Fort Myers Personal Injury Lawyer

Personal Injury aka. tort law refers to laws that provide remedies to people who have suffered harm by the negligent acts of another person. Tort law is based on the idea that people are liable for the consequences of their actions, whether intentional or accidental, if those actions cause harm to another person or entity. The basic principal of personal injury law in Florida is that an innocent victim should be compensated for his or her losses by the person responsible for those injuries. This is something that the Fort Myers Personal Injury Lawyers at Garvin Law Firm can help you with.

A tort can simply be defined as a civil wrong. There are three general types of torts that may cause injury to another person. In civil law, torts are grounds for lawsuits to compensate a party for any damages or injuries suffered. The three main types of personal injury law are founded in negligence, strict liability/product liability, and intentional torts.

Tort law covers most civil lawsuits. Basically every claim that is filed in civil court, with the exception of contractual disputes, falls under tort law. The concept of this area of law is to address a wrong done to a person and provide relief from the wrongful acts of others, usually by awarding monetary damages as compensation. A personal injury attorney in the Fort Myers area can guide you through each step of this process.

In Florida, certain types of incidents can be both a tort and a crime. When such conduct occurs, the state will evaluate whether to prosecute the wrongdoer for the crime. Whether or not the state prosecutes the criminal action does not affect your right to pursue a civil action.

The majority of personal injury lawsuits in Florida are brought under the theory of negligence. In order to make a claim based on negligence, the injured party must prove the following four elements:

1. That the defendant owed them a certain duty;
2. That the defendant breached that duty;
3. That the defendant’s breach was the cause of the injury, and
4. That the plaintiff suffered an injury.

If you are able to show that the previous four elements are present in your case, you may be entitled to compensatory or even punitive damages and the capable Fort Myers personal injury attorneys at the Garvin Law Firm can help you.

Slip and fall cases are also considered tort cases. As a result of a slip and fall, an injured person may take civil action against another party. One example of this: While walking down the aisle in a local grocery store, you slip and fall on a piece of fruit that has fallen off a shelf and you suffer a significant injury. You would hire the Garvin Law Firm to assist you and gather all of your pertinent medical records and bills. If the case could not be resolved with a demand letter to the insurance company for the at fault party, suit would be filed and you would become the plaintiff, or injured party, and the grocery store would be the defendant or tortfeasor, the negligent party.

Simply stated, if you can prove the above elements, you would take civil action against the grocery store to recover compensation for pain, suffering, medical bills and expenses incurred as a result of the fall.

In Florida there is a four (4) year statute of limitations in personal injury cases which would begin to run as of the date of the accident/incident. If the accident resulted in death, there is a two (2) year time period that commences from the date of death for the bringing of a wrongful death action. There are also shorter statutes of limitations for other actions against governmental entities as well as intentional injuries, medical malpractice, and maritime injuries. If these actions are not filed within the appropriate time frame, you will forever be barred from doing so. Thus, you should retain a personal injury lawyer in Fort Myers who will diligently pursue your case.

If you would like to discuss a personal injury/tort action, please contact the Garvin Law Firm to see if we may be of assistance to you.