CGWC Orlando Injury Attorney Blog

Orlando, Florida

41,000 Traffic Deaths - Tuesday, March 31, 2009

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, over 41,000 people died in traffic accidents in 2007 alone. Most traffic accidents are avoidable. Distracted and negligent drivers cause tens of thousands of wrongful deaths each year.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of an auto accident, call CGWC for a free consultation.

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Punta Gorda Fires Destroy Homes And More - Sunday, March 29, 2009

A devastating brush fire ran out of control recently in Punta Gorda. Despite the best efforts of the fire department and its brave firefighters, the fire invaded residential areas severely damaging and destroying homes, cars, boats and more. And it destroyed not just material things, but countless family memories and heirlooms valuable more in what they meant to families than in their tangible worth.

At CGWC our experienced insurance attorneys are skilled at forcing reluctant homeowners insurance companies to pay families what they deserve when their homes and belongings are destroyed by fire or storm. If you've been the victim of a storm or fire, don't rely on the insurance company to treat you fairly. Get an attorney and make sure you're getting the insurance benefits you paid for. Contact CGWC to speak to one of our insurance attorneys.

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Jury Awards $ 11 Million Against Assisted Living Facility - Thursday, March 26, 2009

An Arizona jury recently awarded $ 11 million to the widow of a resident who died there after ingesting foreign objects while apparently unsupervised. The resident had suffered a severe traumatic brain injury in an automobile accident and had been placed in the assisted living facility that promised to provide 24 hours supervision. After the man died, an autopsy revealed that he had consumed plastic bags, ketchup packets, candy wrappers, and paper towels. The medical examiner concluded that the presence of these foreign objects in his stomach and intestines contributed to his wrongful death. The jury awarded the estate $ 2 million for the deceased, $ 5 million for the widow, and $ 4 million in punitive damages. The ALF staff had clearly falsified records indicating they were providing care to the victim when he was actually at home visiting with his wife or otherwise outside of the facility.

If a loved one has been the victim of negligence, neglect, or abuse at an assisted living facility, a nursing home, day care facility, or other institution, contact CGWC for a free consultation.

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Florida Newspapers address Workers Compensation Issues - Wednesday, March 25, 2009

The rights of injured workers are once again under attack from the Insurance industry, the Chamber of Commerce, and the elected officials in Tallahassee who seem to care more about getting re-elected and collecting campaign contributions than passing a workers compensation law that is fair to the workers of the state of Florida. The following is an editorial article recently published in the Daytona Beach News Journal. ... "When a worker is injured on the job, both the worker and the employer benefit from having those injuries treated promptly and effectively. That, in a nutshell, is the rationale behind workers compensation insurance.
But the insurance companies that make a healthy profit from workers compensation policies benefit most by delaying and denying benefits. They have steadily pushed for regulation that makes it easier for them to say no when a claim is presented, and demanded hefty rate increases whenever legislation or court rulings promised to benefit workers or employers. What's puzzling is that the state's big business lobbying groups -- who are supposed to be concerned about the interests of all Florida employers -- have instead thrown their lot in with the insurance companies, pushing for legislation to increase the profits that insurance companies are able to squeeze from businesses' premiums while decreasing the protection those companies' workers are receiving. As a result, Florida's workers' comp insurance companies claim an average profit above 30 percent.
This year is no different. Members of the Florida House -- acting at the behest of Associated Industries of Florida and other big-business lobbying groups -- are pushing through a bill that would undermine the rights of injured workers to contest denials of their claims, by drastically reducing the amount their attorneys can be paid.
The bill is in response to an October ruling by the state Supreme Court in the case of a Charlotte County nurse, who was injured while lifting a patient in 2003. The company that sold workers compensation coverage to the hospital where Emma Murray worked vigorously disputed her claim, despite an independent medical examiner's opinion that Murray was entitled to benefits. The insurance company paid more than $16,000 in attorneys' fees fighting a claim that a judge of worker's compensation claims found was worth $3,244 in benefits -- and then turned around and argued that Murray's attorneys were entitled to only $685.
That sum, which worked out to a little more than $8 an hour for Murray's attorneys, was so patently ridiculous that the Supreme Court punched a hole in the state law that capped attorneys' fees for lawyers representing injured workers.
After the ruling, the National Council on Compensation Insurance, which represents all workers' comp insurance companies in Florida, immediately demanded a 6.4 percent increase in insurance rates. That move was clearly intended to panic state lawmakers and business groups, and it worked. Two major House committees approved legislation that would buttress the caps on attorneys' fees. Those caps would reduce the chances that workers like Murray -- who suffer injuries that are significant, but not career-ending -- won't get the treatment they need to get back to work.
Gov. Charlie Crist has expressed mild approval of the House bill, telling The Miami Herald that he "like(s) less expensive insurance." But that simplistic analysis misses the point. Lower rates are great, but businesses also deserve insurance that actually protects their workers.
If the Legislature is serious about lowering rates, it has another option. Stephen Alexander, who heads the state's Office of Consumer Advocate, has recommended that the National Council on Compensation Insurance -- which he accurately describes as a "cartel" -- be banned from filing rate-increase requests in Florida on behalf of individual carriers. The NCCI's all-or-nothing approach is keeping workers comp rates artificially high in Florida, Alexander wrote in two reports released last fall.
If groups like Associated Industries and the Florida Chamber were serious about lower insurance rates for the businesses they claim to represent, they should have pushed hard for Alexander's recommendations to become law. Instead, the two reports have been virtually ignored, while big-business groups backed legislation to legally hamstring injured workers and deny companies the coverage they are paying for.
The groups purporting to speak for Florida's employers have been co-opted by the insurance-company cartel. It's up to lawmakers to see through the hype, and write laws that ensure companies pay a fair rate for coverage that actually protects their workers. " If you are tired of the insurance industrys' attacks on the rights of injured workers in Florida, feel free to contact your local legislator and express your concerns. If you need experienced and qualified legal help regarding a workers compensation matter anywhere in the state of Florida, contact Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter.

