck Case?

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21446 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Either the plaintiff or defendant may request the Court schedule a pre-trial discovery conference to fix the discovery to be conducted in your West Palm Beach car accident case. The plaintiff or defendant must show that there are multiple parties or multiple issues that could lead to substantial discovery and that therefore it is necessary for the Court to set a schedule for the orderly compliance of discovery requests and deadlines. This ensures that each side receives prompt and fair disclosure.

Techniques for Getting A Florida Jury to Award an Injured Car Accident Victim Money

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21442 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

The bulk of your case comes down to damages. As an experienced West Palm Beach car accident attorney, you should focus on hard damages which are medical bills and lost wages (past, present and future). These damages are awarded to the accident victim, to fix the problem created by the at fault driver. They are rational and easy to prove and dangerous to the defendant and the defendant's insurance company. Another type of damages is loss of support which can occur when a family member dies and you show their loss of income over their lifetime. You must show how your client has been economically affected by their injury. Having your client keep a ledger of this and reviewing it with them, is a good way to keep track of these damages.

Lastly, never remove emotion from your case. Make the jury angry. Get into your client's shoes, advocate for them, and articulate to the jury how the defendant's egregious behavior has affected your client. We all have feelings and we all act on them. Our feelings guide our decisions--make your jurors act on their feelings.

Things to Consider in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case: Part II

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21439 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

In addition to preparing your client and evidence, you must create opportunities to remove any ounce of remorse the jury may have for the defendant. Wipe out all sympathy. Also, take a long, hard look at your client. If he/she is a jerk, a fraud, a miser, then they are going to be a bad client and you should not file suit. Lastly, don't ever try to represent yourself. Just because you like to argue and enjoy conflict, does not mean you can persuade a jury to give you money. Exercise some humility, and hire a good West Palm Beach trial accident attorney to represent you.

Evidence of Status in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case: Is it Relevant?

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)21080 — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

In general, if you are here illegally and get into a West Palm Beach car accident, the defense attorney cannot tell the jury you are here illegally. If he/she tries to, your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer can file a motion in limine to prevent that evidence from being heard by the jury at trial. There is one exception if your attorney pleads for lost wages. This opens the door to status as the other side will argue that you cannot legally earn money; therefore, you should not be entitled to relief. In contrast, an illegal alien illegally employed, is entitled to workman's compensation benefits. This just shows how arbitrary our laws are sometimes.

Threshold that must be met in before I can recover under PIP

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)20509 — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST

Is there a certain threshold that must be met in before I can recover under PIP, and if so, what is the threshold?

Yes! There is the “tort threshold” under Florida Statute that must be met. A tort action brought against an owner, registrant, operator, or occupant of a motor vehicle insured under no-fault law, or for any entity legally responsible for an act or omission by one of those parties entitles the plaintiff to recover damages for pain, suffering, mental anguish, and inconvenience provided it meets certain criteria. The criteria include either a) significant & permanent loss of an important bodily function, or b) permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability, other than scarring or disfigurement or c) significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement, or d) death.

West Palm Beach Florida Car accident complaint

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)19692 — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filing a car accident complaint is the first step in proving to an insurance adjuster that is being unfair to your West Palm Beach car accident victim that you are serious about getting justice for your client and that your client is serious about getting Justice for her self.

It is going to cost the lawyer a few hundred dollars to file, and if some time needs to be spent on complying with discovery and getting the case to be ready for trial But there is no doubt in my mind 9 time out of 10, the value of the case will go up.

Insurance adjusters know this, and if they know you are serious they will make a better offer to settle your case, if they think your never going to file the case, then they will just give you low numbers all day.

Techniques that could be used to get a Florida car accident jury to actually give money to the injured victim

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)18488 — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST

I wanted to discuss today some of the reasons and techniques that could be used to get a Florida car accident jury to actually give money to the injured victim. In the context of a car accident trial in Florida when money is given to the plaintiff it is called damages. One of the most convincing type of damages that can be used to get a jury in Palm Beach County or Broward County Florida to give money to a car accident victim is called hard damages.

A form of hard damages are medical bills, past present and future. These types of damages are awarded by a jury to try to help fix a problem that was created by the at fault driver. These damages are very rational very logical very easy to prove and was very dangerous to a defendant or defendants insurance companies in a car accidents. That's why a lot of attorneys who engage in car accident litigation spend a lot of time developing the use of hard damages. An in many instances they will settle their cases for hard damages value only.

Alternatively you could provide other forms of hard damages which may include loss of support. For example if you have any family of three and the father or the mother dies due to an unfortunate accident and the life time income from them can be considered hard damages and it can be requested from a jury in the form of hard damages; alternatively lost time at work because of inability to work due to injury or property damage are considered hard damages as well. Basically the lawyer should sit down and try to figure out how he could work up in general ledger for the client, like a damages bill, every detail every single item that the client has suffered economically as a result of the incident should be articulated in the legal action.

Question to ask from a car accident jury in Florida

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)17938 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST

Ask these ten question from you car accident Jury:
"ladies and gentleman, I will make a series of statements. Please listen to each, and if you disagree with the statement please raise your hand and say "I disagree"".
1. Greedy trial lawyers take most of the money from accident victims so there is no send in giving a lot of money because it'll all go to the lawyer.
2. Most people who sue, just claim they have been hurt for money, but there is nothing wrong with them
3. Before I give a person money, their car better have sustained some real serious damage.
4. I would feel distracted if I had to sit through this trial because I have important thing that i have to do and don't have time to sit here.
5. If a lawyer sends his client to a chiropractor or other doctor, then there is something wrong
6. Insurance companies are regulated by the government, so they have more credibility with me than some greedy trial lawyer and his greedy victim (you might not get this one in)
7. If a person is sitting in front of me, and look normal, they are faking it
8. I better see some broken bones or some thing before I pay a dime
9. If I don't like your client I'm not going to pay him/her
10. If I like the defendant, I'm not going to make them pay as much.

Immigration Status and Florida Car accident claim

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)16895 — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST

Can a Florida Court allow evidence of status to be heard by a Jury in a Car accident lawsuit?

The answer is Maybe, as can be expected right? The long answer is under normal circumstances no. For example if you are in Florida illegally and you get in to a car accident and the lawyer representing the person that hit you wants to tell the jury that you are here illegally, you attorney can use the tool called a motion in limine ask that the information be removed from the list of fact which can be advocated or sough to be proved in Court. That means it cannot be mentioned in the voire dire process (that’s when the lawyers ask the jury questions that are designed to reveal if the jury has any prejudice which would prevent them from being a fair and impartial judge of every one rights).

The motion in limine will also prevent the presentation of any evidence of status of the Florida car accident victim during the course of the trial.

However, there is an exception to all this of-course. For example if the car accident victims attorney pleads for lost wages he would in the legal sense be opening the door on the issue of status. The other lawyer, representing the person that caused the car accident would then be allowed to introduce evidence of status in order to prove to the jury that you are not able to earn money legal so how could you come to court and argue for relief as to lost earning.

Determining Liability When There Are Multiple Vicarious Tortfeasors

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15575 — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you rent a car and let a friend or someone else drive it and they cause an accident, you could have a pretty big problem. The person driving the car, the person renting the car, and the rental agency could all be liable. The same issue applies if you let someone borrow your own coar and they cause an accident. A Palm Beach County car accident attorney should know factors such as these when determining liability. If you are in an accident with service personnel, city/county workers, or a delivery driver, be sure to let your attorney as there may be numerous persons/entities who are liable. Coverage typically won't be an issue in cases like these. It is just a matter of determining the order and priority pf coverage. If the court cannot determine who is the more responsible party (at fault party), then they will apportion a pro rata share to each tortfeasor.

Multiple Liability Policies in a Palm Beach County Car Accident With a Tractor Trailer

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15420 — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

We've all yelled at those huge tractor trailers flying down the interstate. What happens when they cause an accident? Oftentimes, the tractor and trailer are covered by multiple policies. Under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine, the owner of the trailer will not usually be liable while the owner of the tractor will. If the driver of the trailer is an employee of the driver of the tractor, then the tractor driver could be vicariously liable. Generally, a pro rata share of the damages will be apportioned to the primary coverage on both the tractor and the trailer policies. if you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident with a tractor trailer, contact a West Palm Beach car accident attorney immediately. A knowledgeable attorney will insure that all possible policies providing coverage to the trailer and tractor are discovered in an effort to secure your rights to recover damages for your injuries.

Umbrella Policies and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)15418 — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

An umbrella policy can be viewed as an extra layer of coverage that comes into play when your primary limits have been exhausted. Umbrella policies usually have an explanation in them that states it is excess and over other valid and collectible insurance. Typically, the insured must maintain underlying coverage for an umbrella policy to be effective. These policies tend to be cheaper because they are not used unless you exhaust other insurance first. Umbrella policies tend to receive favorable treatment in Florida courts; however, there have been instances when courts have placed an umbrella carrier in the shoes of the primary carrier over what was designed to be primary coverage. If you have sustained injuries as a result of the negligence of another driver, your best course of action is to immediately seek the advice of an experienced Palm Beach County car accident lawyer to maintain your rights.

Insurance Law and Determining Coverage When There is Multiple Liability After a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15376 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

When there is a negligent party not insured by a carrier insuring the owner of the vehicle, the owner's insurer may try to invoke an escape clause. Almost all insurance policies insure people other than the primary person on the cover of the declarations page of the policy. The named insured along with the named insured's spouse and certain resident relatives will also likely be covred by the policy. A policy may exclude coverage for specific person with bad driving records. It is important to retain an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney to determine who may be ultimately liable if there are numerous policies available and what coverage may be excluded. You should never try to interpret the insurance policy yourself or negotiate with the insurance company without the experitse of an attorney.

Who is Liable if I've Been in a Palm Beach County Car Accident with a Rental Car?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15374 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If the rental contract is executed properly, the lessor (rental agency) can escape liability if your are in an accident with a rental car. For the rental car to shift the liability to the renter, there must be a stipulation to it on the fac of the rental agreement in a certain format. If the shift in liability is appropriate, the policy limits of the renter will be accessible. Your Palm Beach County car accident lawye should always obtain a copy of the the rental agreement to determine the available coverage.

How Does My Palm Beach County Accident Attorney Determine Who is Liable for My Injuries?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15369 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

After a lawsuit is filed, discovery rules allow the Plaintiff to inquire about the type of insurance policy or policies available and the extent of coverage. However, before the implementation of Florida Statute 627.4137, insurance companies made it difficult to obtain this information without filing suit. Florida Statute 627.4137 requires insurance companies within 30 days of receiving a written request from the claimant, to provide certain information including:

the name of the insurer
the name of each insured
limits of liability coverage
a statement of policy/coverage defenses insurer reasonably believes are available
and a copy of the policy

Your Palm Beach County car accident lawyer should use this information to determine whi may be liable and the extent of coverage available to you. Insurers usually comply with this request because of potential bad faith exposure down the line

The Importance of Your Palm Beach County Accident Attorney Investigating Different Liability Coverage

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15357 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Your West Palm Beach accident attorney should investigate all sources of potential recovery including all available insurance policies. Multiple policy issues usually arise when you have policies involving permissiver users, leased vehicles, commercial trucks, tractor-trailer units, and vehicles used in employment. Multiple policies can be advantageous to a defendant too because the defense attorney will look to other policies for possible primary insurers they can shift the duty to defend to and reduce exposure of their client. The bottom line is that with an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney, you can insure all possible sources of recovery will be expored so that you receive the maximum compensation for your injuries.

How Does the Insurer Know When They Have to Defend a Claim in Your Palm Beach County Accident Case?

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)15356 — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If their insured has caused injury, they should have a duty to defend. However, the insurer has to determine if the factual allegations/losses are covered by the policy. Insurers should thoroughly investigate their claims to determine the validuty of coverage before denying a claim. If they wrongfully deny a claim, they could be held liable in court and face a costly bad faith judgment. Ultimately, the insurer's obligation to defend a lawsuit is determined by the allegations in the complaint aagainst the insured. An experienced Palm Beach County car accident lawyer will knwo whether the insurance company is being unreasoanble and can set up your bad faith claim against the insurer.

What is A Reasonable Amount of Time to Settle a West Palm Beach Car Accident Case After the Plaintiff Makes an Offer?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15282 — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

A reasonable amount of time is not defined quantitatively by the law. You have to look at the circumstances of each case. However, a tender of the policy limits by the insurer after the time offered for settlement but prior to judgmentwill not protect the insurer from potential excess liability.
If an insurance company fails to respond to a timely demand, then your West Palm Beach car accident lawyer must give them 60 days noitce that a bad faith action will follow. If the insurer tenders within that 60 days, the violation is deemed cured. It might be advantageous to wait unitl you receive an excess judgment and then give them notice. An experienced car accident lawyer will be able to navigate you through the procedures and time-frames for pursuing a bad faith action against the insurer.

Does the Plaintiff Have to Make a Settlement Offer Before Bad Faith is an Issue?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15226 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

No. A settlement offer is not a requirement before a bad faith action. A formal settlement offer is only one issue that could be considered in an action for bad faith. In the Powell case, the 3rd DCA held that when liability is clear and injuries are so serious that it is likely a judgment will exceed the policy limits, an insurer has an affirmative obligation to the insured to initiate settlement negotiations. The 1st DCA has held that as long as an insurance company denied coverage and refused to defend, settlement offers arent' a prerequisite to establish a cause of action for bad faith. An offer also need not be in writing. An oral demand is sufficient in circumstances where liability is clear and damages are in excess of availble policy limits. If you have been in a car accident and sustained serious injury, contanct a West Palm Beach accident attorney immediately to inure you get the compensation you deserve.

Releasing an Insured Tortfeasor from Liability Without Prior Assignment In Your Palm Beach County Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15220 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If the plaintiff releases the insured torfeasor from all liability or executes a satisfcation of the underlying excess judgment without an assignment, then the plaintiff will be barred from bringing a bad faith action. Usually the plainitff's attorney will have an insured tortfeasorexecute an assigment agreement of bad faith agaisnt the insurer prior to releasing the tortfeasor from liability. Bad faith acrrues when the insurer fails to satisfy its obligations to the insured and thereby breaches it duty resulting in a judgment in excess of the policy limits.

If you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident, before you sign anything, contact an experienced auto accident attorney. In Florida, the injured party's bad faith claim is not separate form the tortfeasor's, so releasing the tortfeasor from all liabilty without assignment will bar you from pursuing the bad faith claim agaisnt the insurer.

Voir Dire in a West Palm Beach Bad Faith Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15218 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Voir Dire is the formal term for selecting/rejecting potential jurors. It is also important to a successful bad faith case. The plaintiff's attorney must insure jurors are educated about bad faith on the context of insurance claims. Your Palm Beach County car accident attorney can also use this process to find out if jurors have ever served in a fiduciary role or been in a position that created a conflict of interest. Having an intelligent/sophisitcated jury would be a benefit in a bad fatih ase because the issues are complex.

