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According to the Centers for Disease Control, death by accident was the fifth leading cause of death in the United States in 2009. While there are other causes of accidental death such as falls, drowning, smoke inhalation, poisoning and gunshot wounds, motor vehicle traffic accidents remain the leading cause of injury death in the United States. Given Read More »

This post provides an overview of the ways in which real and personal property may be jointly-owned by two or more persons and the consequences of owning the property in such manner. There are three basic ways that property may be jointly owned: (1) tenants in common; (2) joint tenants with right of survivorship; and Read More »

The recent case of People’s Trust Insurance v. Roddy got me thinking about misrepresentations made by applicants for insurance. Roddy applied over the phone for homeowner’s insurance. He was asked several questions by the People’s Trust insurance agent including whether he had a burglar alarm. The agent checked a box on the application indicating that Roddy had an alarm but Roddy denied Read More »

There is a proposed bill in the Florida legislature (HB 267) that would scrap Florida’s “no-fault” system and replace it with a system of mandatory bodily injury insurance coverage. Presently, the no-fault system requires every Florida driver to  purchase Personal Injury Protection (PIP) and property damage insurance. PIP is supposed to pay for your medical bills and lost wages up Read More »

        Love is forever right?  Well, not necessarily if you’re holding the winning lottery ticket. Last week the Fifth District Court of Appeal issued an opinion in Browning v. Poirier affirming a trial judge’s decision that threw out Mr. Browning’s claim that Ms. Poirier breached the oral contract between them to split the proceeds of a winning million dollar lottery ticket. The couple Read More »

Competition is good! But when the competition steals your existing customers or influences an existing or prospective customer not to enter into a contract with you by making untrue statements about your products or services, or your character, the line of what’s fair – even in the dog-eat-dog world of business – is crossed. Fortunately, there is a legal Read More »

A claim for excessive force against a police officer or the agency employing him will be brought under one of two statutes, either 42 U.S.C. §1983 (the federal civil rights statute) or Florida Statute 768.28. Among the decisions to consider are the potential damages allowed under the two statutes. Any judgment obtained against the individual officer – whether the suit Read More »

Embodied  in the U.S. Constitution that was adopted by our Founding Fathers at the Constitutional Convention that met in Philadelphia in May-September 1787 is a system of government based on checks and balances among three co-equal branches of government – the legislative, the executive and the judicial. While Article II of the Constitution provides that the President of the United Read More »

In blog posts written on September 15, 2013 and September 19, 2013 I discussed the tort of false arrest. Oftentimes this tort gets confused with the tort of malicious prosecution. There are two key difference between the two. First, in a false arrest action the party that committed the wrongful detention or arrest has the burden of proving Read More »

Since the dawn of capitalism in America entrepreneurs who have taken the risk of starting their own business or who have invested money or other “capital” to start a business with others, have sought to limit their personal liability for actions or debts related to the operation of the business. Accordingly, over the years various federal and state Read More »