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Florida Legislature to pass Unconstitutional law - Tuesday, March 24, 2009


The Florida House will vote this week and will likely pass an amendment to the Florida Workers' Compensation Act knowing that that amendment is unconstitutional. The Florida Senate will take up an identical workers compensation bill in committee this week and will be told by a constitutional law scholar that it is unconstitutional. But that committee, the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee, will vote in favor of that bill, and later in the week the full Senate is likely to pass it too. The amendment repeals the word "reasonable" from that portion of the Florida workers compensation statute that describes what kind of attorney fee can be awarded to an injured workers' attorney in situations where the attorney wins the case and proves the insurance company wrongfully denied benefits to the injured worker that the injured worker was legally entitled to. The law that will remain after the word "reasonable" is removed from the statute will allow for the injured workers attorney fee to be either unreasonably low, as was the case in the Emma Murray case decided by a 5-0 vote of the Florida Supreme Court last October; or unreasonably high in situations where very little attorney time is spent but the recovery is very large. Obviously there will be many more unusually low fees than high fees and experienced workers compensation attorneys will shy away from representing injured workers (like they have done for the past 5 years) because one could spend 80 hours and get paid $8.11 per hour (as was the case in Emma Murray).
The Senate and the House know that they are just postponing another rejection of the law by the Court, but it will take 3 to 5 years for a case to wind its way to the Supreme Court, during which time countless injured workers will be taken advantage of by a workers' compensation law that is not only unfair to begin with, but unenforceable without the assistance of counsel. It is significant to note that the amount of attorneys fees an Insurance company is allowed to pay their own attorneys in not restricted by the law or by the court system.
It matters not to Republican Representatives or Senators that what they are doing is wrong. They do what leadership tells them to do, like Sheep, they follow the shepherd. Big Business in Florida wants another 3-5 years of not having to provide needed benefits to injured workers knowing the claimants can't get lawyers to represent them under an 'unreasonable' fee statute. No other form of insurance claim has this sort of problem. All other claims by third party beneficiaries have to be handled in good faith under the requirements of the Florida Insurance Code.If not, the carrier can be sued and 'reasonable' attorney fees recovered. Workers' Compensation claims are the only insurance claims in Florida for which an exemption from good faith claims handling is granted to the carriers.
If the proposed repeal of the word "reasonable" is signed into law by Governor Crist, as expected, workers compensation carriers and self insured employers in Florida will have no incentive to pay legitimate claims. Injured workers will be denied the opportunity to hire counsel in all but the most serious and severe injury cases. Can it ever be constitutional to repeal the word "reasonable" from a statute? No.

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Legislature Attacks Rights of Injured Workers Again - Monday, March 23, 2009

The Florida legislature is back in session in Tallahassee and is (once again) attempting to pass a workers compensation law that would hurt injured workers and severely limit their ability to hire a Florida workers compensation attorney to help them handle their case. House Bill 903 is a top priority of the insurance industry and "Big Business" groups such as the Florida Chamber of Commerce and Associated Industries of Florida. This bill, if enacted into law, would mean that workers compensation attorneys representing injured workers could no longer recieve a reasonable attorneys fee, paid by the workers compensation insurance company, for winning a case against that insurance company for wrongfully denying an injured worker the benefits that that worker is entitled to under the law. Under Florida workers compensation law as it exists today, when an insurance company abides by the law and provides benefits to an injured worker as required, that insurance company does not owe the attorney for the injured worker any attorneys fees at all--- it is only when the insurance company fails to do what the law requires them to do, and the injured worker has to hire an attorney to get the benefits the insurance company has failed to provide, that that insurance company ever pays an attorneys fee to an injured workers attorney. Newspaper editorial boards across Florida have expressed concern over the unfairness of House Bill 903.