Expert Witness Testimomy in a West Palm Beach Bad Faith Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)15216 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Expert witness testimony is key to successfully litigating a bad faith case. Attorneys and adjusters typically serve as experts in such a case. The purpose of the expert is to have the knowledge of someone who is trained in executing the duties stemming from an insured/insurer relationship and to analyze the bad faith issues for the jury. Experts look at issues such as foreseeability, conflicts between the attorney for the insurance company and the insured on the original tort action, fiduciary duty, the effect of the excess judgment on the insured, etc. Bad faith cases are complex and to understand them, the use of highly trained experts in these areas is crucial to helping the jury understand what the issues before them. If you have been injured in a West Palm Beach car accident, make sure you speak with an accident attorney immediately to insure your rights are protected and that you are not taken advantage of by the insurance company.

The Importance of the Demand Letter in Your Palm Beach County Bad Faith Case: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15003 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

A well-drafted demand letter should clearly show why the insured is liable and should discuss injuries, losses and damages in strong detail and point out vital facts on damages the injured has suffered. Your Palm Beach County car accident attorney should demonstrate the necessity of the money and should say that prompt settlement will settle the claim within policy limits.

The demand letter should further include statements that all info to evaluate the claim is provided with the letter and if there is additional info needed, it will be provided upon request. It shuld also that the offer protects the insured from an excess verdict. Your attorney should review the letter with you and receive consent to settle for the demand amount.

The Importance of the Demand Letter in Your Palm Beach County Bad Faith Case: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)15000 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

There are certain key things your Palm Beach County accident attorney should so when they receive your case. First, they should determine whether you have a good case by immediately determining liability and evaluating whether the injuries and damages are substantial. Then they should determine the policy amount to see if the coverage is adequate. If the policy coverage is not adequate, there may be a bad faith claim down the line.

The demand letter sets the tone for the injured party to recover an excess verdicy against the insurer for failing to settle within the policy limits. The demand letter should be accompanied by supporting documents including medical bills, wage info, hospital records, photos, expert reports, summaries from doctors, and any other pertinent info to evaluate the claim. Thse documents are critical to showing later on that the insurance company acted in bad faith. If you have been injured in a Palm Beach County car accident, call an experienced accident attorney immediately to evaluate your case and determine your legal rights.

Can the Insured Tortfeasor Assign Their RIghts to a Bad Faith Claim to the Injured Party?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14998 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Yes. Sometimes this is the best route for the injured and gives the tortfeasor some breathing room. The injured party usually will agree to withold further action against the tortfeasor for any excess judgment until proceeding on a case against the insurer. This typically requires immediate payment of the policy limits and other costs and assignment of the bad faith claim. This gives the plaintiff immediate money to help with the loss from their injury while the bad faith claim is pursued.

Waiting until after the trial may help a bad faith cliam because insurance companies are held to a higher standard of good faith after being confronted with a post-verdict offer. Another benefit is that the insured may not have enough money and assets to collect on an excess verdict. Your Palm Beach County car accident attorney should thoroughly investigate the assets of the defendant and any communication between the defendant and the insurer.

What Information Should Your Palm Beach County Accident Attorney Obtain from the Insurance Adjuster? Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14997 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Your Palm Beach County accident attorney should also seek information that establishes a business practice. Questions about prior insurance employers and the reasons for leaving are important and your accident attorney can also check with other adjusters and attorneys about your aduster's reputation as well as that of the insurance company itself. State agencies also keep grievance complaints which can be requested through the Department of Financial Services and other agencies in other states.

What Information Should Your Palm Beach County Accident Attorney Obtain from the Insurance Adjuster? Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14995 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

The insurance adjuster handles the communication between you and the insurance company. They have the most information about your claim and probably are the most helpful. However, in a bad fatih case, they will be your adversary and your Palm Beach County accident attorney will be able to take their deposition. After reviewing the adjsuter's files, your attorney will likely schedule his/her deposition quickly to avoid the insurance attorney prepping the adjuster. However, your attorney may ask the adjuster about any conversations the insurance adjuster had with the insurance attorney. Your car accident attorney may also ask the adjuster to admit certain things regarding any memos or letters from your attorney to the adjuster.

What Evidence Can You Obtain Against the Inurance Company for Bad Faith? Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14994 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you are pursuing punitive damages, the scope of discovery is broader as these types of damages are more difficult to prove. The plainitff has to show the method in which the insurance company acted was in the course of regular business conduct. Your would have to go back for a reasonable amount of time. An adjuster or supervisor's notes may show that someone higher up was dictating which may lead to more relevant discovery. Your Palm Beach County car accident attorney may also look to the Department of Financial Services too. They keep a lof of all of the complaints and statutory notices sent to the insurance carrier. These can be used to meet the business practice requirement.

What Evidence Can You Obtain Against the Inurance Company for Bad Faith?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14993 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

It depends on the damages you are seeking. If you are seeking compensatory damages, the evdience must be specific and contain every correspondence made with the insurer to support your position. This includes the demand letter, notice form, narratives and all typed memos that followed conversations with the adjuster. The insurance file is also discoverable except for anything that fall under the attorney-client privilege whether it is s first or third party bad faith case. Your Palm Beach County car accident attorney should also loof closely at the adjuster and supervisor's notes.

Pursuing a Bad Faith Claim Against an Insurance Company

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14946 — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

You may have a bad faith claim agaisnt an insurer if they do any of the following:

1. Attempt to settle a claim when part of the policy was alterd without notice to or consent from the insured

2. materially misrepresent to the insured or any other person having an interest in hte proceeds payable under the policy with the intent to settle the loss on such policy on less favorable terms than the policy provides

3. Performing any of the following so frequently so as to indicate a general business practice:

a) failing to adopt of implement standards for proper investigation of claims

b) misrepresenting pertinent facts or plocy provisions with respect to claims

c) failing to act promptly upon communications with respect to claims

d) denying claims without reasonable investigation based on available information

e) failing to affirm or deny full or partial cliams

f) faiure to promptly provide reasonable explanation to insured for basis for denial of claim

g) failure to promptly notify the insured of additional info needed to process claim and to provide clear explanation why info is needs and why it is necessary

It is important to immediately hire a Palm Beach County car accident attorney when you have been injured in a car accident. A skilled car accident knows how to set up your case for potential bad faith by the insurance company, to bring you maximum recovery in the event the insurance company fails to act in good faith and perform all necessary steps legally required of them to process your claim.

Bad Faith Claims in Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Cases

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14941 — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Mandatory arbitration of UM coverage is binding and enforceable. If your policy contains language to this effect, there is strong incentive for the insurance company to refuse to settle for anything exceeding the policy limits because if the insured is forced into arbitration, it is likely the settlement amount will be lower. However, Florida law allows to the insured to collect full tort damages against the insurer exceeding the policy limits when they committed a violation in failing to settle a UM claim. This puts the insurer at risk. They fear bad faith claims because there is no cap on the damages and damages could exceed the policy limits. If you are injured in a car accident with an uninsured/underinsured motorist, be sure to seek the advice of a Palm Beach County accident attorney immediately.

What Your Attorney Should Do to Determine All Potential Defendants and Liability Coverage: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14939 — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Once your West Palm Beach car accident attorney has received all of the insurance policies providing potential coverage on your claim, he/she should carefully review it to determine if the insurer has engaged in bad faith settlement conduct. You may have a claim agaisnt the insurer for misrepresentation, asserting inappropriate coverage defenses or other bad faith behavior. A skilled bad faith attorney may be able to recover money for you exceeding the policy limits. Failure to properly review an insurance policy can lead to injured car accident victims giving up certain rights they are legally entitled to and allowing the insurance company to wiggle out of liability especially if they try to claim the torfeasor did not pay his/her premiums and therefore there is no coverage. Never talk to the insurance company without seeing an accident attorney first and the better word of advice is to let the attorney do the talking. To pursue a bad faith claim, the plaintiff must show coverage, wrongful refusal to defend by the insurance company, and that settlement was reasonable and made in good faith.

What Your Attorney Should Do to Determine All Potential Defendant's and Liability Coverage: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14938 — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

The first thing your Palm Beach County car accident attorney should do is determine the coverage available to you. There are important statute of limitations that apply to various tortfeasors and insurers that must be complied with, so your accident attorney should work quickly to obtain information regarding coverage. You also want to seek a Palm Beach County car accident attorney immediately after an accident to avoid any possible problems with the statute of limitations.

You also want to be the first to file your claim with the insurer so that your gets looked at first of there were multiple people injured in the accident. If there is a single-limit coverage, any money available to you could get depleted before your claim is filed. Once your attorney requests the insurance policy, the insurer has 30 days to send him/her a certified copy of all policies providing coverage.

Does it Matter If My Car Was Leased When Determining PIP Benefits After a Palm Beach County Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14728 — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

Typically, the insurer of the lessor's vehicle (the person who leased you the car) is primary responsible. However, the lessor can shift the burden to you the lessee if certain criteria met. The lessor has to notify you in bold writing on the face of the agreement. If the lessor complies, but you have no coverage, the burden will not shift to you. If you have been involved in a car accident with the driver of a leased vehicle who did not have coverage, contact a Palm Beach County accident attorney immediately. You may be able to recover damages from the leasing company. Never try to determine your entitlement to PIP coverage on your own. Insurance companies are concerned with their bottom line and will always try to avoid liability.

What is the Threshold I Must Meet to Recover PIP Benefits in a Palm Beach County Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14606 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

In a tort action brought against the owner, occupant, registrant, or operator of a motor vehicle injured under no-fault laws or against any entity legally responsible for an act/omission by one of these parties, entitles the plaintiff to recover damages for pain, suffering, mental anguish, and inconvenience if the following criteria are met:

Either

1) You have significant or permanent loss of an important bodily function;

2) You have permanent injury within reasonable degree of medical probability

3) You have significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement

4) death

Death is not difficult to prove, but the first three criteria will almost always require expert medical testimony that demonstrates permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability. You should know that permanent pain may constitute permanent injury.

If you have been injured in a Palm Beach County car accident, contact an experienced accident attorney immediately to determine your rights to PIP benefits. Do not attempt to negotiate with the PIP adjuster yourself.

Who Pays Your Attorney's Fees in a Palm Beach County PIP Lawsuit Against Your Own Insurance Carrier?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14579 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you succeed in court on your PIP claim, the insurance company will have to pay. The court may also award fees when they exceed the amount in controversy and if the insurance company contests your attorney's right to fees, then your attroney will be entitled to recover what he/she spent defending the issue. Fees for pre-suit work may also be recovered when the insurer failed to reasonably settle a claim. Even if you settle with the insurance company after filing suit, thye will still be responsible for fees.

The best thing you can do if you have been injured in a West Palm Beach car accident is find an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney who understands accident litigation and the obligations of the insurance company. Never let the fear of attorneys fee prevent you from learning your rights and entitlements especially when you have been injured and never attempt to negotiate or sepak to the insurance company yourself.

What if the Insurance Company Says My Policy Has Been Canceled After My Palm Beach County Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14551 — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If your insurance company had a valid right to cancel there is not much you can doto secure benefits; however, in some instances cancellation is not effective for failure to adhere to Florida law. Usually two issues arise: cancellation for non-payment of premium or non-renewal of the policy. If the insurance company tells you your policy has been cancelled, have your Palm Beach County car accident attorney investigate because the policy may not have been rightfully or effectively terminated.

Except when cancellation is for non-payment, Florida law requires at least 45 days writtent notice to insured prior to the effective date of cancellation. If for non-payment, then the insurer only has to give 10 days notice so long as the notice states the reason for cancellation. It is important to hire a Palm Beach County car accident attorney with experience in understanding insurance policies and auto insurance companies. You may have a valid claim and not know it. Don't let the insurance company deceive you. Know your rights and entitlements under the law when you have been injured in a Palm Beach County car accident.

What If a PIP Insurance Carrier Fails to Timely Pay My Claim After a Palm Beach County Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14444 — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Typically, your insurance carrier has 30 days to make payment on your valid written notice of covered loss. Receipt of meducal verification of claim does not serve as effective notice to the insurance carrier. If they fail to pay within the 0 days without providing proog that they are not responsible for paying the claim, then interest will begin to accrue in the amount and they will be liable for your attorney's fees; however, the carrier can still contest the claim. A PIP carrier cannot use its investigative rights to extend the 30 day time limit. If the carrier mails payment within 30 days but it is received after 30 days, the payment is not considred overdue.

If a healthcare provider fails to provide a statement within 35 days of treatment excluding emergency services, care in a hospital ER, or ambulance services, the insurer does not have to pay on those charges and only those that were previously timely billed. If the doctor fails to send a timely statement and the insure denies payment, the doctor cannot come after you for the balance. If your PIP insurer fails to resolve your claim, your West Palm Beach car accident attorney will likely file suit against the insurer.

How Do Worker's Compensation Claims Affect PIP Benefits in a Palm Beach County Car Accident Case?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14443 — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes people are injured in a Palm Beach County car accident during the course of their employment and must miss work. Worker's compensation is where most turn to replace their lost wages. Under Florida law, worker's comp benefits must be credited agaisnt PIP benefits. Under the worker's comp statutes, the insurance carrier is entitled to a lien on any settlement received by an injured worker from a 3rd party tortfeasor--called the collateral source law. If you have been injured on the job contact an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney to represent you and insure you receive all of the benefits you are entitled to under the law. Remember, if you visit a doctor who accepts worker's comp, they must dismiss any outstanding bills that remain unpaid after treatment. Once a claimant settles with at 3rd party tortfeasor and the worker's comp cliamd has been resolved, the claimant may receive PIP benefits. If you are injured and being denied worker's comp or PIP benfits, contacy a knowledgeable Palm Beach County car accident attorney immediately. The best course of action is to always speak to an attorney experienced in car accident litgation prior to contacting anyone else.

Independent Medical Examinations and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14442 — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you have been injured in a Palm Beach County car accident, the insurer has a right to to mandate an independent medical exam (IME) for mental/physical conditions that are material to the benefits being claimed. Because of this right under Florida no-fault (PIP) laws, the insured can be denied benefits if they miss an appointment except in certain circumstances.

If a claimant does not attend an IME, the insured may be relieved from paying medical bills incurred prior to the exam but billed after benefits have been terminated. Failure to attend does not automatically eliminate an insurer's duty to pay, you have to look at the contract itself and see if maybe the appointment was scheduled remote to the plaintiff's residence. You should hire an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney prior to attending an IME to insure your rights are protected. You are allowed a witness and remember the doctor is hired by the opposing side and will be trying to show that you are not injured or not in pain. Br sure to let the doctor know of any pain and injuries you have.

