Overview of a Florida Personal Injury Lawsuit (Part A)

When you have suffered a serious injury in an accident caused by another party, you may choose to file a Florida personal injury claim. This is typically done through the liable individual or company's insurance company. Filing a successful Florida personal injury claim may allow you to recover lost wages, medical expenses, disability as well as pain and suffering and other related accident expenses.  

Sometimes though, a Florida personal injury claim can't be resolved with the insurance company through negotiation alone and a lawsuit must be filed in a court of law.

Perhaps the insurance company refused to offer any settlement at all, or didn't offer you the settlement you felt you deserved. Either way, at this point you may need to file a Florida personal injury lawsuit to force a final decision on your claim. You stand the best chances of a successful resolution when you hire an experienced South Florida personal injury attorney to defend your Florida personal injury lawsuit in court.

A Florida personal injury lawsuit involves many stages, which can potentially last months or even years. When you decide to file a Florida personal injury lawsuit, you should consult an experienced South Florida personal injury attorney who can advise you about the necessary steps to take so that process goes as smoothly as possible.

Proving Negligence with the Use of Evidence

Before you decide to file a Florida personal injury lawsuit, you must gather the pertinent evidence to support your claim.

Some common types of evidence include:

• photographs of the property damage and your injury;
• videos of the accident scene;
• eyewitness statements; and
• police reports.

The basis for your Florida personal injury lawsuit will be based on establishing the negligence of the party you are suing as well as proving the injuries and expenses that resulted from that negligence.

The 4 components to the negligence rule require you to prove that:

• the accused person had a duty of care they owed to you;
• the accused person breached that duty of care;
• the accused person's negligence was the cause of your accident; and
• you sustained injuries as the result.

To fulfill these requirements, you will need ample evidence to support your claim. In addition to medical records and police reports, you should also consider keeping a pain journal that details your injuries, the recovery process, and how your injuries have affected your day-to-day life and activities. A South Florida personal injury attorney can help guide you through this process to make sure you have every possible detail and notation in place to support your lawsuit.