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FETTERMAN & ASSOCIATES
Personal Injury Lawyers
Palm Beach - West Palm Beach - Florida
FLORIDA PERSONAL INJURY LAW
When someone is physically or emotionally injured, or their personal property
is damaged, it is considered in law to be a “personal Injury”. The
laws covering personal injury allow the injured party to receive compensation
for damages caused by someone else’s carelessness, negligence, recklessness,
or intentional actions. Personal injury law is also called “tort”
law. States and the Federal government have
enacted tort laws for the protection of your rights. Tort actions have three elements:
there must be a legal duty between the defendant (the one doing the wrong) and
the plaintiff (the person injured); there must be a breach of that duty; and,
damage must occur because of that breach. When all three elements take place,
a personal injury, or tort, has occurred.
The laws of our society place demands on all citizens not to harm others. This
means that not only should people be safe from harm, but their possessions also.
Whenever someone else harms you or something that belongs to you, they become
liable to answer to the tort laws governing the situation. Liability can be caused
by intentional acts, or torts, or by negligence. An intentional act is one designed
to cause harm or injury. The person committing the act wants to harm you. A negligent
act occurs when someone fails to take appropriate action and you are harmed as
a result of that failure. For instance, if an angry person throws a brick through
your car window, that is an intentional tort (it may also be a criminal action).
On the other hand, if a careless driver runs into your car, that is a negligence
tort. In the first case, the defendant wanted to cause an injury; in the second
case, the defendant did not want to injure you but failed to take the appropriate
action to prevent injury. In both cases, the defendant had a duty not to injure
you or your property, because our laws and society create that duty. The duty
was breached by the intentional or negligent actions of the defendant, and damage
to your person or property resulted.
Another form of personal injury law covers “strict liability”. Strict
liability means that there is responsibility whether or not negligence was involved.
This is usually applied to situations which are in themselves abnormally or inherently
dangerous. This concept also occurs in the area of product liability. Manufacturers
are charged with the responsibility of assuring that their product is safe when
used as directed. If someone is injured by a product, under the terms of strict
liability they do not have to prove intent or negligence, only that the product
was defective through no fault of their own, and that harm was done.
Once a personal injury has occurred, the defendant has a liability to make good
the damage done. “Damages” is the term for whatever is owed to you
to compensate you for your loss. Damages can be agreed upon by you and the injuring
party, through insurance settlements, or by other means. But often the damages
offered to you may not fully compensate you for your loss. This is especially
true if you have suffered physical injury and have not been able to work. Personal
injury law is the mechanism for determining who is in the wrong, or in other words,
who is “liable”, and what the liable person should have to pay for
the damage caused.
If you are the victim of a personal injury, there are several things you
can do to help yourself. First of all, make sure that you seek proper medical
attention and that you follow up with the proper authorities and your own
insurance company. If you believe your injury was caused by the carelessness
or intentional act of another, you may want to contact an attorney to discuss
this. You should call as soon as it is convenient to do so and avoid discussing
the matter with strangers and/or insurance representatives who are not from
your own insurance company. You should be cooperative with the police, your
own treating physicians, and your own insurance company. Most personal injury
cases are covered by a statute of limitations, which means that you only
have a certain period of time in which you can file a lawsuit. If you have
a personal injury case that you would like us to review please call one
of our Palm Beach, Florida personal injury lawyers at Fetterman
& Associates at (561) 845-2510 or (800) 330-HELP (4357)
or submit an online questionnaire.
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