Personal Injury and Florida Negligence Laws

Florida negligence laws operate under what is known as a pure comparative negligence system. This means that the court will look at the amount of fault both you and other party had in your accident and adjust any settlement awarded accordingly.

If you have suffered severe injury due to the negligence of another party you are entitled to file a personal injury lawsuit to recover damages. A St. Petersburg personal injury attorney can explain the Florida negligence laws and how they affect your case.

Proving Negligence

The basis of almost all personal injury cases is in proving that the other party was negligent in their duty to keep you from harm. Negligence can be as simple as failing to post a warning sign about a hazard on a public property, or as complex as driving while intoxicated.

Negligence is proven if you can show that the other party had a responsibility to keep you safe while on their property (slip and falls, premises liability) or was negligent in their behavior or actions (auto accidents, product liability). You should be careful in preserving all evidence of your accident and injury to support your claims of negligence against the other party.

What is Comparative Negligence?

Florida negligence laws follow the pure comparative negligence system, meaning a judge or jury will examine the evidence of your case and assign a value to the negligence of each party. This value is known as your degree of fault, it is a percentile that designates the amount of fault for each party that contributed to your accident.

Once the degree of fault is determined this amount will be the basis for determining your final settlement amount. Your degree of fault will reduce your settlement by that amount. For example, if you are 20% at fault and your case settles for $100,000, you will be entitled to $80,000.

Hiring a St. Petersburg Personal Injury Attorney

With any personal injury claim you should seek the advice of an experienced St. Petersburg personal injury attorney to help you with your claim. You will need to provide strong evidence to support your claim of negligence against the other party, and your attorney will be able to properly apply Florida negligence laws to your case.

To consult with a St. Petersburg personal injury attorney about your rights under Florida negligence laws, contact the Law Offices of William K Saron at 727-345-4566 or 866-836-4947.