Determining Liability for an Accident in Clermont, Tavares or Inverness, FL

Skilled personal injury attorneys work to prove causation

You’ve been in an accident and you’ve been seriously hurt. You have bills to pay, you’ve lost income and you’re not sure when you’ll return to full health. You know you deserve compensation for all you’ve suffered. But the question is, “Can you prove your case?” Being harmed is not reason enough to collect damages. You must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that someone else was responsible for your harm. That’s where Largey Law comes in. Our attorneys have more than 25 years of combined experience proving complex injury cases. We investigate thoroughly, assemble the necessary evidence, consult qualified experts, and construct an effective case for the relief you seek.

Elements of liability for personal injury claims

Depending on the facts of your case, proving liability in court can be a snap or it can require long hours of investigation and consultation with various experts. The court requires a plaintiff to prove these elements before it assigns liability to a defendant:

• Duty — The defendant must have a legally recognized obligation to act carefully. This duty can stem from a relationship with you (e.g. your healthcare provider) or regulations that cover a particular activity (e.g. driving on public roads).
• Breach — A plaintiff must prove that the defendant violated the duty to be careful by acting negligently, recklessly or deliberately without the level of care the activity demands.
• Cause — A plaintiff must prove that the defendant’s failure to act with care caused an event that resulted in injury. Causation can be obvious or, as in cases of medical malpractice, difficult to ascertain.
• Proximate cause — The law requires that an injury be a reasonably foreseeable result of the negligent behavior. For example, it is foreseeable that if a motorist runs a red light, a collision will result. It is not foreseeable that if a barber gives a bad haircut, the customer will have a heart attack and suffer brain damage. In the latter example, a court would likely rule that an underlying health issue was the proximate cause of the heart attack.
• Damages — In a personal injury case, a plaintiff must demonstrate actual physical harm. Although emotional distress can be part of the damages, it cannot be the sole basis for a claim. The plaintiff must present a detailed account of monetary losses, physical harm and emotional suffering that resulted from the accident.

How contributory fault affects liability in Florida

Contributory fault is another factor that influences how much a case is worth. Florida law recognizes that there are situations where two or more people share responsibility for an accident. Under the state’s contributory negligence law, a plaintiff who shares some of the blame has his recovery reduced by whatever percentage of the blame the court assigns. Under this system, a plaintiff who bears 20 percent of the fault for a car accident that caused $100,000 in losses forfeits 20 percent of the damages, and can only recover $80,000 from the defendant. As you can imagine, defense lawyers try to use this law to reduce as much of their client’s liability as possible. Our attorneys protect your interests and guard you against accusations of contributory negligence.

Choose a dedicated lawyer to prove liability for your accident in Clermont, Inverness or Tavares

No matter how badly you’re hurt, you won’t be compensated unless you can prove liability. The knowledgeable and experienced attorneys at Largey Law have recovered millions of dollars in damages for injured Floridians, and are ready to work for you. Call us at 352.508.1485 or online to arrange a free initial consultation in Tavares, Inverness and Clermont. Se habla español.