Bagen Law Blog

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What should you do if you have an auto accident that is the fault of the other driver and you are offered a check from either the driver or their insurance company for personal injury or damage to your vehicle?

A woman was strolling down a Florida street on a sunny afternoon when she noticed a weary looking man with a defeated expression on his face ambling in her direction; out of sympathy, the woman asked the man if he was alright. The man confessed that he had suffered through another long fifteen hour work day—the fourth of that week alone. Satisfied with the answer, the woman gave the hard-working man a look of admiration and a respectful nod, and then she started to walk away—until the man muttered to himself that he only wished that his boss would pay him for the eight extra hours that he worked nearly every day; the woman immediately froze and turned around at the statement.

The last thing a driver wants to do is get involved in an accident, but things can get particularly distressful if the other driver is both at-fault and without adequate insurance coverage or any at all. Such incidents occur every day in Florida and often require the victim to call an auto accident attorney in Gainesville. Drivers within the state are surprisingly still not required to carry any Bodily Injury Liability Coverage, and one must only have minimum Personal Injury Protection and Property Damage Liability coverage to legally drive an automobile in Florida.

There are many specifications associated with the United States Department of Labor Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). All of the different regulations are designed to protect workers from their employers and faulty treatment. From minimum wage to workers compensation, there are several different aspects of the FLSA that workers, such as yourself, need to know about. This way, if your employer does not hold up their end of the deal, you know how to go about enforcing your FLSA rights and what steps you need to take.

In the unfortunate circumstance that you suffer from some mishap like a vehicle accident, property damage or personal injury from some unforeseeable cause or even if you are a victim of medical malpractice, you have the right to claim compensation from any insurance company where you hold the relevant policy. As soon as you submit your demand letter outlining the details of your claim, it is time to begin the long and arduous process of negotiation with insurance companies. Here are a few pointers on what to expect and how to best prepare with the issues you might face.

As long as people have had dogs as domesticated pets, there have been problems because of dog bites. As dogs cannot be held responsible for biting people, it is their owners who are held accountable by law. Traditionally many states from the eighteenth century have been holding dog owners responsible for their dogs’ behavior. The CDC estimates that there are more than 5 million dog bite instances every year in the US. The cliché of the mail man being chased by the dog is based on the truth, as they are the most bitten of all, followed by senior citizens.

The American Veterinary Medical Association reports that there are 72 million dogs in the US, in around 43 million homes. These numbers can help you understand the severity of the problem. In order to bring relief to the victims and the dog owners, insurance companies offer dog bite insurance in the range of $100,000 – $300,000. Any dog owner whose dog bites someone who is performing his or her duty required by the law, or is in the owner’s premises by express or implied invitation from the owner, or due to negligence of the owner is considered liable. Florida dog bite statute states that if the dog owner has put up signs prominently warning trespassers of “Bad Dog” or if the person is under six years old and left unsupervised or if the bite happened due to the victim’s negligence the dog owner’s responsibility changes, in proportion to the victim’s contribution to the dog biting incident.

The official State of Florida website states that there are close to 700,000 people in Florida who are currently receiving some form of disability benefits. All disability benefits paid out to people in Florida with disabilities each year amount to $7.8 billion. Disability allowances are handled by the Florida Division of Disability Determinations. There are several criteria that are used to determine if a person qualifies to receive disability benefits. You can talk to your disability lawyer to help you determine if you are eligible.

Calculation of Disability Benefits

The calculation of disability benefits is primarily hinged on the person’s earning history prior to the disability. The higher the amount of income a person was earning prior to the disability, the more they will be entitled to receive in case they become injured or sick and can no longer work. That is the main reason why self-employed people are encouraged to report their incomes.

In these economically-challenging times, finding your capacity to work and fend for your family taken away by a disability can be one of life’s most cruel blows. The disability itself presents a considerable challenge in terms of the hardship and pain it brings to you and your family, not to mention the sometimes extreme difficulty you might experience trying to adjust to the new situation. It’s only natural that you will want to approach a state agency for compensation to help you rebuild your life. However, your experiences trying to pursue justice may prove to be Kafkaesque with red tape and hurdles to overcome. Although you may think that your disability case is cut-and-dry and you are optimistic that your disability hearing will be positive, the administrative law judge presiding over your disability hearing might take a different view of things. You may be denied which will add to your consternation and adding to your conundrum and troubles.

Despite this, you can take heart in knowing that more than 50% of first-time disability hearings are turned away by the courts. However, the good news is that the chances of your case being successful rise dramatically if you appeal. With no appeal, you will not be considered for compensation.

The State of Florida has many elderly people living in nursing homes. The trend of lawsuits being filed against nursing homes is a relatively new phenomenon. A recent web survey created to determine which states account for the largest share of these claim types in the country identified two states: Texas and Florida. These two states account for about 50% of claims filed nationwide. The biggest reason why Florida ranks as one of the states with the highest number of litigations filed against nursing homes can partly be explained by the stringent laws that protect the rights of nursing home residents in the state. Among them is the right for nursing home residents to receive sufficient medical care, privacy, therapeutic services, rehabilitative services, dignity, courtesy, and freedom from both physical and mental abuse.

Any person or organization, and not just the resident’s family members, can file a claim against a nursing home. There are many grounds on which you can file complaints, including mistreatment, unsafe conditions, lack of adequate staffing, poor care, improper charges, failure to readmit the resident after being discharged from a hospital, and concerns about transfers and discharges, to name a few. You can file your complaint in writing or through a simple phone call.