Applying Personal Injury Protection (PIP) Benefits After a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14315 — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida law allows a named insured to elect a PIP deductible that applies to the named insured ot to the named insured and dependent relatives living in the same house. Florida law onyl allows insurers to offer deductibles of $250, $500, and $1000. The exception is for death benefits. PIP deductibles may not have to be paid out-of-pocket by the insured but may come from other sources such as worker's compensation. An injured party may recover the deductible from the tortfeasor (person causing the injury). Whatever you do, if you are involved in a Palm Beach County car accident, contact a personal injury/car accident attorney who is experienced in analyzing insurance policies and who understands the law to prevent you from being taken advantage of and to insure you get the recvoery you deserve.

Injured in a Palm Beach County Car Accident Without PIP Coverage

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14311 — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you are involved in a Palm Beach County car accident with an uninsured vehicle, you are generally self-insured for the first $10,000 in medical bills. Never deal with the party causing the accident on your own. Contact a knowledgeable Palm Beach County car accident attorney to respresent you to insure your legal rights are protected. The Florida courts are split on whether a tortfeasor (wrongdoer) is responsible for medical bills in the injured did not have PIP coverage. This issue has been submitted to the Florida Supreme Court for review; however, no opinion has been released. Palm Beach County lies in the 4th DCA which has ruled that an injured person is self-insured for the first $10,000 for failing to have PIP coverage as required by law.

Do You Have to Be Hit By the Other Car to Recvoer PIP Benefits?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14244 — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida law says that benefits must be paid for accidental bodily injury caused by physical contact with a motor vehicle, regradless of whether the injured is occupying a motor vehicle. You do not necesarily have to show the injury was caused by physical contact with the car. It may be enough to show the injury was caused by the car. The problem arises when you are injured while not an occupant of a self-propelled vehicle because there is a physical contact requirement.

In one instance, a Florida court allowed recvoery of PIP benefits when two co-workers were crossing the street and one co-worker pushed the other out of the way of a reboudning vehicle involved in a collision causing him to fall. There was no physical contact with the car. There is no bright line test to determine whether you will be entitled to PIP benifts when injured by a motor vehicle. The best thing you can do, is contact to Palm Beach County car accident attorney if you have been injured by a car or believed that a car may have caused your injury, to assess the facts of your case and determine whether you are entitled to PIP benefits. Do not try to contact the insurance company yourself. They have incentive to exclude coverage and delay your claim.

Who Has the Right To Recover PIP Benefits After a Palm Beach County Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14243 — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

No matter what kind of policy you have, Florida law requires every policy cover certain classes of people which include:

the named insured, relatives living in the insured's household, anyone driving the insured vehicle, passengers of the motor vehicle and other persons struck by the vehicle who suffer bodily injury but who are not occupants of a self-propelled vehicle.

Insurance defense attorneys will try to exlcude people from these categories to avoid paying out claims. Having an experienced West Palm Beach car accident attorney to assist you in understanding your insurance policy language and definitions and who knows how the insurance adjusters and attorneys operate, will go a long way in preventing you from potentially being wrongfully excluded from PIP benefits. The most argued about class is those persons not passengers but who are injured by the car.

The Causation Standard Applied to Your PIP Benefits After a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14241 — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

To recover PIP benefits you have to show that you sustained a loss as a result of bodily injury, sickness, or disease arising out of ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle. Under Florida law, you must show a nexus between the vehicle and injury. Some examples of cases that satisfied the causation standard are:

1. A plaintiff was attacked and robbed while changing a tire on a truck.

2. An insured driver was shot and pulled from a car after refusing to give a pedestrian a ride.

3. A worker was injured in a fall from a hydraulic ladder attached to a truck.

As you can see, you do not have to be injured in a Palm Beach County car accident with another car to sustain bodily injury associated with the ownership, maintenance, and use of a car. If you ahve been injured while in your car and you are not sure whether you are entitled to PIP beneifts, contact a knowledgeable Palm Beach County car accident attorney who knows how to apply the causation standard and can determine whether you have the right to recover PIP benefits. There are instances where you can get PIP benefits but not uninsured motorist benefits.

Disability and Death Benefits Under Your PIP Insurance in Palm Beach County: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14212 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

The required death benefit under Florida law are $5,000 per individual. These can be paid to the executor/administrator of the estate, to any of the deceased's relatives by blood or marriage or any other person the insurer finds equitably entitled to the money. An attorney is not supposed to charge to collect the death benefit unless the insurer contested the claim and the claimant had to take legal action to recover the benefit, then the attorney may seek fees from the insurer if the claimant is succesful. Contact a knowledgeable car accident attorney if a you or relative has been involved in a Palm Beach County car accident to determine what your disability or any potential death benefits may be.

Disability and Death Benefits Under Your PIP Insurance in Palm Beach County: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14211 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Under Florida law, disability benefits of 60% are required for loss earning capacity from inability to work and cost of having to hire someone else to do ordinary and necessary services that the injured person cannot because of injuries sustained in a Palm Beach County car accident. Disabilty benefits are not calculated just as the lost salary the injured suffered from not being able to work but rather the loss of earning capacity in addition to loss of gross income. If the claimant dies, the coverage for loss of income or earning capacity is no longer available. If the insured's medical premiums are paid by their employer as part of their gross salary, then they are entitled to 60% of that amount too.

What are My Medical Benefits Under Florida No-Fault (PIP) to be Paid in My West Palm Beach Car Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14139 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida statute requires 80% of all reasonable expenses for necessary services to be paid by the insurance carrier. If the case goes to trial, all that is required from the PIP (personal injury protection) claimant is testimony that the jury will have to decide are reasonable and necessary expenses. The Florida court are more interested in the testimony of the plaintiff than medical doctors on this point and the plaintiff bears the burden of proof. If you recevie Medicare, there are specific statutes that deal with the allowable fees under Medicare Part B. If you have been injured in Palm Beach County car accident, call an auto accident attorney who can explain to you how you will get your medical bills paid and who will help you focus on recovering from your injuries rather than how am I going to pay for all of this!

What Happens When Your Treating Health Care Provider Aggravates Your Injury?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14134 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Sometimes your treating health care provider may cause aggravation the injury you already sustained in your Palm Beach County car accident. However, the initial tortfeasor (the person who first caused your injury), is still liable for those injuries. The initial tortfeasor can't file a 3rd party claim agaisnt the health care provider for indemnity but they can file an action for subrogation against the doctor who aggravated the injury. The defendant must properly plead non-party negligence as an affirmative defense. Joint and several liability cannot be applied in a situation such as this. In one case, the court determined that when the plaintiff sues the first of two successive tortfeasors and establishes liability but the jury can't apportion between the two, the initial tortfeaso is liable for the whole injury. Some accident cases may become more difficult if there has been aggravtion to an injury caused by a treating doctor. Call an experienced Palm Beach County car crash attorney to insure your rights and legal interest are protected and that you receive the compensation you are entitled to.

Getting Paid in a Palm Beach County Car Accident Caused by Two People

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14129 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

In Florida, there is a legal doctrine known as joint and several liability which allows a plaintiff to bring an action against any wrongful party when 2 or more parties are to blame and the wrongful parties have to figure out whos is responsible for what percentage. This applies in cases where the total damages exceeds $25,000. Florida law has set a cap on damages and fault thresholds depending on how the jury assignes fault in an Palm Beach County car accident.

If a plaintiff is found to be at fault, any defendant found to be 10% or less at fault will not be subject to joint and several liability. If the plaintiff is not at fault, then defendant not subject to joint and several liability.

If the plaintiff is at fault, and the defendant is more than 10% but less than 25%, then joint and several liability does not apply to economic damages exceeding $200,000. If the plaintiff is not at fault then the cap is $500,000.

If the plaintiff is at fault and the defendant is at least 25% at fault but less than 50%, joint and several liability does not apply to any portion of economic damages in excess of $500,000. If the plaintiff is not at fault, then the cap is 1 million.

If the plaintiff is at fault and the defendant is more than 50% at fault, joint and several liability does not apply to any portion in excess of 1 million and if the plaintiff is not at fault, the cap is 2 million.

All if this can be difficult to sort out. Consult a Palm Beach County accident attorney is you have been injured in a car accident caused by 2 or more people.

Failure to Wear a Seat Belt and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)14127 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida law requires you to wear a seat belt. All front seat passengers must wear a seat belt and all minor children between the ages of 6-17. Certain restraints must be used for children 5 and under and children 3 and under must ride in a separate carrier with an integrated seat belt. When you meet with your Palm Beach County car accident attorney, you should know whether your seat belt is fully operational. A defendant may raise your failure to wear a seat belt as an affirmative defense and argue that you should be held comparatively negligent for the accident. If the defendant proves you had a seat belt available, then you must prove it was not operational to avoid it affecting your damages award. In determining whether you are comparatively negligent, the Court will will first determine the percentage of fault attributable to the defendant for causing the accident and then reduce it by percentage of the plaintiff's damages caused by not wearing a seat belt.

It is important that you wear your seat belt to avoid serious injury or death and a potential reduction of your damage award. If you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident and were not wearing a seat belt, make sure to discuss this with your West Palm Beach auto accident attorney so that he/she may protect you from a possible reduction of your damages award.

Attorney's Fees and the Failure of the Insurance Company to Settle a Valid Claim in a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13965 — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida law allows for attorney's fees to be awarded to an insured on a judgment against an insurer in favor of the insured ( you sue your own insurance company). This is to prevent insurance companies from contesting valid claims and to reimburse insureds who had to personally defend or sue their own insurance company to enforce the contract in a Palm Beach County car accident.

Contacting a knowledgeable Palm Beach County accident attorney before talking to your own insurance company will help you deal with the insurance company. Insurance companies and adjusters know when you don't have an attorney and this puts you at risk for a low settlement amount. An award of fees is only available to the contracting insured, insured's estate, and parties assigned the rights of coverage.

Palm Beach County Car Accident with a Leased Car

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13920 — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Long-term lease agreements are those lasting more than one year. The lessor of a vehicle with a long-term lease has greater protection under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine. The lessor is not considered the owner so long as certain requirement are met: (1) the lessor required the lessee buy adequate coverage; (2) the lessee bought and maintained coverage; (3) if the lease requiers the lessor to have minimum coverage and the lessee maintains it, the lessor is relieved of liability. General requirements under Florida law are $100K per person and $300K per incident for bodily injury protection and $50K property damage liability or not less than $500K combined bodily injury and property damage liability.

So what if you are in a Palm Beach County car accident with a leased vehicle and the lessee let htier insurance lapse? The lessor will probably be liable under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine for damages caused by the lessee. It is important to look at the terms of the lease agreement to determine potential liability. Call an experience West Palm Beach auto accident attorney who had expertise in reading lease agreement and insurance policies to determine your best course of action.

Stacking Bodily Injury Coverage in a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13916 — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Normally, this issue will only arise if you have at least 2 vehicles insured. Stacking of liability coverage is prohibited under Florida law. The policyholder is limited to the amount available to either vehicle. Stacking is available when written to different named insureds. Don't confuse stacking of bodily injury coverage with stacking of UM coverage. The Florida Supreme Court decided in Florida Farm Bureau Casualty Co. v. Hurtado, 587 So 2d 1314 (Fla. 1991) that Class I insureds (named insured, names insured's spouse, and resident relatives) may stack UM coverage but not Class II insured (permitted users and occupants of insured vehicle. If you have been in a West Palm Beach car accident, seek the advice of a competent, knowledgeable car accident attorney who will expain your rights, coverage, and entitlements.

What is A Non-Ownership/ "Drive Other Cars" Provision in Your Auto Insurance Policy?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13836 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If the insured's policy contains such a provision, then the insurance coverage will apply only if the insured is driving a vehicle in which heshe has no legal/equitable interest and drives the car only occasionally. The reason for this provision is to cover vehicles that are occasionally used by the insured without having to pay a disproportionate increase in premiums. If the insured has a vehicle he/she used sometimes that they own but have not declared on the policy, then there will likely be no coverage.

This provisions is aimed at preventing a family that owns 2 or more vehicles that may be used interchangeably from insuring only one vehicle on an individual family member. When trying to decide if a vehicle will be covered under the non-ownership provision, the insurance company will look at how substantial was the use of the non-owned vehicle. If you are unsure about whether you will be covered after a West Palm Beach car accident, call a skilled Palm Beach County personal injury/auto accident attorney to help you determine your rights and potential coverage for your accident.

What You Should Know About Typical Exclusions From Your Florida Car Accident Insurance Policy: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13831 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

The employee exclusion applies when the person making the claim is an employee of the insured except there is an exception for certain domestic employees. Basicall,y if you have auto insurance and your employee gets into a Lake Worth car accident in your car, there may be coverage exclusion. One way to get the insurance company to pay, is to prove the person alleged to be an employee is not an employee but an independent contractor. If you can prover that, there may be coverage.

The household exclusion is the most highly litigated. This exclusion denies coverage when the injured is a member of the the insured's family or the insured. For example, a daughter was injured when a family friend negligently drove the insured vehicle with the insured's permission. The daughter was denied coverage. When dealing with the household exclusion after a Palm Beach County car accident, look closely at how long the claimant has lived at the insured's house. Look at factors such as mailing address, sleeping place, meals, laundry, etc. as these may be relevant. Your best bet is to consult with a Palm Beach County accident attorney with experience in auto insurance covearge exclusions and auto insurance litigation.

What You Should Know About Typical Exclusions From Your Florida Car Accident Insurance Policy: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13827 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Different policies may have different terms or exclusions. Most exclusions include: vehicle being used in a business; vehicle being used to carry person for a charge; party filing claim is an employee of the insured; person injured and filing claim is either the injured or a member of the insured's family; or the property was under the control of the insured or rented to or transported by the insured.

If a vehicle is being used by employees of a repair shop and the employee is involved in a Palm Beach County car accident causing injuries, the owner of the shop will not be liable to the injured party. If you give your car to the valet at a restauarant and they get into an accident, you will probably not be liable.

Automobile business coverage will normally not apply to people in the class of named insured and agents of these people. Automobile business usually includes sales, leasing, repair, servicing, and parking operations. The automobile business exclusion is sually applied when a vehicle is left at a garage for repairs and the employee or someone helping the employee is injured. This is known as the "shop rule." However, if aperson authorizes another to transport their car for service, Florida courts have found the owner remains liable until it reaches the shop.

Who Is Responsible For an Injury When a Car Has Been Stolen or the Owner Left the Keys in the Car?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13825 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida courts usually let the jury decide whether the owner leaving the keys in the car is actionable. More often than not, when the keys are left in the ignition and the car is stolen, if the vehicle causes injury to another, the owner will be liable.

Florida Statute 316.1975 states: "A person driving or in charge of a any motor vehicle may not permit it to stand unattended without first stopping the engine, locking the ignition and removing the key." There are exceptions for emergency vehicles and licensed delivery vehicles.

In Vining v. Avis Rent-A-CAr Systems, Inc., 354 So 2d 54 (Fla. 1978), a car was left running with the doors open and keys in the ignition in a high theft area. The car was stolen and involved in an accident and the owner was found liable. Even intervening criminal activity will not automatically release you from liability. If you have been invloved in a Palm Beach County car accident with the driver of a stolen vehicle, the owner of the vehicle may be liable if they breached a duty not to leave their keys in the car.

