Florida law requires that someone filing a personal injury lawsuit be able to prove four things:
- The person or business who caused your injury owed you a duty of care
- The person or business was negligent in that duty
- You suffered injury or damage that was caused by the breach of duty
- The injury or damage can be demonstrated legally
“Duty of care” means someone has a responsibility to keep you safe. If you purchase a product, consult a doctor, rent a recreational vehicle, or drive a car, the individuals involved in manufacturing or supplying you with these products or services have a “duty of care” to provide safe products or services.
If you believe they have failed in their duty and that the failure caused you harm, you must be able to demonstrate that harm in a court of law. To do this, you need evidence.
Proving duty of care
You will need to prove first that the defendants owed you a duty of care. This is usually not difficult to prove. Consider these activities:
- Purchasing an item from a big box store
- Going to a doctor’s appointment
- Renting an ATV or waterskis
- Attending a concert
- Going food shopping at a supermarket
- Driving a car down the road
It is easy enough to demonstrate that you purchased a product, rented equipment, or went to an event or appointment. The individuals, service providers, and manufacturers involved in these situations have engaged in a transaction with you and thus they are expected to provide you with safe products or services.
Examples of negligence may include:
- Malfunction of a product due to poor design by the manufacturer or poor maintenance by the owner
- Malpractice on the part of a medical provider
- Slip and fall at a supermarket or entertainment venue due to poorly maintained property
- Auto accident resulting in injury
Documenting injuries and expenses
The more records you have to prove your injuries and the expenses you have incurred so far, the stronger your case will be. You can help your attorney by acting as quickly as possible and by providing as much detail as possible, including:
- A detailed description of the events and everything that happened immediately thereafter, including photos of the incident and the surroundings
- A police report, if the police came
- Statements from others who were present with you at the time of the incident
- Medical records (your doctor and other healthcare providers should give you all your records upon request)
- A log of visits to healthcare professionals and any correspondence with healthcare providers, insurers, and Medicare/Medicaid
- Medical bills, including medical insurance coverage, out-of-pocket expenses, and payments insurers have made
- Expenses for remodeling your home or purchasing special vehicles needed to accommodate for the injury or illness
- Receipts for payments you have made toward your health
- Psychology records if mental health issues are related to the injury
- Photographs of you before and after injury and any other helpful photos
- Testimonies from friends or family to corroborate your claims
- Statements from you and others regarding how the injury has influenced your life
As a Florida personal injury lawyer, I help my clients compile the most powerful portfolio of evidence possible to create the strongest case to maximize their claims. I know how to ask the right questions to discover evidence that many other lawyers don’t know how to find. I believe in being over-prepared, which can sway a jury in my client’s favor or convince an insurance company to settle and provide significant compensation.
I am committed to helping Florida residents throughout the state receive just and fair compensation to help them cope with the injuries they have sustained due to someone else’s negligence. Contact me at (954) 448-7288, 24/7 for a free consultation to see how I can help you.