Blaming all of your problems on lawyers has been a popular recreational activity in Florida, and lawmakers finally found a way to capitalize on this sentiment in order to get votes. The Tort Reform Act of 2023 places new restrictions on the situations in which injured people may sue the parties legally responsible for their injuries, the amounts of money plaintiffs can recover in personal injury lawsuits, and the deadlines for initiating such lawsuits.
The ostensible purpose of the law is to reduce liability insurance costs for business owners, who are defendants in the majority of personal injury lawsuits with large damages awards. Injured people still have the right to receive compensation from the parties that caused their injuries or which failed to prevent the injuries when they had a responsibility to do so; it only means that plaintiffs and their lawyers must work more quickly and more thoroughly to build an airtight case. All of this means that if you have suffered a preventable injury, it is not too soon to contact a Miami personal injury lawyer.
The Deadline to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit Is Two Years After the Date of the Injury
The Florida Tort Reform Law sets a statute of limitations of two years for filing most personal injury lawsuits. This means that the deadline to file a personal injury lawsuit is two years from the date of the accident. Two years sounds like a long time, but it goes quickly when you are coping with your injuries while also fulfilling the prerequisites for filing a personal injury lawsuit. Figuring out how much treatment you will need for your injuries and how much it will cost takes time, and so does figuring out whether it is possible to get adequate compensation through an insurance claim.
Modified Comparative Negligence
Pursuant to the Tort Reform Law, Florida is now a modified comparative negligence state, as are most other states. This means that you can file a lawsuit about an accident for which you were partially at fault as long as your share of fault for the accident was less than half. The compensation you can receive for your lawsuit or insurance claim is proportional to the percentage of the accident that was not your fault. If the accident was 20 percent your fault, you can file a claim for 80 percent of your accident-related financial losses.
Property Owners are No Longer Liable for Assaults That Occur on Their Property
The new also stipulates that if you get injured in an assault at a place of business, premises liability laws no longer protect you. It is no longer possible to sue the property owner for failing to maintain adequate security to prevent the assault. You still have the right to sue the person who personally assaulted you.
Contact Gerson & Schwartz About Personal Injury Cases
A personal injury lawyer can help you get the money you need to cover your accident-related medical bills, even in light of the new restrictions on personal injury claims. Contact Gerson & Schwartz in Miami, Florida, to discuss your case.