Sometimes the keys don't have to be in the car for the owner to be liable when injury results from the theft of the car. If you leave your car parked but the keys are in the glove compartment and the car is stolen, you could still be liable. Schwartz v. American Home Insurance Co., 360 So 2d 383 (Fla. 1978). The amount if time that passes between the car being stolen and the accident is important as well. Contact an experienced Palm Beach County car crash attorney if you have been invloved in a Palm Beach County car accident with the driver of a stolen vehicle. You may be able to recover from the owner.

Who Defends the Tortfeasor When You've Been in a Palm Beach County Auto Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13809 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Well, you have to first look at the tortfeasor's (person who is being sued for causing the accident) insurance contract to see if there is a duty to defend the insured. Under Florida law, the insurer is under a duty to defend when the complaint alleges facts that are within the policy coverage. If a policy has language that excludes bodily injury or property damage from coverage if the insured's acts are intentional and the complaint only alleges that the defendant acted intentionally, then the insurer has no duty to defend.

The allegations in the initial complaint are what determine the insurer's duty. If a complaint is amended to exclude acts covered by the policy, then the insurer no longer has a duty to defend. If you are being sued for causing a West Palm Beach car accident, it is probably best to obtain your own separate attorney because the insurance company has incentive to show they should not have to defend you and you want to avoid a conflict so that you get the best possible result.

If an insurer fails to defend you when the allegations are within the policy coverage, you may be able to bring a breach of contract claim against them. You may also settle with the injured for a reasonable amount and if the insurer's disclaimer is unreasonable they may be liable for the settlement amount if it is reasonable. If you are being sued for causing a Palm Beach County accident, contact an experienced Lake Worth car accident attorney to discuss your insurance coverae and protect your rights!

Liability for A Minor CHild Involved in A Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13806 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Generally, a parent is not liable for acts committed by a minor child. However, if a parent executes or signs a driver license application on behalf of a minor child, there is an exception. Anyone under 18 who applies for a driver license must have a parent of guardian sign the application or someone who will assume liability. If the minor child subsequently is involved in a West Palm Beach car accident due to negligently operating a motor vehicle prior to turning 18, the person who signed the application is jointly and severally liable with the minor for the minor's negligence.

This law was intended to only make the parent liable for actual damages and not punitive damages. If the minor child was driving a vehicle insured by the parent, the parent and child will be covered by the policy unless the child did not live with the parent at the time. A parent who signs a driver license application will remain liable for the minor child until he/she is emancipated even if the child does not reside with the parent. If you are the parent or guardian of a minor child who negligently operated a motor vehicle in resulting in a car accident, contact an expereinced West Palm Beach car accident attorney to discuss your liability and inform you about the process. Don't try to negotiate with the insurance company yourself or the other guy's attorney. Protect yourself!

Insurance Coverage When You've Been In a Palm Beach County Accident With a Rental Car

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13798 — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

A long-term lease agreement is one that is one year or longer and a short-term lease agreement is one that is less than one year. If you rent a car from a rental car agency, pay attention to the rental contract and understand the provisions regarding primary coverage for the rental car. A lessor (the person leasing the car to you) is required to provide primary liability coverage equal to the minimum required by law which is currently $10,000. If the rental company provides on the face of the agreement in bold 10 point font, clear indication that they have opted to make you responsible for primary coverage, then you will be responsible. However, if they fail to satisfy any of those conditions, then thye will be liable to you if you are involved in a Palm Beach County car accident.

It is important that you contact an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney if you have been in an accident with a rental car. Understanding the nuances of the law as it related to car accidents and insurance laibility is best left to a professional who has knowledge in how these cases work and understands the dynamis at play with the insurance company. Don't let the rental car agency get away with not being liable if you suspect they may be.

If a lessor leases a vehicle covered by its policy and the lessor shifts the burden of primary coverage to the lessee who only has excess coverage, if an accident occurs, the lessee's insurance company cannot be forced to assume the role of the primary insurer if the lesses has no primary coverage.

What Happens if You Give Someone Else Permission to Use Your Car and They Get Into and Accident?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13560 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Most likely you will be liable if you allow someone else to use your car and they get into a Lake Worth car accident due to vicarious liability (this just means that you can be liable for the actions of another even though you did not directly cause the injury). So if you let your child drive your car and they do not reside with you and they do not come under any other exceptions, you will be liable if they cause injury to another while operating your motor vehicle. Also, if you give one person permission to drive your car and they allow someone else to drive it, you may still be liable absent trespass or conversion under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine. If you have allowed someone else to drive your car and they were in an accident, contact an experienced car crash attorney immediately to determine your rights and any potential liability you may face.

Establishing Liability: What Determines "Use, Ownership, or Maintenance of an Automobile" When You've Been in a West Palm Beach Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13559 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

There must be some link between the motor vehicle and the injury. Courts usually allow insurance liability coverage if ther is a highly substantial connection between the use of the vehicle and the event causing injury. An example of no connection between vehicle and injury is a person shot by a gun that went off as he was removing it from the car. There is no bright-line test to guarantee whether there is a connection between your injury and a motor vehicle. The best thing you can do if you believe a vehicle may have been involved in your injury is contact an experienced West Palm Beach personal injury/automobile accident attorney to assess your case and determine the liklihood that there is liability arising out of the use, ownership or maintenance of an automobile if you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident.

Subrogation Rights and Releasing a Tortfeasor: What You Should Know About UM Coverage and Your Palm Beach County Accident Case: Part III

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13546 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

The injured insured involved in a Lake Worth car accident does not have a duty to the UM carier to bring an action agsint the UM motorist before the statute of limitations expires to rpeserve the UM insurer's right to subrogation. UM benefits are also not considered collateral source payments, so when the UM carrier provides benefits, the tortfeasor is not entitled to a set-off for the UM payment.

Under Florida statute, an injured person must send written notice of a proposed settlement with the UM motorist by certified or registered mail. If the insurer authorizes the settlement or fails to respond within 30 days, the injured may execute a release and finalize settlement with the tortfeasor without jeapordizing their UM claim.

If a UM carrier refuses to settle with a tortfeasor, the UM carrier must pay the injured insured, within 30 days, the amount of the written offer from the 3rd party tortfeasor's liability carrier to preserve their right to subrogate against the tortfeasor.

Subrogation Rights and Releasing a Tortfeasor: What You Should Know About UM Coverage and Your Palm Beach County Accident Case: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13543 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

UM carriers typically protect subrogation rights by putting provisions in their insurance contracts that prevent the insured from settling or moving forward with a judgment on the claim against the uninsured motorist without written consent from the UM carrier. So if you settle with the UM motorist for X amount, you may be prevented from bringing a UM claim against your own UM carrier because it creates a presumptin of prejudice to the UM carrier. This presumption can be overcome if you can show that the UM motorist is judgment proof or the carrier would have settled with the UM motorist.

An example where the presumption was overcome is where an injured insured settled with a 99 year old nursing home resident who had no assets or earning potential. An example where the presumption was not overcome was where an injured insured settled with at college student with a part-time job, bank accounts and savings bonds. If you have been in a West Palm Beach auto accident with an unisured motorist, speak with an attorney immediately before speaking with anyone else so that you insure your rights. An experienced Palm Beach County personal injury/car crash attorney can help you understand all of the possible sources of recovery and how those claims must be handled.

Subrogation Rights and Releasing a Tortfeasor: What You Should Know About UM Coverage and Your Palm Beach County Accident Case: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13540 — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Subrogation means taking the legal rights of someone whose debts/expenses have been paid. Subrogation occurs when an insurance company who has paid off its injured claimant takes the legal rights of the claimant agaisnt a 3rd party that caused the injury to recover what the UM carrier paid. A UM carrier has a common law right to subrogation against an uninsured motorist.

If you have been in a Palm Beach County car accident with an uninsured motorist, you can collect from your own UM policy and your insurance company can then go after the person who injured you to get their money back. To do this, you must have UM coverage.

Damages and Recovering UM Benefits in Your Palm Beach County Auto Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13490 — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

To recover UM benefits, to must show damages as opposed to UM coveage exceeding liability coverage. The Supreme Court of Florida in Traveler's Insurance Company v. Warren, upheld a lower court's decision when the court did not permit the estate of a passenger killed as a result of a host driver's negligence to recover liability and UM coverage under the same policy insuring the vehicle operated by the negligent host driver if the negligent host driver's policy excluded the vehicle insured under the policy from the definition of "uninsured motor vehicle."

If you are a passenger in a West Palm Beach car accident and the driver of the other car is uninsured you may have more money available to you than you think. You may be able to recover from the negligent host driver's policy and UM coverage from the same policy with respect to the claim agaisnt the other negligent driver, uninsured driver. Also, if you are injured in a hit and run accident or a phantom vehicle as they are sometimes called, most say that these are UM vehicles so long as the injured insured gives the police notice within a specified time, usually 24 hours. Failure to give the police notice will create a presumption of prejudice to the insurance company which can be overcome if you can prove there was no actual prejudice.

What is an Uninsured Motor Vehicle

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13489 — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida Statute defines an uninsured motor vehicle to include an insured motor vehicle when the liability insurer is unable to make payment with respect to the legal liability of the insured within the limits specified because of insolvency; a liability insurer has provided the limits of bodily injury liability for the insured which are less than the total damages sustained by the person legally entitled to recover; a liabilty insurer excludes liability coverage to a non-family member whose operation of a insured vehicle results in injuries to the named insured or to a family member of the named insured who is a member of the named insured's household. Be sure to contact an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney to handle your Lake Worth car crash case.

Your Basis For Recovery When You Have Been Involved in a Palm Beach County Car Accident with an Uninsured Motorist: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13488 — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

To recover UM benefits in a Palm Beach County car accident there are two requirements:

1) the insured must have been injured by an uninsured motor vehicle
2) the insured is legally entitled to recover from the operator of the UM vehicle

Essentially, you must show that the uinsured/underinsured motorist is at fault and you suffered an injury. Don't attempt to settle with an at-fault driver's insurance compan before contacting and exeperienced West Palm Beach accident attorney because some underinsured policies do not require the insurance company to pay when the injured has settled with the other driver's insurance company. Avoid this costly mistake and get an attorney as soon as possible after you have been involved in a Palm Beach County car accident.

Ownership, Maintenance and Use of An Uninsured Motor Vehicle

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13435 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

To establish an insurer's liability under the "ownership, maintenance, and use" theory when you have been in a West Palm Beach car accident, three rules must apply: the accident must have arisen out of the inherent nature of the automoble; the accident must have arisen within the natural territorial limits of the automobile and its actual use, loading or unloading must not have termminated; and the automobile must not merely contribute to cause the condition but must itself produce the injury. In the following cases, recovery under UM benefits was allowed.

1) UM motorist intentionally drove truck into insured
2) Insured injured while escaping from 2 bulls that crashed through insured's fence after they spilled from and overturned UM vehicle
3) passenger riding in an insured vehicle injured when struck by a tree limb that crashed through her windshield after an lawn worker attempted to thwon it into an uninsured truck

Recovery was not allowed in the following cases:

4) persons injured during altercation or attack
5) sheriff's department DUI specialist attacked in police vehicle by intoxicated uninsured motorist who was arrested following an accident
6) insured injured when a bomb placed under his car exploded

As you can see, there is no bright line test. When you have been injured by an uninsured motorist, you need the advice and expertise of West Palm Beach auto accident attorney to navigate your through the applicable tests, standards, laws and procedures to insure maximum recovery.

Mandatory Insured and Invalid/Permissilbe Exclusions Under Florida UM Coverage

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13432 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

UM coverage extends to the named insured, the named insured's spouse, and relatives of either who reside in the household (these are also known as Class I insured). Coverage does not follow a particular vehicle or accident but follows the injured person. If the injured is a Class I insured, they are covered "whenever,wherever bodily injury is inflicted upon them" and any attept to exclude coverage with a few exceptions is impermissble and invalid.

For an insurer to legally be able to exclude UM coverage for injuries sustained by Class I insured while occupying any vehicle owned by such insured for which UM coverage not purchased, the insurer must notify the insured of the coverage limitation in writing on an approved form by the Office of Insurance Regulation and reduces the premium for UM coverage by at least 20%. Any UM policy which provides less than that required by Florida Statute is void as contrary to public policy. Be sure to hir an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney to fight the insurance companies and insure you receive the UM benefits you deserve.

Rejecting UM Insurance and Your West Palm Beach Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13430 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

UM coverage can be rejected or lower limits selcted by an insured named on the policy. If there is not rejection or lower limits selected, the policy will be interpreted as having UM coverage in an amount equal to the amount of bodily injury liability limits. Under current law, an effective rejection must be IN WRITING! Unless you ask for a copy of the policy and make the necessary adjustments yourself, you may end up bearing the costs if you are invloved in a West Palm Beach car crash with an uninsured motorist. Don't let the insurance companies tell you you have rejected UM when you haven't. Hire an experienced Palm Beach County car accident attorney to insure your rights.

Uninsured Motorist Claims and Arbitrating Your Palm Beach County Car Wreck

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13428 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Some auto insurance policies provide UM claims must be arbitrated and courts generally enforce these because it is more efficient for both parties; however, absent an arbitration clause, arbitration of a UM claim cannot be compelled. It is advisable to contact a Palm Beach County accident attorney even before contacting your insurance carrier to insure maximum recovery. Arbitration provisions usually require the insured to select an arbitrator, the insurer to select an arbitrator, and for those two to select a third. Don't accept an unfair offer because many of the insurance companies are connected to the arbitrators. You may think you are getting a fair hearing when you are not. An experienced car accident attorney can navigate you through the insurance company's web of tricks.

Renewing Your UM Coverage: Whate You Sould Know If You've Been in a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13426 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida Statute provides that UM coverage or higher limits needs not be included in any policy that "renews, extends, changes, supersedes, or replaces an existing policy with the same bodily injury limits" when the named insrued previously rejected coverage or selected lower limits. However, an insurer was required to get a new objection of UM coverage when a policy obtained by a business for an employee was treanferred to the employee after the employee leased a new car.

Exclusion of UM coverage or higher limits does not apply when there has been a gap between expiration of one policy and issuance of the next policy. The subsequently issued policy does not replace an existing policy and an insurer cannot rely onthe previous rejection of the prior policy if there is a gap between expiration of one and the issuance of the next.

An insurer is required to notify the named insurer at least annually of the UM options available under the statute and failure to do so means that the insured is entitled to limits of UM coverage requal to the limits of bodily injury protection limits. If you've been involved in a Palm Beach County car accident, make sure to find an experienced West Palm Beach accident attorney who understands the importance of UM coverage and benefits to make sure you get the compensation you deserve.

