Florida Injury Attorneys Blog

A group of former employees at railroad company CSX have filed a lawsuit claiming they have lung cancer due to long time exposure to asbestos. The former employees who worked at CSX locations throughout Hillsborough County claim the company never warned them about the danger of their exposure to asbestos.

According to TampaBay.com all four employees worked in areas that heavily exposed them to asbestos. The former workers were stationed around railroad cars, locomotives, repair shops and boilers. The lawsuit alleges that CSX knew there was a danger to its employees but did not do anything to prevent the problem.

A Sarasota County jury awarded the family of James Basher $4 million for a car accident on I-75 that killed Basher and another driver. The jury has also awarded punitive damages but that amount has not been released. According to the Sarasota Herald Tribune those damages could reach upward of $16 million.

The jury award came against Fort Meyer’s Zep Construction and Traffic Control Systems Inc. Basher is survived by his 13-year-old son who survived the car crash but was injured. The Basher’s personal injury attorney showed evidence that the construction company did not follow safety procedures. There were no electronic signs present even though they had been contracted. The accident resulted when a semi-trailer slammed into a line of cars near Sarasota’s Bee Ridge Road.

A judge in Broward County has reduced a $300 million jury verdict in a Florida lawsuit versus Phillip Morris to $39 million according to an Associated Press story. Cindy Naugle was awarded the most damages of any of the thousands of lawsuits filed by Florida smokers according to the article. According to the AP the judge found the jury’s award excessive. He also felt the large sum of money was not supported by the evidence in the case.

Phillip Morris still plans to appeal the lesser verdict. Naugle smoked for 25 years and now suffers from emphysema. The law suit was filed individually because a class action law suit that netted $145 billion for Florida smokers was thrown out in 2006.

Welfare workers were supposed to be watching over the care of 2-month-old Diella Ludwing and her siblings but that didn’t stop her father from allegedly killing the newborn. The Department of Children and Families (DCF) acknowledge immediately that it failed the little girl and now they have settled a lawsuit for $250,000. The DCF blamed a communication failure that resulted in the baby’s death.

The lawyer who filed the lawsuit said there may be more suits coming against various agencies in Pasco County. Most of the $250,000 settlement will go to Diella’s siblings including her twin sister who is now 16 months old. The baby’s mother, who was in prison when Diella died, will receive $20,000. The father, who is awaiting trial of first degree murder charges, has a history of criminal charges and drug abuse according to TampaBay.com.

Continue reading " Florida Department Of Children And Families Settles Lawsuit In Death Of New Port Richey Baby " »

A 2004 rear-end collision led to a lawsuit in Pasco County which resulted in a $300,000 jury award for the plaintiff. Francis Collins sued Rebecca Gohn following the 2004 accident and the case finally went to trial last week. The jury award was entirely for past and present medical expenses. There was no money awarded for pain and suffering.

According to TampaBay.com Collins was the passenger in what the paper termed a low-impact collision. The car crash was apparently severe enough to re-fracture Collins’ neck which was originally fractured 18 years prior to the crash. The accident occurred on Grand Boulevard and following the accident Collins had to have four surgeries due to the injury and a subsequent infection.

Continue reading " 72-Year-Old Man Gets $300,000 Jury Award For Low-Impact Car Accident " »

Toyota Motor Corp. has recalled more than 8.5 million cars around the world in just the last four months. The recalls center around brakes, floor mats and gas pedals. According to an Associated Press story 21 deaths were alleged in Toyota vehicles from 2000 to 2009. With the news of more and more recalls 13 new complaints have been filed with the government raising the total to 34 alleged deaths blamed on sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles.

Heightened awareness surrounding the recalls has led to multiple lawsuits claiming negligence by the world’s No. 1 car maker. The Prius is the latest Toyota model to be recalled and now there are 1,120 complaints alleging 34 crashes but no deaths at this point. Congressional hearings are planned to take on the Toyota recall issue.

Continue reading " New Government Statistics Bring The Toyota Sudden Acceleration Death Toll To 34 Since 2000 " »

A jury verdict awarded to a Miami family who's child was left with severe brain damage following an off-campus high school party has been reversed by an appeals court in Florida. Gabriel Maynoldi was awarded a $12 million jury verdict following a 2001 drunk driving crash that killed one Archbishop Coleman F. Carroll High student and left Maynoldi brain damaged.

The original jury found that the school was partially responsible for allegedly promoting the party where alcohol was served. After leaving the off-campus beer party the two students crashed into a tree. The appeals court overturned the decision from the lower Miami-Dade court and ruled the school and archdiocese were not liable for the accident.

Continue reading " Controversial Verdict In DUI Case Is Reversed To The Tune Of $12 Million " »

Jean Simmons was seeking nearly $500,000 in a personal injury lawsuit that claims she was disfigured while having a Brazilian Bikini wax performed. Simmons, an Apopka resident, had the bikini wax performed in 2007. She sued claiming the procedure ripped her labia and weakened her sexual desire. The lawsuit also claimed that she needed stitches following the waxing.

Simmons went to a salon in Altamonte Springs for the wax before she and her husband were scheduled to leave for a trip to Las Vegas. The jury did not award the 37-year-old anywhere near the amount she asked for in the personal injury lawsuit. Simmons’ husband was not awarded any money by the jury.

Continue reading " Apopka Woman Wins $15,000 In A Personal Injury Lawsuit For A Botched Brazilian Bikini Wax " »

In September a Florida judge ruled the shooting death of 24-year-old Casey Landes was justified under Florida’s stand your ground law. Now the mother of the young man that was shot in the head has filed a wrongful death lawsuit in a Florida court seeking damages in excess of $15,000. The civil complaint was filed in Hillsborough County Circuit Court.

According to the St Petersburg Times quoting court documents, Ruby Landes says that Charles Podany acted with reckless disregard when he shot her son. Podany was originally charged with manslaughter but a judge later agreed with defense attorneys that he shot Landes in self-defense. The lawsuit was filed against Podany and the condo association where the shooting took place.

Continue reading " Lawsuit Filed In Shooting Death That Was Ruled Justified Under Florida’s Stand Your Ground Law " »

A former stripper at an Alabama club called The Furnace received a jury award in the amount of $100,000 following a lawsuit in which she claimed her employers let her drive drunk following a shift at the club. Patsy Hamaker sued the club for $1.2 million following a drunk driving accident that left her with a broken back and nose.

According to testimony in the trial, Hamaker had a blood-alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit following a stint in one of the club’s VIP rooms. The trial, which lasted four days, featured testimony from one of the club’s top dancers when it comes to selling drinks to patrons and a claim that the club’s management did confiscate Hamaker’s keys but they were unable to produce those keys at trial. Hamaker claimed the club disregarded its own safety rules and that led to her injuries