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Polk County Jury Awards 65 Million Dollars To Truck Accident Victim - Saturday, March 21, 2009

Recently, a Polk County Jury found by its verdict that a young 19 year old girl was entiteld to $ 65 million after suffering brain damage after her vehicle collided with a tractor trailer at an intersection. She was going to college and studying psychology before the accident which left her unable to care for herself, feed herself, dress herself, or even use the bathroom without assistance. The trucker and his trucking company claimed she ran a redlight, but an eyewitness said otherwise.

Trucking accidents are complicated legal cases requiring an attorney experienced in the myriad of trucking regulations imposed by the Federal Motor Carrier Act to protect the public and assure truck drivers are alert and operating big rigs safely on state highways and streets. If you or a loved one has been injured in a trucking accident, contact CGWC for a free consultation.

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Clergy Sexual Abuse - Monday, March 16, 2009

Unfortunately, sexual abuse by church leaders and volunteers, including youth ministers and even pastors and priests, does happen. While most faithful practice what they preach, a small minority are predators who prey on the young and vulnerable. Just recently, a church counselor from a Melbourne, Florida church was accused of molesting two boys at a church group retreat in Vero Beach, Florida.

Schools, scout troops, churches, little league groups, and any other organization in which children gather are sometimes targeted by sexual predators. It is important that these organizations realize this and implement protective measures, policies and procedures to protect the vulnerable potential victims.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of sexual abuse at a school, church, youth group, athletic youth group, nursing home, or other insitution, contact CGWC for a free consultation.

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How To Choose The Right Lawyer - Wednesday, March 11, 2009

When you or a loved one has been in an accident, you know that you are inundated by lawyers and 'friends' of lawyers trying to convince you that you need them. And daily, television ads, radio ads and billboards bombard you and your family with promises that the lawyers care about you. But how do you choose the lawyer and law firm that is right for you? What do you do and what do you look for?

First, don't hire an attorney who contacts you before you've called the attorney. That is unethical and the attorney should be reported to the Florida Bar. Second, don't hire an attorney because they have the most airtime, the most billboards, or a catchy jingle. Hire an attorney like you'd hire a surgeon. Check them out. Look at several attorneys and firms before you decide which ones to interview. Check their record with the Florida Bar. Answer the following questions before you even contact an attorney for an interview: Are they board certified in civil trial law? Can they provide references? How are they rated by their peers? Have they handled similar cases in the past and what were their results? When was the last time the lawyer went to trial on a similar case? Will the lawyer personally handle your case, from beginning to end? If not, what are the qualifications and experience of the lawyers who will be handling the case? If your lawyer loses, do you owe any money at all?

Look up your attorney on attorney ratings services like Martindale Hubbell or AVVO. Ask the law firm for written material on the qualifications of the attorney who will be handling your case. Read them, and satisfy yourself that your attorney is ethical, experienced, skilled, and respected by his peers and opponents. If you aren't convinced of all four, keep looking until you are.

If you or a loved one has been in an accident, call CGWC for a free consultation and for free written information on our attorneys or to speak directly with one of our attorneys.

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Darvocet Recall? - Friday, March 06, 2009

On January 30, 2009, an advisory panel recommended that the Food and Drug Administration issue a recall of Darvon, which when combined with acetominaphen is called Darvocet, a commonly prescribed pain medication. The panel concluded that the risk of addiction, overdose and suicide outweighed the benefits of these painkillers and recommended Darvon and Darvocet be pulled from the market. So, if you have Darvocet in your medicine cabinet, you might want to consider destroying it. And if a doctor prescribes it, you should ask about substitutes. Darvon and Darvocet contain narcotics and perhaps you can get equal pain relief from less risky medications.

In addition, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in Wyeth v. Levine that FDA approval of a drug does not immunize the manufacturer from negligence and product liability lawsuits under state law. So, the fact that Darvocet and Darvon are approved, at the moment, for use by the FDA does not meant that they are entirely safe for consumers or that injured consumers don't have rights against manufacturers who put these products in the stream of commerce for profit.

Be an informed and proactive patient. Educate and inform yourself. Ask questions and don't blindly take risky medication.

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