UM Coverage Requirements and Your Lake Worth Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13424 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

As a an insured driver, you should be aware of the written requirements for uninsured motorist(UM) coverage in the event you find yourself in a Lake Worth car crash. Florida statute requires written rejection of UM covearge or lower UM limits be on approved forms although some courts have held that an oral rejection is okay so long as the insurer proves the oral rejection or selection of lower UM benefits was made knowingly.

When selecting coverage for your car, be careful not to tell the insurance agent you want to reject UM coverage. One Court held that an oral waiver of the written statement requirement requires proff of the oral rejection before delivery of the policy, not proof of what the named insured might have decided to do if it was offered.

Difference Between Stacked and Non-Stacked Coverage and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13422 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Under Florida Statute, insurance companies may offer policies that prohibit stacking and limit coverage to a vehicle occupied by an insured at the time of the Palm Beach County car wreck. This means that if the insured is occupying a non-owned vehicle, the injured may recover under a policy covering the occupied vehicle and as excess, under a policy affording the highest coverage to the injured as a Class I insured which includes the named insured, the named insured's spouse, and resident relatives). If the insured is not an occupant of the car at the time of the accident, the insured may select the coveage on any one vehicle inder a policy providing coverage. Class I insured can stack limits of all vehicles under a policy in which they are Class I insureds and can add to that policy in which they are class II insureds.

Class II insureds are not permitted to stack coverage for vehicles under a policy that insures him/her as a Class II insured.

Difference Between Stacked and Non-Stacked Coverage and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident: Part I

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)13420 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Stacking occurs when an insured involved in a West Palm Beach car accident combines uninsured motorist benefits (UM) from more than one source. There are two ways this occurs. First, an insured covered under two or more policies may combine or stack the UM coverage from each policy. Second, an injured party involved in a Palm Beach County car accident who is insured under one policy that covers two or more vehicles is permitted to combine or stack coverage for each vehicle on the policy. In Florida, the number of coverages is limited to the number of premiums paid. If the premium is not paid, then there can be no stacking.

PIP Benefits and Mental and Physical Examinations After Your Delray Beach Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13301 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Your insurance carrier may be able to choose the doctor who performs your physical/mental exam after a Palm Beach County car accident. Sometimes the insurance carrier uses this right under Florida Statute 627.736(7) to stop paying claims. An insurance company can only withdraw payment from a treating doctor when they have obtained a report from a doctor licensed inder the same chapter whose treatment authorization is sought to be withdrawn.

This does not limit the type of doctor the insurance carrier can choose to perfrom your IME (independent medical examination) and you cannot unreasonably refuse to attend an IME on the grounds that the doctor is not licensed under the same chapter. The doctor does not have to be agreed upon by the insurance company and your attorney unless the doctor is questionable. If you unreasonably refuse to attend an IME then the insurance carrier will no longer be liable for subsequent personal injury protection. You have the right to have a 3rd party present and to videotape and record the exam.

Determining the Defendants and Extent of Coverage in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)13296 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

One of the first things your Palm Beach County car accident attorney should do is determine the coverage available on your case. Sometimes the UM carrier or tortfeasor's insurance company has folded and under Florida Statute there is a one year limitation for filing cliams against insolvent insurance carriers. Quick determination of coverage also means getting your claim looked at sooner. A skilled Palm Beach County accident attorney must review all possible policies to correctly assess your claim. An insurance company has 30 days to produce certified copies of liability coverage and other important documents after receiving written notice from your attorney.

Once the attorney receives the policy, he/she must review it and determine whether the carrier has engaged in any bad faith settlement conduct. The attorney must decide if there is a claim against the insurance company itself for misrepresentation or other wrongful conduct which may support a bad faith claim. A skilled West Palm Beach bad faith attorney may be able to exceed the policy coverage otherwise available to you.

Who Can You Sue if the Other Driver is Uninsured or Underinsured?

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13286 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you are injured in a West Palm Beach car accident and the other driver is uninsured/underinsured, you may have a claim against the UM carrier (Uninsured Motorist Coverage). This is coverage the Plam Beach County accident victim has through his/her own insurance carrier. There is a 5 year statute of limitations on suing a UM carrier versus a 4 year statute of limitations on suing the other driver or tortfeasor.

UM coverage acts like a replacement insurer for underinsured motorists. This is why you need to be particularly careful when choosing UM coverage. GET PLENTY OF IT! The other guy is only required to have $10,000 in personal injury protection coverage or PIP. Florida statute allows the UM carrier who has paid the amount offered by the tortfeasor upon final resolution of the UM claim to seek subrogation against the underinsured motorist for the amounts paid.

Collateral Source Payments and Your PIP and Health Insurance Coverage

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13283 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you receive PIP benefits after being injured in a Delray Beach car accident, evidence supporting a setoff against your award must be presented during trial and the jury or finder of fact must calculate the setoff unless the parties stipulated to let the court determine it post-judgment.

If collateral sources are provided pursuant to a subrogation or reimbursement provision such as with your health insurance, there shall be no reduction. Instead the provider shall receive actual amount of collateral source money recovered minus the pro rata share of attorney's fees and costs for recovering against the tortfeasor. Any disputes as the to the amount, shall be determined by the court. The claimant must send notice to the provider of the collateral sources, that he/she intends to seek damages from the tortfeasor and the provider must send notice back asserting their right to subrogation or reimbursement. If the provider fails to comply, they have waived their right to subrogation or reimbursement.

Collateral Source Payments: What are they and How do they Affect Your Car Accident Money

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)13282 — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Collateral source payments are received by a plaintiff in a Palm Beach County car crash case for compensation benefits from a party not involved in the lawsuit to compensate the plaintiff for damages suffered in their accident. Pursuant to Florida Statute, a court must reduce the amount of such awards by the totatl of all amounts paid or which are otherwise available to the claimant from all collateral sources (i.e. social security benefits, public programs, health and auto insurance, PIP, disbaility insurance, etc.) in a judgment. Worker's compensation, Medicaid and Medicare payments are excluded. It is important that the issue of collateral source payments is handled carefully by a competent Lake Worth car accident attorney as these payments can affect your judgment and prevent you from getting a fair trial and the money you deserve.

HIPAA and Your Right to Privacy in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13250 — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

As a West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County car accident victim, you're medical records are protected under HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) and any authorization for their release must contain the following:

--a detailed description of the specific information to be disclosed
--the name/i.d. of the person authorized to disclose the info (health care provider)
--name/i.d. of person to whim health care provider may make the requested use of disclosure (your Palm Beach County car accident attorney
--description of the purpose of requested use/disclosure
--expiration date or expiration of event for authorization that relates to the individual or purpose of the use or disclosure
--signature of individual and date signed (if authorization is signed by the attorney there must be a description of the representative's authority to act for the individual)
--individual's right to revoke the authorization, any exceptions to the revocation and a description of how the individual may revoke
-- a statement that the health care provider may not condition treatment, payment, enrollment or eligibility for benefits on whether individual signs authorization
--potential that information to be disclosed may be subject to re-dislcosure and no longer protected under the privacy rules

It is important that you know all of your rights as a car accident victim. Make sure you discuss with your West Palm Beach car crash attorney your right to privacy.

Getting Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Attorney Your Prior Medical Records and Disclosing Prior Injuries

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13249 — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

It is important to provide your Palm Beach County accident attorney with prior medical records( prior to current accident) and to put them on notice as to any pre-existing injuries you may have to determine if you have any similar conditions that match your current complaints. BREATHE. Prior similar injuries DO NOT automatically hinder your case. Prior injuries may be minimized before a jury by arguing that any pre-existing condition was aggravated by the current accident. You should also be aware that your medical records are protected under HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996). You are afforded privacy rights and any request for records should be accompanied by authorization that complies with the privacy rules of HIPAA.

The Seat Belt Defense and Your Palm Beach County Car Crash Case: Part II

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13239 — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

A Palm Beach County car accident defendant who pleads the seat belt defense has the burden of proving that the vehicle the plainitff was driving contained seat belts and that they could have been used. Plaintiff may rebut this by showing that the seat belts did not work. However, even if the defendant is able to show that the plaintiff had an available and operational seat belt, it is not the end of the plaintiff's case. A jury must still consider such factors as whether the plaintiff would have suffered the same or similar injuries which could depend on the angle of impact; position of the plaintiff; the plaintiff's physical build; the type of seat belt; whether the plaintiff's injuries would have been significantly different of he/she were wearing a seat belt and if so, to what extent should the plaintiff's recovery be reduced.

You should not worry if you were not wearing a seat belt when you were injured in your West Palm Beach car accident. However, it is important to have an experienced West Palm Beach accident trial attorney who understands the seat belt defense and how it could be used against you by the defendant in an effort to reduce the defendant's liability and your recovery.

The Seat Belt Defense and Your Palm Beach County Car Crash Case: Part I

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)13237 — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

The seat belt defense is an affirmative defense a defendant in a Palm Beach County car crash case may raise to show that your failure to wear a seat belt contributed to your injuries and therefore, you should be found comparatively negligent. The defendant must specifically and timely plead the seat belt defense or else it is waived at trial and the defendant may not introduce evidence of the plaintiff's failure to wear a seat belt to the jury.

The defendant must plead and prove that the plaintiff had an available and operational seat belt; failure to use the seat belt was unreasonable and the plaintiff's injuries would have been prevented if he/she had used a seat belt.

Option and Choices: Spinal Cord Surgery for West Palm Beach Car Accdient Victims

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12905 — Thu, 28 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

There are a number of treatments for spine injuries suffered by West Palm Beach/Delray Beach accident victims. Some are minimally invasive and others are not. Many surgical procedures are highly invasive and require disruption of many tissues in and around the spine to treat.

Typical invasive intervention includes myelograms and discography. With myelograms contrast is injected into the thecal sac so that compromised areas can be better seen. Discography is used when the exact source of pain is difficult to determine. Contrast is injected onto intevertebral discs considered to be a source of pain. X-rays and CTs after injections can also show small defects in discs filled with contrast material.

Other treatments can be given to determine or treat various spinal injuries. Usually a combination of anesthetics and steroids are used for determining immediate effectiveness and to reduce inflammation of tissue in hopes of achieving long-term pain relief. Epidural injections and facet joint injections may also be used.

Spinal surgeries typically fall into two categories: fusions and decompressions which involve either removing tissue around the spinal cord or stabilizing two or more vertebral level to relieve compression. Advances in medicine are moving toward less invasive procedures for victims of West Palm Beach/Delray Beach car accidents including electrothermal therapy and endoscopy.

Finding A West Palm Beach Brain Injury Attorney

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12812 — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

It is important to undertand the injuries sustained by you or a loved one who has been in a west Palm Beach car accident. Why? Well, to receive proper treatment you need to know what is wrong with you. Once that is established, a treatment plan can be devised to insure you receive the care you deserve. Treatment is also extremely important to your lawsuit in that it will help demonstrate the nature and extent of your injuries, future medical bills, pain and suffering, etc.

Subtle brain injuires are usually treated with rehabilitative intervention. However, there are a number of ways to treat intracranial injuries most of which are performed to relieve pressure on the brain. Intracranial pressure monitors are placed inside the skull after a hole is drilled in the skull to allow the monitor to measure pressure in the brain. Sometimes craniotomies (creating a hole in the skull) or craniectomies (removal of portion of skull) are performed to remove areas of hemorrhage or to allow swollen brain tissue to protrude in order to relieve pressure on the brain. Make sure to talk with your Palm Beach County accident attorney about your injuries and find an attorney that knows how to litigate your traumatic brain injury case.

Complications Associated with Fractures Sustained in Your Lake Worth Car Accident: Get the Right Attorney and Treatment

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12810 — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Fractures sustained in your Lake Worth car accident can be serious and require future treatments, surgical interventions, or result in permanent debilitation. One of the most frequent complications is traumatic arthritis which can affect any joint in the body. Joints consist of thick, shock-absorping cartilage covering smooth bone. The joint is comprised of ligaments that contain an inner lining of fluid that lubricates the joints. During a traumatic event, fractures occur through the joint or joint surfaces driven together and resulting in injuries to cartilage or bone. The trauma begins a series of events that result in varying degrees of breakdown of cartilage leading to abnormal growth of bone and excessive synovium. This can worsen over time and lead to joint fusion or replacement.

Sometimes a complication known as a non-union occurs. These occur when instead of a callous forming between fracture fragments that are eventually replaced by bone, fibrous tissue replaces it. The tissue allows for movement at a fracture site and can cause a lot of pain. Surgical intervention is often required to address these.

Malunions are another complication which occur when bones heal but fractures were malaligned during healing, so bone is abnormally angled and aligned. Other issues that can arise are disruption of blood supply to the bone or bone fragment, bone growth, or myositis ossificans.

If you have suffered serious injuries such as the ones described here in your Palm Beach County car wreck, make sure that your get the right personal injury attorney who understands your medical treatment needs and who knows how these injuries will affect you long-term.

Florida Car Accident Law and What You Should Know About PIP Benefits Before Filing a Lawsuit

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12808 — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Florida law requires that you use your own PIP or personal injury protection benefits first and have permanent injury before you can file a lawsuit in your Jupter, Florida car accident case. The first $10,000 of your bodily injury damage is paid by your own PIP coverage. You must also have significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function (like a herniated disc in your back) or permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability (other than scarring or disfigurement), scarring or disfigurement, or death. You may recover damages sustained in your Palm Beach County car crash case against the owner, registrant,operator, or occupant of a motor vehicle or and organization responsible for his/her acts or omissions if you have any of the following: pain, suffering, mental anguish, inconvenience for bodily injury, sickness or disease if the injury or disease as outlined above results in significant loss of an importatn bodily function, permanent injury within a reasonable degreeof medical probability other than scarring and disfigurement, scarring and disfigurement, or death.

Understanding PIP Benefits When You've Been in a West Palm Beach Car Wreck

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12807 — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

PIP benefits or personal injury protection benefits are important in your West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County car wreck because you are self-insured for the first $10,000 of your damages. The rule of law is that an insured tortfeasor is entitled to a set -off for PIP benefits payable to the injured driver who was uninsured in contravention of Florida's no-fault laws. However, if you are injured while occupying another's vehicle and do not have PIP beneifts, you can treat under the vehicle owner's policy.

Using Evidence of A Ticket at Your Palm Beach County Accident Trial

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12735 — Mon, 25 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

One of the most important things a skilled trial lawyer will know is what not to say. It is very difficult to demonstrate to the jury that the accident victim got hit by someone who received a traffic citation at the scene of the accident. Your Palm Beach County accident attorney should know the following about traffic tickets before setting your case for trial as these can lead to a mistrial:

1. A witness implying that the defendant received a ticket in the collision in response to a question.

2. A Palm Beach Coutny car crach attorney advises the jury in opening statements that the investigating highway patrolman talked to everyone at the scene and stated that "I think the evidence will show that no one claimed the plaintiff was responsible."

