Without question, the coronavirus has affected every aspect of our lives since early 2020. It should be no surprise that personal injury claims - how they are investigated, how injuries are treated and how claims are prosecuted have not escaped the effects of Covid-19. In short, the court system,...
Recently I was putting together a settlement demand for a client who had been seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident for which she required extensive treatment, including surgery. Her concern was that since she had been hurt in an accident many years ago as a child, that her current health...
After repeated lobbying of the Florida Legislature for the past four or five years, the insurance industry finally got the “PIP reform” bill they wanted passed. The resulting legislation will undoubtedly be cause for celebration in the boardrooms of “Big Insurance” at the expense of Florida's ins...
The Florida Legislature has embraced many attempts in the past to unduly restrict the rights of potential claimants in medical malpractice cases. Caps on damages, a worthless pre-suit screening process and an abbreviated Statute of Limitations are but a few that have been successfully enacted int...
Most of us have rented an apartment at one time or another in our lives. Understandably, the focus of such agreements is upon the length of the lease, the monthly rent amount, and the required security deposit. Often hidden within the “fine print” however, are provisions that attempt to limit or ...
In a previous post, I outlined the types of available automobile insurance and stressed the necessity of obtaining as much coverage as financially possible to insure that medical expenses and lost wages can be recovered in the event of injury as a result of an accident. As a corollary to that adv...
As I discussed in an earlier post, motor vehicles have previously been deemed to be a “dangerous instrumentality” by numerous previous rulings of the Florida courts. As as result, I issued the warning that private automobile owners must be particularly careful when entrusting their vehicle to ano...
Florida is blessed with beautiful weather almost year round. That is one reason why Florida is a great place to own and operate a motorcycle. Unfortunately, much of Florida, and particularly St Petersburg and Pinellas County where I practice injury law, has become very densely populated, and as a...
In my criminal practice, I have been hired to represent clients who have been charged with both misdemeanor and felony domestic violence charges. In every case , regardless of the merits of the “victim's” allegations, Florida law prohibits the Defendant from having any contact with the victim, ex...
In order to sue for breach of contract, for injuries from an automobile accident or a slip and fall, the plaintiff need only file a complaint in the proper jurisdiction and pay the necessary filing fee. ($400.00 at this time). However, in order to sue a doctor , hospital or other medical care pro...
With the advent of the fourth quarter of 2010, my personal injury practice has, as is usual, focused on reaching year end settlements of cases which are currently in litigation. This trend is in large measure driven by the defendants' insurance companies desire to “clear their books” of cases bef...
In an apparent desire to promote settlements in civil cases, the Florida Legislature created the “Proposal for Settlement ” rule pursuant to Florida Statute 768.79 and Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.442. In a nutshell, the rule provides both the plaintiff and defendant the opportunity to exten...
Anyone who has lived a fairly active lifestyle has probably incurred an injury to their neck, back or an extremity. Unfortunately, many people have also sustained prior injuries as a result of motor vehicle accidents, slip and falls or other accidental mishaps with varying degrees of permanent im...
Under Florida law, motor vehicles have been classified as “dangerous instrumentalities”, a legal determination that can result in significant consequences when a vehicle is involved in an accident that causes personal injuries to others. The doctrine itself is rooted in the “common law” ( or case...
In this day and age, consumers are literally bombarded with advertising messages from personal injury attorneys. Billboards, Yellow Pages, Internet sites and Television ads all tout how “aggressive” a particular law firm or attorney is in handling personal injury matters. While being “aggressive”...
Well, the business-friendly legislature in Tallahassee has struck again. First, they imposed restrictions on Worker's Compensation claimants which basically drove claimants' attorneys out of business and now they have enacted legislation which makes slip and fall injury cases nearly impossible to...
I guess it was inevitable that the specter of the Federal government would cast its shadow upon settlement agreements between plaintiffs and private insurers, especially in these days of the perceived health care “crisis” and ever-expanding Federal entitlement programs. Since the 1980′...
In my personal injury practice, I constantly interview new clients involved in auto accidents to obtain the specifics of the accident, their injuries, and the extent of the available insurance coverage. On most occasions, the client tells me early on in the interview that the other driver was iss...
In my personal injury practice in Tampa Bay, my clients, as part of their treatment for injuries suffered in auto accidents, slip and falls and other negligence cases, are often referred to legitimate pain management specialists for follow up care. Most pain management physicians are board certi...
I recently attended a deposition taken of my client by an attorney representing the defendant's insurance company. The client had sustained a neck injury in a motor vehicle accident and was still experiencing significant pain symptoms and receiving treatment at the time of the deposition. Unbekno...
Auto Insurance Explained “What is it ? What Does it Pay if I'm injured ? “FullCoverage” is the response I often receive when I ask my clients about their auto insurance. This is a term probably given to them by their insurance agent, but in reality has no legal significance. Too often my clients ...
At Heyman Law Firm, we focus on Personal Injury and Criminal Defense and we are here to listen to you and help you navigate the legal system.