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Going to trial is one of the most exciting and stressful times for a trial lawyer and his client. Both have “lived” with the case for months or years. The client may still be experiencing pain and other symptoms from the injury that prompted the lawsuit and may in fact be at trial to get the money that Read More »

With rare exception, a civil case – including a personal injury lawsuit – cannot proceed to trial unless the parties have first tried to settle the case at mediation. The underlying purpose of mediation is to ease the burden of overcrowded trial dockets. Each party must attend the mediation in “good faith” and have full authority to enter into a Read More »

The  word “litigate” means “to make the subject of a lawsuit” or a “contest at law.” Once a complaint is filed by the plaintiff the litigation process begins and each party will, over the course of the next several months or years, attempt to build a case against the other party in order to force that party to either accept a Read More »

When settlement negotiations with the at-fault party or their insurance company fail I file suit. This is no easy decision for me or the client. For the client, the contingency fee that they agreed to pay me at the outset of representation now increases from 33 1/3% to 40% anytime after the at-fault party answers the Complaint. For me, the contingency Read More »

Once the client reaches what is known as “maximum  medical improvement” – the point at which he or she is not going to get any better from  a medical standpoint – then I sit down and prepare a settlement demand letter to the at-fault party’s insurance company or self-insured entity. Included in that settlement demand is documentation showing Read More »

Effective  today, October 1, 2013, Florida’s ban on texting while driving law, Florida Statute, 316.305, goes into effect. One of the stated purposes of the law  is to “improve roadway safety for all vehicle operators, vehicle passengers,  bicyclists, pedestrians, and other road users.” In my opinion, however, the law has no teeth. In order to be cited by a Read More »

Once I am hired in a personal injury case I get to work on investigating the circumstances of the accident or intentional act that caused my client’s injury to determine if this is a case worth taking to trial. Or, whether it might be more beneficial to try to settle the case or even decline representation of the Read More »

One who suffers personal injury to one’s body, or the family members of one who is killed as a result of another’s intentional or negligent conduct, is entitled under the American system of justice to recover money damages against the wrongdoer(s). These civil wrongs are known as a “torts.”  There are other kinds of torts that occur that don’t result Read More »

Florida Statute 68.065creates a statutory remedy for one seeking to collect on a worthless or “bounced” check. The statute provides in relevant part: In any civil action brought for the purpose of collecting a payment instrument, the payment of which is refused by the drawee because of lack of funds, lack of credit, or lack of an account, or where the maker or Read More »

In my last post I discussed false arrest/false imprisonment by law enforcement officers from a state law perspective. In a later post I will discuss false arrest/false imprisonment viewed from a federal civil rights perspective. Today, however, the focus of my discussion will be on false arrest/false imprisonment cases when someone is accused by a store merchant of shoplifting, Read More »