3. Someone testifying that "We don't have no ticket for that accident."

4. An invetigative officer responding affirmatively to an attorney's question of whether a traffic citation had been issued.

5. An attorney in opening statements stating that no citations were issued.

6. A witness' negative response to his attorney's question of whether he had been cited for a traffic violation.

7. A lawyer answering to the judge, "Unfortunately, yes" when asked in the presence of the jury as to whether the parties agreed that what happened in traffic court was of no concern to the jury.

Having a Palm Beach County accident trial lawyer who knows what they are doing is critical to your car crash case. It is as much about knowing what not to do as knowing what to do. A West Palm Beach accident attorney who is not informed as to the admissibility of certain evidence at your accident trial could do you a real disservice and even create a situation where the judge must declare a mistrial.

Preparing Your Lake Worth, Florida Car Wreck Case for Trial

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12731 — Mon, 25 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Once your Lake Worth, Florida car accident attorney files a lawsuit, he/she knows that defense counsel will submit certain interrogtory questions and requests to produce to the accident victim. At the Sharmin & Sharmin, we know the importance of preparing our Palm Beach County accident victim clients early for trial. That is why we do not wait until the commencement of a lawsuit to put our clients to work on their case answering interrogatory questions and collecting documentation of their injuries, lost wages, medical bills, etc. Therefore, when the defense counsel asks for these things, they get an answer within days instead of a month or more. The defense counsel anticipates you will wait the full 30 days to respond or that you will ask for an extension. This only prolongs your case. Preparation ahead of time and cut down on the discovery period by as much as two months. The defense counsel loses comfort time and it demonstrates to them that your Lake Worth accident attorney is serious amd willing and able to take your case to the jury. It also makes a great first impression and can lead to geting top dollar for your accident case.

Florida 3rd Party Bad Faith and the Out-of -State Insurer

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12348 — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

What if a driver causes injury to a Florida resident and the insurer is an out-of-state insurance company? Does 3rd party bad faith still apply? In Government Employees Insurance Company v. A.C. Grounds, 311, So 2d. 164, the Court held that while usually the law of the state where the contract was made would apply, a bad faith case is more like a tort action stemming from a contract case.

An excess judgment action bears some contract aspects, but it is strictly speaking not one and therefore, Florida law would apply to the the out-of-state insurance contract in a 3rd party bad faith case. The statute of limitations for a bad faith claim is four years as a tort as opposed to 5 years as a contract. Also keep in mind, that wrd party bad faith claims are not limited to auto accidents but can be applied to other personal injuries such as slip and falls and traumatic brain injuries.

Palm Beach County: 15,000 auto accidents in 2004

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12343 — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

In 2004, the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles conducted a study of the number of auto accidents in Palm Beach County, Florida. That was the last year data was collected for the county. 15,778 auto accidents were reported. Of the 15,778:

1400 were alcohol related
178 resulted in fatalities
15,694 resulted in injury

The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reported a total of 252,000 auto accidetns in 2004 which means that 17% of accidents in Florida occured in Palm Beach County. The Florida Department of Motor Vehicles estimated an average of 43 auto accidents per day on 2004. In the years 2000-2003, the number of accidents in Palm Beach County remained steady averaging around 15,000. Therefore, it is likely that number give or take a few is accurate today.

Getting Punitive Damages Against a Corporation in Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Case or Other Personal Inury Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12338 — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Under Florida case law, Schropp v. Crown Eurocars, Inc., punitive damages, also known as punishment damages, are capless for intentional torts such as battery and injury to another while driving drunk, can be awarded against a corporation in one of two ways: vicarious liability and direct liability. Vicarious liability is based upon wilfull and malicious actions of an employeee with a finding of independent negligent conduct on the part of the corporation. Direct liablity is bases upon the wilfull and malicious actions of the managing agents of the corporation.

Direct liability would be where a managing agent of the corporation got drunk and killed someone. Vicarious liability requires that you prove wilfull and wanton conduct by an emplyee with fault on the part of the employer which could have foreseeably caused the plaintiff's injuries. Ordinary negligence is sufficient . An example is where the employee got drunk and killed someone and the employee was negligently hired by the corporation. This is a landmark case and one every Delray Beach car accident attorney should be familiar with.

Proximate Causation: The But For Test and Your Palm Beach County Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12336 — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

A Palm Beach County car accident victim must prove the following in a personal injury lawsuit: a duty owed to the injured, a breach of that duty, injuries as a result of that breach and damages (property or physical). Injuries as a result of the breach is also known as proximate causation and it means that something happened which is directly linked to the car accident victim and the injuries associated with that car crash. Florida court call this the "but for" test. "But for" means that but for the other guy's driving skills, Lake Worth injury victim would not have been injured. There must be a natural and foreseeable, direct and continuous sequence of factual events between the negligent act and the victim's injuries.

When more than one person's conduct led to the injury, the "but for" test is not applicable. Instead the Florida courts use the "substantial factor" test. For example, if Palm Beach County was negligent in maintaining a bicycle path that caused a thirteen year-old to veer from the path and into an adjoining street into an oncoming vehicle that struck and killed him, the "but for" test would not apply and the court would use the "substantial factor" test. The substantial factor test means that a defendant's conduct in an action for personal injuries is considered a cause of the event if it was material anda substantial factor in bringing it about.

Who Got the Ticket and How Does that Affect My Palm Beach County Car Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12333 — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Violation of a traffic law or regulation is prima facie evidence of negligence that can be rebutted by other facts and circumstances in determining ultimate liability in your Palm Beach County car accident case. Usually the person who got the ticket violated some Florida law or Palm Beach County traffic regulation. Your West Palm Beach car crash attorney can use statutes to indicate the standard os care applied to someone operating a motor vehicle in Palm Beach County.

Once this standard is established for the jury, the West Palm Beach personal inury attorney can show further eveidence of what happened by using charts and diagrams detailing the movement of the vehicles or using an expert to testify to external and internal force within the vehicle and the torqueing of the spine and lumbar/neck area. If your Palm Beach Coutny car crash attorney can prove to the jury that the wrongdoer violated a Florida law, then he/she can ask the court to issue jury instructions for deliberation purposes stating that the wrongdoer's violation of the law is prim facie evidence of fault.

The attorney representing the car accident insurance company may try to prove that there were extenuating circumstances so the jury should put aside evidence o fault. An example is that the wrongdoer ran a redlight becuase the injured was driving the wrong way on a one way street.

Suffering a Traumatic Brain Injury in Your Lake Worth, Florida Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12308 — Thu, 21 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

In litigation, brain injuries are often divided into two categories: obvious and subtle. Obvious brain injuries are those that show clear evidence of injury via imaging. These may include intraparenchymal injuries within the brain itself or intracranial which are outside the brain but inside the skull. Intaparenchymal injuries are hemorrhage, contusion or edema wtihin the brain matter. Intracranial are injuries within the skull but not within the brain matter and are usually hemorrhage or hematoma. Injuries within and around the brain are often describes as being associated with mass effect.

Mass effect is important because it means a particular injury is serious enough to affect other and adjacent areas of the brain. Mass effect is usually evident in the form of a decrease in size of the the ventricles adjacent to the primary area of injury. Meaning that an injury to one side of the brain is so bad it cause compression on the other side of the brain. Mass effect may also cause brain herniation. Transtentoral or uncal herniation is important because the brain stem in this area is responsible for heart rate and breathing. Compression by herniated brain tissue could result in death.

Subtle brain injuries are those that are barely visible or not visible via traditional imaging. They are typically referred to as shear or diffuse axonal injuries.

Understanding the medical terminology and significance of different categories of brain injuries is critical for you and your Palm Beach County personal injury lawyer. The nature and extent of your injury, the long-term effects, pain and suffering, etc. are all factors that determine both your Lake Worth accident attorney and the insurance company will look when examining your damages and entitlements.

Spinal Cord Injuries and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12295 — Thu, 21 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Cervical and lumbar spine injuries are a large part of most Palm Beach County personal injury practices; therefore, your West Palm Beach car accident attorney should be familiar with these terms and understand what they are and how they are categorized by the defending insurance company. The most significant injuries are usually to the spinal cord or nerve roots as the travel down the spine.

Injury to the spinal cord results in restrictions to the canals in the spine that result in pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots that cause weakness or pain. Pain could be localized or radiate to other areas. There are usually two categories of injuries common in spinal cord accidents sustained in a West Palm Beach car crash: bulges and herniations. Insurance counsel place a lot of emphasis on the description of these injuries. Joint injuries and long-term post-traumatic joint pain that may necessitate surgical intervention are typical results of trauma.

Osteophytes may also cause neural problems. Osteophytes form on the margins of the joints after injury to the bone. Injury to the bone may lead to overgrowth as the bone attempts to heal. Osteophytes can take weeks to show up after an inury, so early images may not show that osteophytes are present. Sometimes a Lake Worth accidnt victim may already have osteophytes which can make that area even more susceptible to further injury and pain.

It is important for your Palm Beach County accident attorney to be familiar with medical terminology and understand your injuries as the insurance adjuster and attorney place a lot of emphasis on the descriptions of these and if your case goes to trial, it is important that a jury understand what type of injuries you have and how that have impacted your daily life.

Strategies Your West Palm Beach Car Accident Attorney Should Use When Dealing with Insurance Adjusters and Attorneys

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)12161 — Mon, 18 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Oftentimes, insurance companies either have in-house counsel on staff or they contract with big firms to respresent them. Insurance defense attorneys are typically very skilled and want to keep cases open as long as possible as they are paid hourly and time is money for them. Sometimes your Boynton Beach, Florida accident attorney must file a lawsuit in order to get top dollar for your injury case. The best thing to be in a Palm Beach County car crash case is patient. As the time for trial grows near, the more incentive the insurance attorney and adjuster have to settle.

Insurance adjusters prefer to close files and the longer they have been open, the more motivation there is to settle. Your personal injury attorney should know that insurance adjusters must justify there settlements and recommendations by showing hard damages. Your attorney should be ready to present legible,organized proof of your medical records and bills, lost pay and future medical bills.

Awarding Punitive Damages Against Corporation in Your Lake Worth, Florida Car Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)12157 — Mon, 18 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Schropp v. Crown Eurocars, Inc. , is the premiere case cited by West Palm Beach car accident attorneys when seeking punitive damages against a corporation in a personal injury case with serious bodily injury. Punitive damages are damages awarded to a car accident victim to punish the defendant. Punitive damages are capless for intentional torts such as battery or where a person is injured by a defendant that is intoxicated or otherwise under the influence. Punitive damages are also capless in injury cases involving abuse of children or the elderly.

There are two instances in which a corporation may be held liable for punitive damages in your Palm Beach County car crash case. The first is direct liability. Direct liability means that a managing agent of the corporation did soemthing himself/herself that caused the injury such as the president of the company got drunk and hit the victim while driving the company car on company time. The second instance invloves vicarious liability. Vicarious liability is when there was wrongful conduct on the part of an employee and there was some fault on the part of the employer which could foreseeably contribute to the plaintiff's injuries.

Disclosing Pre-Existing Injuries to Your Palm Beach County Car Crash Attorney

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11989 — Thu, 14 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

So you find yourself in a Palm Beach County, Florida car crash and you already have an existing injury—maybe a herniated disc, a previous neck injury. Is this problematic? Not necessarily; however, it is imperative that you disclose to your West Palm Beach accident attorney any injuries existing prior to and at the time of the accident. Defense counsel can use this as a technique to disclaim liability, but you find your victim as they are. You may have a pre-existing condition that has become worse as a result of the current car accident. Be honest with your personal injury attorney and medical care provider about your symptoms prior to the accident and after the accident as oftentimes presentation of competent and objective medical data will make it easier to settle your case and or make a presentation to a jury.

What Your Palm Beach County Accident Attorney Should Know About Foreign Corporations

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11988 — Thu, 14 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Notice to Foreign Corporations Doing Business in Florida: Register and Pay Your Taxes

If you are injured in a Palm Beach County car accident by someone on the job, chances could be that person is employed by a foreign corporation, a corporation registered in some state other than Florida. How does this affect your Lake Worth car accident case? Well, if the corporation did not register as a foreign corporation transacting business in Florida, meaning, they did not have authority to conduct business within the state, they could be barred by Florida statute from defending a lawsuit in the state. Therefore, you, the accident victim, could sue them and recover the highest verdict possible and they could do nothing about it unless they register the business and pay their back taxes.

Third Party Bad Faith and Your Palm Beach County Car Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11987 — Thu, 14 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Third party bad faith arises when a Palm Beach County car accident attorney writes a letter to the other guy’s insurance company and the other guy’s insurance company lies, withholds critical information, fails to reasonably investigate the claim, fails to promptly gather information from their insured to assess the claim, basically “Saying no without saying why.” The West Palm Beach car accident attorney then writes the insurance adjuster a letter giving them a reasonable time to pay. That time period expires and the Palm Beach County personal injury attorney files a lawsuit on behalf of the accident victim. The jury enters a verdict for X amount and the insurance company must pay X even if it exceeds the policy limits.

First Party Bad Faith and Your Palm Beach County Accident Case

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11985 — Thu, 14 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

If you want to send an insurance company running for cover, just mention two words: bad faith. What is bad faith? Bad faith arises when an insurance company wrongfully denies insurance benefits. This usually occurs in two instances: first party and third party bad faith.

First party bad faith arises when the Palm Beach County car accident attorney writes a letter to the insurance company of his/her own insured asking to pay benefits. The insurance company then lies, withholds critical information, fails to reasonably investigate the claim, fails to promptly gather information from their insured to assess the claim, basically “Saying no without saying why.” The insurance company then refuses to pay and the West Palm Beach accident attorney files a civil remedies notice. The insurance company still refuses pay. Sixty days pass and the Palm Beach County accident victim files suit against his own insurance company and gets a verdict for X. The insurance company has to pay X even if it exceeds the policy limits.

Who Will Pay Your Medical Bills If You've Been in a Palm Beach County Car Accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11984 — Thu, 14 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Oftentimes when a person is injured in a Palm Beach Countycar accident, one of the first things they want to know is “Who is going to pay my medical bills?” Most health insurance companies have subrogation clauses in their contract which allow them to recover money from a third party that causes physical injury to you. Therefore, whatever they pay out for your injury, they get paid back.

If you are injured on the job, you may be entitled to worker’s comp benefits. The State of Florida allows worker’s comp to recover from the eventual proceeds of your West Palm Beach personal injury accident case any monies they paid out for your medical treatment.

Occasionally, medical care providers don’t want to deal with health insurance companies and want to deal with the auto accident attorney because there is potential for personal injury money. The Palm Baech County accident attorney must be savvy and quick to handle this situation and remind the medical care provider they have a contractual obligation to render treatment at certain rate.

