Personal Injury Attorney in Pensacola, FL
Suffering an injury is more than just an inconvenience that leaves you with pain or the inability to take care of yourself; rather, when an injury is serious, it can result in thousands of dollars’ worth of expenses in the form of medical bills and lost wages, and lead to intangible losses like pain, suffering, emotional distress, and depression.
At the law offices of Whibbs Stone Barnett, P.A., our personal injury attorneys know that accidents aren’t always minor. When you have suffered losses because of someone else’s actions, we want to help you recover the damages to which you’re entitled.
Practice Areas
Our attorneys have helped clients in a variety of cases. We have experience representing clients who have been harmed in the following accident types listed below, but are able to provide competent representation to all injury victims. If you don’t see the type of accident in which you have been involved listed, please still call our law firm. During your free consultation, we can provide you with what you need to know about bringing forth a personal injury suit, and whether or not our law firm can provide you with the legal assistance you’re looking for.
- Motor vehicle accidents. Motor vehicle accidents, including car accidents, large truck accidents, and motorcycle accidents are a leading cause of injury in Florida. Motor vehicle accidents cases are the most common types of claim our lawyers handle, and we are very knowledgeable in Florida’s no-fault car accident laws and injury threshold.
- Medical malpractice. An act of medical malpractice occurs when a physician or other healthcare provider breaches the standard of care owed to you, resulting in an injury. Medical malpractice claims are often complex, requiring expert testimony and attention to legal detail to win.
- Slip and fall accidents. When a dangerous condition exists on a property that leads to a slip and fall, the property owner can be held liable if they knew of the condition and failed to remedy it in a reasonable amount of time.
- Dog bites. Being attacked by a dog can be a very terrifying experience, and may leave a person with both physical and psychological injuries. Florida is a strict liability dog bite state, which means that so long as you were not trespassing at the time of the incident, you can hold the dog owner liable for your harm.
In addition to the accident types above, we also represent those who have suffered serious injuries, such as burn injuries, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, or amputation injuries. These injuries may be incurred in one of the aforementioned accident types, or during a pedestrian or bicycle accident, workplace accident, or sports accident.
Holding the Responsible Party Liable for Your Harm
If you have been injured by the actions of another, you can hold them liable for the damage you have incurred. The basis of a personal injury claim is negligence, which is the failure to act with the same level of care that another reasonable person in the same situation would do. As such, if the at-fault party acted negligently, and the negligence was the proximate cause of your accident and injuries, you can hold them liable.
Two things to keep in mind in regard to negligence when bringing forth an injury claim in Florida. The no-fault system, and your statute of limitations.
For car accidents, Florida maintains a no-fault system. This means that after a crash, an injured party does not have the right to bring forth a claim against the other driver, even if the other driver was completely at fault for the crash; instead, they must file a claim with their own insurance company first. In fact, a claim for damages can only be pursued against the other driver in the event that the claim meets the serious injury threshold. A “serious injury” under Florida law is an injury that results in scarring or disfigurement, death, permanent injury, or permanent loss of a bodily function.
Florida comparative negligence law applies to both car accident claims (pursued outside of the no-fault system) and all other personal injury claims. Comparative negligence rules hold that the amount of damages you can recover in a claim will be reduced in proportion to your degree of fault.
For example, if you are injured in a pedestrian accident, and suffer $10,000 in damages, a review of the facts can show that you were distracted by your phone at the time of the crash, and therefore you are found to be 15 percent to blame for the incident, even though you were legally within the crosswalk at the time you were hit. As such, your damages would be reduced by 15 percent, and you would only recover $8,500 from the at-fault driver.
Statute of Limitations for Bringing forth a Personal Injury Claim
If you are injured by the negligence of another party in Florida, another important law to understand is the state’s statute of limitations, which is the law that governs the amount of time that you have to bring forth a lawsuit after your accident occurs. The statute of limitations is four years from the date of injury, as found in Florida Statutes Section 95.11. If you do not file your case within four years’ time, it is very likely that a court will refuse to hear it, and you will be unable to recover compensation as such.
Contact Our Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Today
We know that bringing forth a personal injury claim or lawsuit may seem like a difficult thing to do, especially if you are in the process of recovering from harm. However, we also know that filing a claim may be the only way to hold the at-fault party liable for harm that you have suffered and recover the financial assistance you need to pay for your medical expenses and provide for yourself and your family moving forward. To schedule a consultation with our Florida injury team where you can learn more, visit our law offices, send us an email, or call us directly at 1-888-219-4561. Consultations are FREE for all personal injury cases.
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