Recently, the district court of appeals for the State of Florida Fifth District issued an opinion in an appeal involving a negligence claim by the appellant, the plaintiff, against the appellee, First Team Ford, LTD d/b/a Autonation Ford Sanford, a Florida Limited Partnership (the Dealership). Ryan Matthews, the general manager of the Dealership drove a Ford Expedition owned by the dealership home one day. On his drive home, he got in an automobile accident with the plaintiff. As a result of the accident, the plaintiff filed a complaint against Matthews and the Dealership, alleging a negligenc ..read more

In a recent case, the Fourth District Court of Appeals in Florida issued an opinion in an appeal involving a nonfinal order granting the appellee, a patient, an amended motion for leave to amend her complaint to state a claim for punitive damages against the appellant, a doctor. In the lawsuit, the patient alleged that the doctor improperly treated her using a medically unnecessary course of radiation after she was referred to him by another physician to treat a lesion on her hand. After discussing various treatments with the doctor, the patient opted for radiation treatment. The patient now a ..read more

In a recent case, the First District Court of Appeals in Florida issued an opinion in an appeal involving a benefits dispute between a housekeeper and an employer. The appellee filed a petition for benefits and alleged injury while “house keeping” for the appellant. The appellant moved for a summary final order on the grounds that domestic servants in private homes are expressly excluded from the definition of employment under section 440.02(17)(c)1., Florida Statutes. The Judge of Compensation Claims (JCCs) denied the appellant’s motion, and the appellant appealed. The appellate decision stat ..read more

In a recent case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an opinion in an appeal involving a dispute regarding the definition of a land motor vehicle in an insurance policy. The plaintiff, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm), sued the defendant, an individual with a car insurance policy with State Farm after the defendant filed a claim when she was struck by an uninsured driver of an electric motorized scooter. State Farm denied the defendant’s claim and then sued, seeking a declaratory judgment that the Policy provided no coverage. Both part ..read more

On March 24, 2023, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a far-reaching tort reform bill into law. The new law enacts several major changes to the Florida negligence liability system, the standard for bad-faith insurance claims, and the use of contingency-fee multipliers when calculating attorneys’ fees. Each of these changes directly influences how plaintiffs are able to pursue their claims in Florida moving forward. The announcement of the changes triggered a rush to the courthouses with negligence lawsuits in advance of its effective date, suggesting that the bill will curtain the overall to ..read more

In a recent appeals case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit produced an opinion for an appeal involving a summary judgment ruling in a negligence case in Florida. The plaintiff-appellant was injured when she slipped on a grape in a Wal-Mart store and she subsequently sued the defendant-appellee, Wal-Mart Stores East, LP (Wal-Mart), for negligence. At trial, after the discovery process was completed, Wal-Mart moved for summary judgment, which the district court granted, finding that the plaintiff failed to raise a genuine dispute of material fact that Wal-Mart had cons ..read more

In a recent case, the Fourth District Court of Appeals in Florida issued an opinion in an appeal involving a direct negligence claim and a vicarious liability claim by the appellant, the plaintiff, the appellees, a corporation, and its supervising employees. The plaintiff’s claim arose from a crash he suffered while riding his bicycle along a busy street. When he crossed in front of an automobile dealership, an employee of the dealership was leaving in a company van for delivery and crashed into the plaintiff. Responding to the operative complaint, the dealership admitted ownership of the van ..read more

In a recent case, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an opinion in an appeal involving a bad faith claim in an insurance case under Florida law. The plaintiff-appellant was injured in a car accident and subsequently sued the defendant-appellee, USAA General Indemnity Company, for bad faith. At trial, after the parties had conducted discovery, USAA moved for summary judgment, which the district court granted. The court concluded that there was no genuine dispute as to the bad faith claim because USAA had, at most, acted negligently in handling the claim. While th ..read more

Automobile accidents involving trucks and trailers are extremely dangerous. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Transportation, more than 4,100 people were killed in large truck crashes last year. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has found that there were more than 500,000 crashes nationwide involving large trucks, with approximately 107,000 resulting in injuries. Big trucks and trailers are much larger than standard passenger vehicles, averaging 20 to 30 times bigger, creating massive crashes when they impact other vehicles. The difference in the size of the vehicle ..read more

E-bike accident levels have continued to rise as e-bike usage climbs throughout the nation and Florida. Nationally, the sale of e-bikes has rapidly increased, with roughly 804,000 sold in 2021, up from only about 152,000 in 2016, according to the National Bicycle Dealers Association. E-bikes are a popular vehicle option for several reasons, including convenience, cost savings on gas, and reduced environmental impact relative to cars. Unfortunately, e-bikes pose an elevated risk relative to conventional bicycles due to the greater velocity of e-bikes. The greater power and subsequent velocity t ..read more