Filing Your Palm Beach County Car Crash Lawsuit Before Dealing With the Adjuster

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)11216 — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

Here is a million dollar tool. Some West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County car accident lawyers think that by threatening a lawsuit they can get the adjuster to fear up the offer. Wrong, a bluff is exactly that. Instead, go ahead and file the lawsuit. Hold off on the service, send a copy of the complaint to the adjuster, that way they know it’s not a bluff, and you actually now how to file a lawsuit. The filing fee, which is a small investment in your time, will prove to in some cases double your recovery. If you want to be really creative, you can draft some interrogatories and a request for production to the car accident adjuster and tell him or her that if the case does not settle, they will be forced to give those documents to their insured and pay an attorney to help the insured in that regard.

Florida Personal Injury Protection Insurance, What Does It Cover?

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)11215 — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

What's covered?

Medical - Personal Injury Protection (PIP) will cover up to 80 percent of all accident-related expenses.
Disability - If any of the covered individuals are unable to work due to accident-related injuries, PIP helps recover up to 60 percent of their gross income. This also includes any reasonable expenses incurred during the recovery period.
Death – Benefits equal to $5,000 or the remainder of unused personal injury protection benefits per individual, whichever is less, will be paid to a covered insured’s executor or designated beneficiary if they die due to accident-related injuries.

How much protection does this coverage provide?
Total payments covered by PIP are limited to $10,000 per person, per incident.

Property Damage
If you or another covered driver is found to be at fault in an accident, the following is covered under property damage coverage:

Damage to another person's property (e.g., fence, car, or home)
Legal costs associated with a damage incident

10 Helpful Rules in a West Palm Beach Car Accident Deposition

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)11214 — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

The following 10 rules are really helpful when you are in a West Palm Beach car accident deposition or examination under oath. Whenever you talk to an insurance adjuster, follow these rules:

1. Remain calm.
2. Answer questions completely, but don’t volunteer information.
3. If you don’t remember, say so.
4. If you don’t understand, say so.
5. Do not exaggerate.
6. If you are asked a misleading question, say so.
7. Don’t lie about your past medical history.
8. Remember to be honest and truthful.
9. If you are being verbally abused, put an end to the conversation.
10. And never talk to any adjuster or other attorney without your lawyer present.

Remember it is illegal for anyone to record a conversation without the other party's knowledge and consent. If you are being recorded by an insurance adjuster, they need to have your knowledge and you consent.

Writing a West Palm Beach Car Crash Injury Demand Letter

eimansharmin@gmail.com (Blog Author)11166 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

How to Write an Effective Car Accident Demand Letter for a West Palm Beach Car accident client

The demand letter is a lawyers industry term for a letter that a car accident attorney writes an insurance adjuster demanding money for his or her client’s injuries.

Writing an effective demand letter means being able to establish credibility and not to exaggerate the client's, losses but to establish them with credibility and specificity.

A good demand letter has several components. The Palm Beach County personal injury attorney should include the client’s medical reports, loss of wage reports, and specific documented evidence of future medical costs, future loss of income. Notarized statements from friends and family members of the victim showing that they are injured, and how the injury has inflicted pain and suffering in their life. Sometimes it may be appropriate to provide video of how the injured victim's day-to-day activities have been affected by the accident. This could show the results of the pain, and how it casts suffering on the life of the Florida car crash victim.

The goal is to show real losses that the defendant will eventually have to answer for at trial.

Communicating With Your Palm Beach County Florida Car Crash Insurance Adjuster

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11165 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

Communicating with Your Palm Beach County Florida Car Crash Insurance Adjuster

Communicating with the Palm Beach County, Florida car crash insurance adjuster from the insurance company is one key to getting a big settlement for your client. I think the best thing you can do for your client is stay in regular contact with the adjuster by keeping them abreast of developments in the car accident case.

For example, when your client has medical treatment for their back or neck injury make sure to send the records to the adjuster quarterly or at least once per month. Put the adjuster on notice as to any medical bill lien holders who have an interest in the outcome of your client’s Delray Beach or Jupiter car accident case. If there are any pictures of visible physical damage to your client’s car, send them to the adjuster along with pictures of any particular repairs. Pictures of physical injury to the client should be sent to the adjuster in stages. Document loss of work and loss of pay as they occur. It will help the adjuster understand that you care about your client, that you are on top of the case and the more you keep in their face, the more they are to take you and your commitment to your client seriously.

That is why at Sharmin & Sharmin P.A., we send regular updates directly from our online document management system to the car crash adjuster about our Palm Beach County car accident clients.

Building your chain of evidence right from the start of Palm Beach County car accident case.

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11164 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

Building you chain of evidence right form the start of Palm Beach County car accident case.

I can’t say enough about an attorney who investigates the facts. Right from the time you get the case you have to start building you mountain of evidence. Each and every piece of evidence becomes a link on the chain of truth that the car accident attorney can wrap around the jury as he pulls them towards the plaintiff’s side.

The defense lawyer’s job is to make ever attempt possible to undue even one link in your chain of evidence. All it takes is one link to looses you following among the jurors, that is why right from the beginning of the case you start to build you trial note book. Can you believe that a defense attorney can try to persuade the jury that a child who was hot by a speeding car darted in front of the car? They will stop at nothing to persuade the jury away fro awarding your Palm Beach county car accident victim away from the money that they rightfully deserve.

How to Evaluate Your West Palm Beach Car Crash case, Liability, Medicals, Witnesses, Lost work etc.

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11162 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

So how do you know how much money your going to get from you West Palm Beach car cash case?
The case is evaluated on the following ten factors:
1. Liability is paramount. Who is at fault.
2. The second factor is medical bills. How much is it going to cost to make you all better.
3. Another factor is the collision damage. Does it look like a fender bender or a major neck bender. What does the damage to your car look like.
4. The quality or credibility of both the plaintiff's and the defendant's testimony. Basically this means are we talking about a credible person or a habitual accident victim.
5. The quality of the witnesses are there any unbiased, fair witnesses that can testify for your case.
6. The reputation and ability of the plaintiff’s attorney , who is your lawyer. How good it he or she.
7. Lastly, are the quality and characteristics of the defense counsel. Who is the other lawyer.
9. The type of car accident injury How badly hurt are you.
10. The next factor that should be considered is the loss of income. How much time off of work have you lost. Did you go back to work right away with out any problem?

Palm Beach County car accident, collect yourself and pay attention as best you can

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (Blog Author)11161 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

Blog in Re Minutes after the Crash:

When you are in a Palm Beach County car accident, it is important to collect yourself and pay attention as best you can. Look around at the accident or crash scene and try your best to compose yourself.

Try your best to listen to what people are saying, you may be able to catch a witness to the accident make a statement that could be beneficial to your case. Make it an absolute priority to get the witnesses name, get his or her telephone number, notify your attorney as soon as you can so that your lawyer can interview the witness, and get their statement before the trail grows cold.

Be polite and cooperative with the crash officer. If the officer makes a biased report or makes a mistake it will be possible for your attorney through the use of an private investigator to prove that he may have done a less then perfect job. Listen to the officer’s conversation with other witnesses and look at the way he is interacting with the other people. If he is rude or aggressive make a mental note of it. Look around and make sure if any other officers report to the scene, get their names and badge numbers as well. Information is power and there is such a small window of opportunity to get tit in the minutes after the Florida I-95 car crash.

Sharmin & Sharmin goes paperless

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)16425 — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Well, we are getting rid of our bulky steel filing cabinets and gogin paperless. That means if your file is closed we are goign to scan it and send it to the recycling people! we will kepp a digital copy around hopefully for ever.

17-year-old dies after Melbourne auto crash - accident attorney

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)16104 — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 08:00:00 EST

Myles Anders Freeberg passed on leaving his loves ones behind. It is hard to put in to words how the actions of a careless person, who just by being more careful could have avoided this heart splitting agony caused to this young man's loves ones. The college graduation he will never have, grandchildren who will never meet their grandparents, and moments of life which will never be lived simply because of another person's lack of care and control, which through the exercises of more caution could simply have prevented this tragedy.
Myles Anders Freeberg passed on leaving his loves ones behind. It is hard to put in to words how the actions of a careless person, who just by being more careful could have avoided this heart splitting agony caused to this young man's loves ones. The college graduation he will never have, grandchildren who will never meet their grandparents, and moments of life which will never be lived simply because ofNow imagine if we lived in a world where the law has no remedy for this situation. A world where if you lose a loved one due to the carelessness of another, there is nothing that can be done. Nothing unless the person did this intentionally, if it was intentional there would be Jail and criminal sanction, but if it was simple carelessness no matter what the result there was nothing that could be done. Thanks God that is not the world we live in.

Recent jury awards in Port St. Lucie car accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)15789 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 08:00:00 EST

Attorney Bill Zoeller and Attorney Freddy Rhoads of Schuler, Halvorson & Weisser, P.A. recently obtained a verdict in Ft. Pierce on a car accident case where the Jury awarded $752,354. The facts included a rear end collision with a mere $300 in property damage on Plaintiff car and $2000 in property damage in defendants car. The Providing doctor provided a Cervical and Lumbar disc decompressions procedure. The specific Jury awarded was a $154,000 past medical expenses, $300,000 in future medical expenses, $73,000 past pain and suffering and $225,000 future pain and suffering.

Community NewsBoy hit by car in Lehigh accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)10965 — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST

The Florida Highway Patrol says a 3-year-old Lehigh Acres boy has been hospitalized at Lee Memorial Hospital following an accident in which he was hit by a car Saturday night, Oct. 24, 2009. It;s hard to iamgine what this little boy's parentsa re feeling right now. May Our prayers be with them, and may God intervine in their time of nee.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol report, the boy was identified as Cassidy Sandoval. They said he was walking on the shoulder of Leonard Blvd. near Gunnery at around 8 p.m. According to the report, he walked into the patch of a car driven by Matthew Warlick, 50, also of Lehigh Acres. The report stated that the boy was thrown 100 feet after being struck. The driver of the vehicle was not injured, police said.

Often times injuries that are sustained by children are more catastrohic than those sustained by adults becuse of the fragile nature of children's bodies.

6000 accident deaths in the United States every year

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)10745 — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST

West Palm Beach, Florida–The first Distracted Driving Summit held by the U.S. Department of Transportation began in Washington, D.C., on October 5th, 2009 at the Renaissance hotel located inside the District of Columbia. The summit started off by Secretary of the Department of transportation, Ray LaHood, where in he talked about the epidemic of distracted driving that has taken the nation by storm in the past 10 years. Distractions while driving due to text messaging, reading e-mail while driving, talking on the cell, text messaging looking at kids and trying ti discipline them while driving. Drinking soft drinks or liquor, eating food and playing with sophisticated radio is responsible for 6,000 deaths every year in the United States. Additionally, more than 515,000 drivers and passengers are injured because of distracted drivers every year. With close to 50,000 lives claimed every year in motor vehicle accidents, on our nation’s highways and roadways, at a national cost of some $300 billion dollars, government officials, automobile industry experts, and law makers are calling for swift action to help save lives.
Naturally if you have fallen victim to a careless idiot driver, contact us at 1-800-HURT-911 and let us take out our tool case an put it to work for you.

No cost and no fee unless we win your injury case Guarantee

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)10390 — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST

We just modified our commercials to offer a no cost and no fee unless we win your injury case Guarantee. Recently I noticed that other law firms, in Palm Beach County were offering a no Cost and No fee unless we win your case guarantee. I felt that many members of the public were without, legal options when it came to injuries because they did not know about the no cots and no fee Guarantee so they would not contact an attorney. We are just doing our part to help educate the public.

1-800-HURT-911

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)10266 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST

We bought the rights to 1800HURT911! So happy about that. Hopefully this will be a great thing for the firm, because it is an easy to remember number. We are having our business cards and stationary re-developed and we are also having a sign built outside of our building in Lake Worth.

Oakland Park car wreck

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9971 — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST

OAKLAND PARK - A grandmother who was involved in a car accident which injured eight people this past Wednesday passed away at Broward General Medical Center.

A newborn baby and a 7-year-old boy were riding in her car and are now listed as being in critical condition, authorities said.

The Driver Linda Fulton, age 42, was driving a 2000 Saturn westbound on Northeast 56th Street when a pickup truck going north on North Andrews Avenue struck the driver's side of her car at 4:20 p.m. while visibility was still good, as reported by the Broward County Sheriff's Office said.

The force of the side impact derailed the Saturn, with five passengers inside, causing it to slamm into a sign, a pole and some hedges. The impact threw a 1-month-old boy, Travis Allen, from the car. Firefighters had to pull out Fulton and Tyler Supall, 7, who were trapped inside.

Latasha Fulton, 25, Clement Supall, 5, and Shaniyaa Keels, 10, were also in the Saturn but managed to get out. Latasha Fulton was taken to Broward General and remains in serious condition. Clement Supall, 5, and Shaniyaa Keels, 10 have been released.

The driver of the Toyota pickup truck, Oscar Montalvan, 38, and his wife Claudia, 38, are both in the hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening. If it i determined that this accident was the truck drivers fault, he better have some decent insurance, or he is going to have a Judgment following him around for the next 20 years.

Orange County Florida car crash leaves two dead!

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9691 — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

2 Toyota cars crash on North Orange Blossom Trail causing 1 rollover.

Orlando, FL (JusticeNewsFlash.com)–Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) was forced to close several lanes of North Orange Blossom Trail (OBT) this morning after a fatal car crash claimed the lives of two passengers. As reported by WFTV channel 9 this morning, a two-door, black Toyota Scion rolled over several times landing on its roof crushing two passengers at OBT and Pepper Mill Road.

Police investigators and traffic homicide detectives with FHP say the driver flipped the Scion when attempting to change lanes trapping and killing two passengers underneath the car. The fatal car crash also injured one other passenger, the driver of the rollover vehicle and the driver of a white Toyota Corolla struck in the wreck. One of the passengers was seriously injured and transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center by emergency medical personnel.

Florida Car Accident Law Firm News

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9482 — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

We launched out google ad words campaign today and the response from google was uninviting at first but we worked some more on our campaign and the response seems to have improved.

Our intern is leaving to go back to law school in the fall, it will be sad to see him leave hi has been a great help and very nice to have around the office during the summer.

We recently changes our guarantee and questions to ask a lawyer before you hire icons to something more appropriate for the web site. Hope every one likes it.

Eiman Sharmin Esq.,

Pensacola, FL on Saturday, June 27, 2009 A deadly automobile accident killed one man

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9372 — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST

In Pensacola, FL on Saturday, June 27, 2009 A deadly automobile accident killed one man and injured several other people. The car crash happened early Saturday evening. Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) stated thatteh accident occured because a ford truck spun out of control onto oncoming traffic near Blountstown. The Calhoun County roadway accident investigators indicated that the vehicle was driven by 28 year-old James L. White Jr. of Leesburg of Georgia. Apparently, the truck went onto the shoulder of the road and spun out of control when White over reacted. The victim car was being driven by a 40 year-old Sergio Espinoza of Blountstown. One of the passengers, a nineteen year-old mab nemaed Jose Cruz-Ramirez, of Blountstown, was a passenger in Espinoza’s SUV and had his life stripped from him in this horrible accident.

