According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Florida saw 332 occupational fatalities in 2018. There are many causes of these deaths, but safety lapses and violations surely rank among the most common. Florida’s workers’ compensation system provides a death benefit to certain family members. Unfortunately, this same system will prevent…
In December 2018, an employee at The Woods restaurant in Jupiter died in a drunk driving accident. His 1999 Corvette, traveling over 100 miles per hour, swerved across three highway lanes and flipped over. The young man driving the car, Nicholas Immesberger, had a very high BAC, 0.256, which is…
In what might be the start of a trend, the family of a man who died from COVID has sued his employer for wrongful death. WSB-TV in Atlanta reports that the family of Gerry Gutierrez has filed suit in Miami-Dade after Mr. Gutierrez, aged 70, died from complications related to…
A wrongful death lawsuit seeks compensation for the loss of a loved one. There are many damages available for losses, such as lost income or benefits, along with the cost of treating your loved one’s injuries or illness. Punitive damages are not compensatory in nature. Instead, they are designed to…
Many wrongful death cases involve accidents in which a person’s negligence leads directly to the death of the victim. Think of a motorist who doesn’t look in his mirrors when changing lanes and strikes a motorcyclist. The motorist did not purposely strike the victim, but their carelessness caused the death,…
The purpose of a wrongful death case is to compensate surviving relatives for the loss of their loved one. The law operates on the simple premise that family members should not bear the financial costs of the death when someone else is to blame. Many of our clients qualify for…
Many employment contracts now include arbitration provisions. Arbitration is an alternative to litigation, where the parties present evidence to one or more arbitrators, who act as judges. Arbitration is private and sometimes faster than going through court, which is why many employers like to include these agreements in employment contracts….
The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas school on February 14, 2018 was a national tragedy. Seventeen students would lose their life on that day when a former classmate came onto the grounds with a semi-automatic rifle and began shooting. Another 17 students were injured. Many people have been blamed for…
Florida is slowly emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed hundreds of our fellow residents. However, one issue thrust into the spotlight is legal liability for how doctors, nursing homes, and other medical facilities have handled the crisis. The sad reality is that some deaths probably were preventable had…
Cruise ship deaths are tragic but, unfortunately, not rare. The Independent reports on a recent wrongful death lawsuit involving Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. The lawsuit stems from the death of a toddler who fell from the window from the cruise liner’s eleventh floor. According to the story, the company has…
