Miami Beach

Tip Two – What to do At the Slip or Trip and Fall Scene

December 10, 2012 | Wolfson & Leon

MIAMI BEACH – In our first “what to do after an accident” tip, we discussed what to do at the scene of an accident after the accident. The sum of it was to be consistent and complete.

Now, in this tip, we will discuss what to do at the scene of a trip or slip and fall accident. We are Miami Beach and Miami personal injury attorneys and have represented thousands of people in auto accident cases. Jerome H. Wolfson, Esq. has been practicing for over 50 years.

At a trip and fall or slip and fall, many times you won’t fully recognize how serious your injuries might be. Therefore, if a store employee or manager asks if you want them to call Fire Rescue or an Ambulance, it is best to be on the safe side and say yes if common sense and your body is telling you the same.

Tip One – What to do at the Automobile Accident Scene

December 6, 2012 | Wolfson & Leon

MIAMI BEACH – First, you should almost always get checked out at the scene by Fire Rescue if you’ve been injured even slightly. And always be complete and consistent with the medical providers at the scene. Even if you have medical training, it is exceedingly difficult to assess your own medical condition. Thus, strongly consider any offer from a fire rescue personnel on the scene to go in the ambulance to the hospital.

We are Miami Beach and Miami personal injury attorneys and have represented thousands of people in auto accident cases. Jerome H. Wolfson, Esq. has been practicing for over 50 years.

First responders like EMT (emergency medical technicians) know best when people need to go to the hospital. Listen to them. When they come to the scene, do what they tell you. If they say don’t move, don’t move. And do not forget to tell the EMT or Emergency Medical Technician on the scene every physical complaint that is bothering you after the accident. The reason this is important is because the insurance company or defendant will make a big deal out of anything that you may have forgotten to tell the Fire Rescue personnel. In fact, if you testify during your case that you had pain at the scene and you forgot to tell the EMT Fire Rescue person, the Defendant or Insurance Company may try to make it seem as though you are lying about your injuries.

You Can You Sue the Person You Rear-Ended – Sudden Stops, Short Stops, and Sudden Lane Changes

November 26, 2012 | Wolfson & Leon

MIAMI BEACH -　 On November 21, 2012, in Cevallos v. Rideout, 37 Fla. L. Weekly S739a, Case No. SX09-2238 (Fla. 2012), the Supreme Court overturned the lower court’s decision that the presumption that the accident was the rear drivers fault could not be rebutted.　 So, yes, you can sue the person that you rear ended. But let’s use some common sense. The accident has to be his or her fault, at least partially. As long as the person in front of you that you rear-ended did something wrong that rebuts the legal presumption that the accident was your fault, you should be able to recover.　 But your recovery is limited to the percentage of the accident that was not your fault.

So, if you were injured in a rear-end accident in Miami or Miami Beach, our attoneys may be able to recover for you even if you did the rear-ending.　　

The most common thing that a front driver does wrong to cause someone else to rear-end them is to make a sudden stop in an area where such a sudden stop wouldn’t be expected.　　　

Miami Beach Slip and Fall Accidents – Lawyers Must Show Notice

November 23, 2012 | Wolfson & Leon

We are Miami Beach Personal Injury Lawyers and handle slip and fall or trip and fall cases against local businesses. A slip and fall negligence case against a property owner is a “premises liabilty” case. In such a case, the owner’s liabilty stems from his, her, or its ownership of the “premises” and the negligence that caused an injury to a prospective Plaintiff. Essentially, the landowner or renter is being held responsible for something wrong they did in maintaining a property which caused an injury to someone.

Slip and falls commonly happen in supermarkets, stores, businesses, offices, and other places. People injured in slip and fall accidents complain about back, knee, shoulder, wrist, and other injuries that range from ligament and tendon tears to fractures and broken bones.

But to be held liable, one must first show that the person, company, or business that was in possession of the property had a duty toward the injured Plaintiff. This “duty” means a requirement on the part of the premises owner / possessor to do something or refrain from and not do something.

Rear Ended Vehicle Usually Wins Liability / Fault Issue

May 15, 2012 | Wolfson & Leon

Every case has two parts: liability and damages. And, to win your case before a jury, you have to prove both by the greater weight of the evidence. In fact, if you cannot show liability, the jury does not even consider damages. Your Miami Car Accident Lawyer explains:

The practical impact of this is that, if a case is being negotiated before a lawsuit has been filed, an adjuster will look to both parts in order to evaluate it. Likewise, if a case has been filed at the courthouse, the lawyer for the defendant will evaluate both liability and damages in order to report to his client what he, she, or it is facing.

Now, in a car accident case, rear end collisions are usually the fault of the rear-vehicle. In fact, once a case gets to trial, there is what is called a “rebuttable presumption” that the person who did the rear-ending in the car accident is at fault, or wrong. This means that the person who rear-ended you is presumed to be in the wrong. He or she can “rebut” or refute that presumption by showing one of four things. To avoid getting a directed verdict at trial on whose fault the accident was, the defendant would have to show (1) that there was something mechanically wrong with his or her car; (2) that the lead driver made a sudden stop; (3) the lead driver made a sudden lane change; or (4) that the lead driver made an illegal or improper stop. Dept. Highway Safety v. Saleme, 963 So. 2d 969 (Fla. 3rd DCA 2007). With regard to the sudden stop exception, a sudden stop, alone, is insufficient. Clampit v. Spencer, 786 So. 2d 570 (Fla. 2001). Rather, for this exception to kick in, “the lead driver’s stop must occur “at a time and place where it could not reasonably be expected by the following driver”. Pierce v. Progressive, 582 So. 2d 712 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991).