Free Lecture on how to buy car insurance in Palm Beach County

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9186 — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Free Lecture on how to buy car insurance in Palm Beach County, offered as a public service for free. Food an beverage provided. Call 1-877-520-SURE right now to reserve your seat for the July, 2009 lectures.
The Law Firm of Sharmin & Sharmin P.A. Located in Palm Beach County, Florida is offering a free lecture on the following:

Hi I’m attorney Sharmin. If you own a car you have to come tomy free seminar. Ill teach you all about car insurance. You’ll learn about Personal Injury Protection, Uninsured motorist Insurance, Casualty Insurance, Med-pay and Bodily Injury. Food and beverage provided free of charge but Seating is limited call 1-877-520 SURE to reserve your seat at one of our four convenient locations. Don't wait until after a car crash to learn that your did not know about insurance and were unprotected. Come & get sharminsure about your rights.

Miami Police Officer Dies in Turnpike Crash

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9024 — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

A Miami-Dade police officer has died after a horrific car crash early this morning on the Turnpike.
The officer, 23-year-old Giovanni Gonzalez, was struck on the southbound side of the road just after 4 a.m. While it is not clear how the accident happened, and if there is anyone that can be blamed for the accident, if I were the attorney retained to protect the family of this officer I would be thinking about 1. Hard damages, that means what would this officer would have been able to earn during his entire career, given his youth if a 40 year career is projected and the officer is schedule to average 42k per year, his life time earning is approximately 1.6 million. This figure need to be sough after from all sorces to compensate his family, expecially if he left small children behind. That’s is called hard damages. Then there are additional damages for pain and suffering, such as loss of consortium tha codl be brough about by the officers loves ones.
Several officers responded to the scene, finding the Gonzalez's patrol car severely damaged on the driver's side. Firefighters attempted to save the officer, cutting him from the twisted wreckage of his squad car, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Gonzalez was assigned to Miami-Dade police's Kendall district.Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum issued a statement, saying: "My thoughts and prayers are with Officer Gonzalez's family, his fellow officers and those who knew him as someone dedicated to public safety.""The Miami-Dade Police Department has lost a fine public servant." McCollum said, according to the Miami Herald. It’s sad the the public lost the services and the protection of this fine young man. All the best to his family. Eiman Sharmin Esq.,

June 15th I-95 in Wst Palm Beach Florida Chain Crash

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9014 — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

The Florida Highway Patrol told CBS 12 that all lanes of I-95 southbound near Donald Ross Road are now open after a chain reaction accident this morning. Usually Chain reaction accidents are awful for the injured party, not only are they more violent then ordinary accidents, but if one party is the culprit for the accident then they may not have enough insurance coverage for all who got hurt. The first accident involved two cars and then another car crashed into a tractor trailer filled with cat food, causing it to crash. They tell us cat food spilled all over the roadway.
This all started around 12:30 a.m. Monday morning. One person was taken to St. Mary's Hospital with minor injuries. Although CBS news reports that no one else was injured, this may not be true since many spinal cord injuries lay hidden for a period of time until they become problematic causing pain and forcing the person to seek medical care.

Palm Beach County Branch closure will not affect automobile accident victims

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)9005 — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

Due to large budget cuts and staff layoffs, The Palm Beach County publicly elected official Clerk and Comptroller Sharon Bock said she will close the mid-county branch office in Royal Palm Beach at the end of the month.

This office is located at the Midwestern Communities Services Center, at 200 Civic Center Way and services approximately 1,000 customers a week with a variety of court and county filings, including traffic citation payments, marriage licenses, value adjustment board petitions and passports. This particular branch does not hear circuit civil cases, so it probably will not affect automobile accident victims, with the exception of traffic ticket given to the wrongdoer. Thos will have to be heard in central county, and may take longer.

Sharon R. Bock said 66 of her employees would need to be fired to meet a state-mandated $7.1 million, or 18 percent, reduction in the office’s budget by July 1.

“With the budget cuts, the Legislature has forced us to eliminate several practices focused on customer convenience,” she said in a news release. “Unfortunately, any cut we make affects the public in some way. We’re trying to make cuts that have the least impact.”

Because no court cases take place at the mid-county branch, it is the only location that can close without impacting the rest of the judiciary, according to the news release.

Still, Bock and other court clerks have predicted serious delays in the court process as a result of cutbacks. This is because all of the pro-se traffic ticket people will now have to shift themselves out to the other branches.

Alternate offices (which are actual courthouses) include the main courthouse in West Palm Beach or other branch offices in Belle Glade, Delray Beach and Palm Beach Gardens.

While the clerk’s office is closing in the Midwestern Communities Services Center, other government agencies, such as the Tax Collector and Property Appraiser, will remain open.

The office plans to re-evaluate a mid-county location in the future.

Women killed Monday night in a one-car accident on Jupiter Farms Road

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8949 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST

A 47-year-old woman was killed Monday night in a one-car accident on Jupiter Farms Road.

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Mary McManus the victim in the car accident, whose address has not yet been released probably in order to protect her family's privacy, was traveling northbound on Jupiter Farms Road approaching 175th Road North, when she lost control of the 1999 Nissan she was driving, there is no information about why she left the roadway and struck a tree. The car then rotated clockwise and overturned on its side before striking a large palm tree on the roof. It could be one of several things, perhaps a product defect in the car steering or braking system or just speed.

No other information has been released.

You 9 year old Boy is in cirtical condition after suffering burns in a Jupiter Florida go cart accident.

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8752 — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

JUPITER — A young boy was seriously burned Monday afternoon in a go-cart accident in Jupiter, Jupiter Florida.

The boy, identified as Devin Olmstead of Pompano Beach, lost control of his go-cart around 2:25 p.m. on Monday, according to the Palm Beach Sheriff's Office.

NewsChannel 5 reported that witnesses said the boy was riding around the track when he took a corner too fast. "Once he lost control of the go-cart, it rolled over and immediately engulfed in flames trapping him inside,' sheriff's office spokeswoman Teri Barbera said in a news release. What is particularly curious is how in the heck does a tipped over go cart burst in to flames. Is it not foreseeable that a go-cart may on occasion tip over, does a manufacturer not have a duty to prevent the thing from turning in to a torch just because it flipped over. Is that not foreseeable?

"The child suffered burns to his arms and torso. He was transported to the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Burn Center where he is listed in critical condition.'

Tuesday is the boy's birthday, according to information from the sheriff's office.

One witness not identified by NewsChannel 5 says the boy was on fire when he scrambled to help. He says he took off his shirt and helped put out the flames.

The track, formerly known as Moroso, now known as palm beach international reace way, reopened following that accident.

Car accident Death | Attorney | Florida

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8616 — Sat, 16 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Palm Beach Florida car crash attorney recommends buying a used Benz as opposed to as a new Toyota.

Two cars crash on North Orange Blossom Trail causing a rollover.
Orlando, FL (JusticeNewsFlash.com)–Florida Highway Patrol (Florida Highway Patrol) was forced to close highway several lanes in North Orange Blossom Trail after a fatal car crash that left families with out their loved ones. The crash claimed two lives. As reported by WFTV channel 9 this morning, a two-door, black Toyota Scion Rolled over several times landing on its roof crushing two passengers.
Police investigators and traffic homicide detectives with FHP say the driver flipped the Scion when attempting to change lanes trapping and killing two passengers underneath the car. The fatal car crash also injured one other passenger, the driver of the rollover vehicle and the driver of a white Toyota Corolla struck in the wreck. One of the passengers was seriously injured and transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center by emergency medical personnel. I don't mean to knock the small Toyota scion, but I would rather have been in used Mercedes Benz rather then a Toyota scion. People can buy a better car for the price of Chinese food three times a month. But the best car you can afford, stay safe, don't leave your loved ones behind.

Florida DOG bite victim represented by Criminal Defense attorney, get a whopping 1.5 mil!

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8461 — Thu, 07 May 2009 08:00:00 EST

Sarasota County
(53) DIANE ODEH vs. NORRIS MILLER

County / State /Docket Case #/Judge: Sarasota / Florida / 2006 CA 000145 NC / Donna P. Berlin

Plaintiff(s) Attorney(s): Thomas Hudson Esq., Sarasota

Defendant(s) Attorney(s): Pro Se (that means that they had no attorney to protect them? I wonder if it means they are judgment proof as well? I mean what rich peron will forget to hire an attorney?)

Age/Sex/Occupation Of Plaintiff: 48 / F / Restaurant Server

Cause Of Injury: Dog Bite/Attack on Visitor. Defendant was the owner of a dog that he kept at his residential property on 24th Street in Sarasota. Plaintiff was an invitee on the property when Defendant’s dog lunged, bit, and attacked Plaintiff on November 2, 2005. Plaintiff testified that she did not see the type of dog because the dog attacked her from behind, and she went into shock.

Nature Of Injury: Bite wounds to right leg and arm; Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection, which, in this case, is incurable; no surgery was performed; sutures were required. Plaintiff requires ongoing infectious disease treatment at Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Leesburg Regional Medical Center. ( I gotta admit that soudns like BS, MRSA is never incurable, it can colonize the body but eve if it does, most carriers are symptom free)

Expert Witnesses: n/a

Verdict: $1,500,000 for Plaintiff on August 20, 2008.

Editor's Note: This was a one-day trial. The jury was composed of one male and five females. The jury deliberated for one hour. The court determined that Defendant was legally responsible for the injuries suffered by Plaintiff. This was a trial on damages only.

Wopping award of nearly 5 million dollars for Family of Lee County Florida machinist who dies in a car accident

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8246 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

CATHY E. MCINTYRE, as personal representative of the estate of MICHAEL J. MCINTYRE vs. RUSSELL C. RENNEY

COUNTY/DOCKET #/JUDGE: Lee / 06-CA-001246 / Jay B. Rosman

PLAINTIFF(S) ATTORNEY(S): Michael M. Noone of Goldberg, Racila et al., Ft. Myers

DEFENDANT(S) ATTORNEY(S): Pro Se

AGE/SEX/OCCUPATION OF PLAINTIFF: Decedent: 55 / M / Machinist

CAUSE OF INJURY: Motor Vehicle Accident/Bicyclist Struck. On March 20, 2005, Defendant was traveling in his vehicle on W. Mariana Avenue at or near the intersection of Piney Road in N. Ft. Myers, when his vehicle collided with decedent, who was on his bicycle on Piney Road. This collision resulted in fatal injuries to decedent and he subsequently died on March 22.

NATURE OF INJURY: Death. Decedent was survived by his wife, Cathy, age fifty-five, and two daughters, Candy McIntyre Mattson, age thirty-seven, and Lori McIntyre, age thirty-two. Decedent and his wife were married for twenty-nine years.

EXPERT WITNESSES: n/a

VERDICT: $4,958,549.10 for Plaintiff on May 13, 2008 ($415,520.15 - lost wages; $36,411.95 - medical expenses; $6,617 - funeral expenses; $4,500,000 for Cathy - loss of consortium).

EDITOR'S NOTE: This was a one day trial. The jury was composed of five females and one male. The jury deliberated one hour.

Machinist dies in Lee County when he was struck by a car in 2005. A lee county Jury awarded nearly 10 times the amount of loss of future income to the wife in a consortium claim. And Just think how wonderful it is that we live in a country where big insurance can be held accountable.

Caterpillar seat breaks causing back injury to hard working Hardee County Man, Jury award more than 3 million

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8247 — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

)AARON COOLEY vs. UNITED RENTALS, INC.

COUNTY/DOCKET #/JUDGE: Hardee / 25-2006CA-000429 / Marcus J. Ezelle

PLAINTIFF(S) ATTORNEY(S): Kevin Britt Woods and Thomas Harmon of Davis & Harmon, P.A., Tampa

DEFENDANT(S) ATTORNEY(S): Randy R. Dow and Kelly R. Reagan of Page, Mrachek, et al., W. Palm Beach

AGE/SEX/OCCUPATION OF PLAINTIFF: 51 / M / Heavy Equipment Operator

CAUSE OF INJURY: Worksite Accident/Motor Scraper/Seat Collapse. Plaintiff was operating a Caterpillar motor scraper owned by Defendant on October 9, 2002. Defendant rented this scraper to Plaintiff’s employer, Kimmins, in August 2002. Plaintiff alleged that the air suspension in the operator’s seat broke so that the seat collapsed while Plaintiff was operating the equipment.

NATURE OF INJURY: Percutaneous discectomy at L3-L4 and L4-L5; future surgery is recommended for L5-S1.

EXPERT WITNESSES:

PLAINTIFF'S:
Michael Shahnasarian, Ph.D., Vocational Rehabilitation, Tampa
Stephen E. Durham, Ph.D., Economist, Tampa
David Rosenbach, M.D., Radiology, St. Petersburg

DEFENDANT'S:
Richard M. Harding, Ph.D., Biomechanics, San Antonio, TX
Paul M. Deutsch, Ph.D., Vocational Rehabilitation, Oviedo
Paul Guthorn, Engineer, Signal Hill, CA

VERDICT: $3,105,854 for Plaintiff on July 11, 2008 ($47,854 - past medical expenses; $899,500 - future medical expenses; $143,500 - lost earnings; $365,000 - lost earning capacity; $300,000 - past pain and suffering; $1,350,000 - future pain and suffering).

EDITOR'S NOTE: Defendant offered $600,000; Plaintiff’s demand was $850,000. Plaintiff’s Motion for Fees and Costs is pending.

Mr Aaron Cooly appears to have been working hard on the Job when the seat to his caterpillar machine broke casing him to have to have back surgery. My guess the machine was out of warranty and had not been properly maintained by the company who rented it to Mr. Cooley's employer.
There was no doubt a battle of the experts in this case, but thank GOD the good guys came out ahead. The claimant got nearly 2 million dollars for suffering associated with his pain. Good Job plaintiff's counsel.

Palm Beach Country's Own Goes to the Florida Supreme Court

blog@www.sharminlaw.com (News Author)8074 — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 08:00:00 EST

TALLAHASSEE - Former Palm Beach County Prosecutor and Circuit Judge Jorge Labarga will be sworn in as Florida's 84th Supreme Court justice this afternoon in Tallahassee. What an achievement. Wow!

Labarga, 56, is a native of Havana, Cuba, who grew up in Pahokee and West Palm Beach. Attorney Shamin appeared before Judge Labarga once when he was a circuit criminal Judge.

He is the second justice of Cuban descent to serve on the state's highest court.

Labarga, the third of four appointments by Gov. Charlie Crist to the court since August, replaced Justice Harry Anstead, who reached the mandatory retirement age of 70. Unlike the Supreme Court of the United States, Florida has a mandatory retirement age for Supreme Court Judges.

Crist originally appointed Labarga, who is registered as a no-party-affiliation voter, to a vacant seat on the 4th District Court of Appeal in West Palm Beach but Judge Labarga did not hear any cases.