Premises Liability

Florida’s Crime Clock

April 9, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

o-CRIME-SCENE-TAPE-facebook_300x300
In Florida, extensive statistics are kept by law enforcement. In theory, those statistics are used to measure performance, effectiveness and for the deployment of resources. In addition, crime statistics can be informative for political purposes. But it is always a good idea to look at any statistical analysis with a cautious eye. One must always consider what is being measured and, especially, what is not being measured. With that in mind, we look at Florida’s Crime Clock as promulgated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

In the most recent version of the Crime Clock, the year 2016 is examined. Again, with a grain of salt, the results are interesting and informative. Crime clearly remains a serious problem here in Florida. Here are some of the results:

There is an aggravated assault committed every 9 minutes in Florida

Florida Hotel or Resort Accident – What You Should Know

January 2, 2018 | Wolfson & Leon

Airbnb Accidents in Florida

August 22, 2017 | Wolfson & Leon

stairs2-300x219 What would you do if you were injured at an Airbnb location in Florida? If the accident wasn’t your fault, do you know how to hold the responsible person or company accountable for your damages, medical expenses and loss of income? Our Florida Airbnb accident attorneys have investigated and studied the issues involved when people are injured due to the negligence of the Airbnb owner or operator. Unfortunately, the answers are not simple. However, there is a path to recover for your Airbnb injury.

The first thing that you need to understand is that you cannot sue Airbnb. The Terms of Service in your Airbnb agreement provide that in the event of a dispute, you agree to negotiate or arbitrate with Airbnb. Additionally, in that same agreement you agreed to waive your rights to request a jury trial for all issues that are capable of being submitted to arbitration. You might wonder if Airbnb can do this legally. The answer is yes. You’re not required to use Airbnb but when you do you must agree to Terms of Service.

In fact, it is common for companies and corporations to include such provisions in the terms of service or agreements. The most used provisions include waiver of jury trials and arbitration requirements. If you disagree then you simply don’t have to use the service or product that is being provided to you by the corporation. Another favorite is venue selection. Most obvious example is accidents that occur on cruise ships. Most cruise ship tickets provide that in the event of a lawsuit is filed then it must be filed in federal court in Miami. Again, if you don’t agree than simply don’t buy the ticket.

Accidents at Florida Wawa Stores

August 18, 2017 | Wolfson & Leon

Like any other gas station or convenience store, Wawa may be liable for accidents resulting in personal injury. If you or a loved one is seriously injured while visiting any of the 90 plus Wawa stores in Florida, you are strongly urged to speak with a Florida Wawa accident lawyer as soon as you can. A prompt investigation and early legal advice can often make the difference between a contested claim and a successful recovery.

Wawa Moves into Florida

The first Wawa store in Florida was opened in the Orlando area only four years ago. In less than five years, Wawa has opened more than 92 stores. In addition, the corporation as very aggressive plans for expansion in Florida.

Restaurant Sued for Swallowed Broken Shell – The Reasonable Expectation Test

February 6, 2017 | Wolfson & Leon

A Buca di Beppo restaurant was sued by a customer who was seriously injured when he swallowed a broken mussel shell. The trial court in Broward County initially granted the defendant Buca’s motion for summary judgment which was reversed by the Fourth District Court of Appeal based on the application of the “reasonable expectation” test to the facts of the case.

Now the customer is entitled to a jury trial and our personal injury lawyers at the Miami office of Wolfson & Leon firmly believe the 4^th DCA got this one right.

Linguine Frutti di Mare with the Broken Mussel Shells

Walmart Chooses Profit over Customer Safety

September 5, 2016 | Wolfson & Leon

Miami premise liability lawyers know that Walmart measures everything. They know their numbers. Consider this:

Sales per Walmart employee is $236,804 – a 23% increase over the last decade
It has more than 1 million retail workers on full-time and part-time shifts.

Target’s Wet Look Floors Are an Accident Waiting to Happen

August 16, 2016 | Wolfson & Leon

What is the one thing you notice when you go shopping at any Target store? The shiny floors and it isn’t a coincidence. At the highest corporate levels of Target, a decision was made to sacrifice consumer safety in favor of bright clean look that would entice customers to shop at Target.

Target home offices are located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. There are more than 1700 Target stores in the United States. In a recent case in South Florida, Target’s procedures and policies were placed under a microscope and the results are disturbing.

The documents and testimony in the commercial premises liability case against Target conclusively demonstrated that Target instituted a company-wide policy of maintaining “WET LOOK” floors. In furtherance of this policy, Target specifically choose certain types of tiles and mandated specific waxing/cleaning procedures. In addition, Target incorporated lighting choices to enhance the bright shiny look of the stores.

The Chinese Menu Defenses In Premises Liability Trials

June 12, 2016 | Wolfson & Leon

stairs-a18941 Most of us have ordered the specials at our favorite Chinese restaurant. You get to pick and choose from a variety of choices. Usually you pick a soup from column A. Then another choice for appetizer from Column B. Then yet another choice for the main course from Column C. You get to pick and choose. In a premises liability trial, the defense will usually present a Chinese menu of defenses and offer the jury a variety of ways to deny the injured person a full, fair and complete recovery. The Miami Premises Liability Lawyers at Wolfson & Leon deal with these defenses everyday.

A premises liability trial is usually filed against a property owner for injuries and damages. The types of premises liability cases can include slip and fall, trip and fall or negligent security. The defenses are stated in the defendant’s answer to the complaint. These defenses often include:

The plaintiff was intoxicated and therefore he/she cannot recover

How to Represent Yourself in a Slip and Fall Injury Claim

May 20, 2016 | Wolfson & Leon

Filing a Slip and Fall Claim in Miami without an Attorney

First things first. You are not required to have a Miami slip and fall attorney to file a claim for injuries from a slip and fall case. You can represent yourself. You cannot represent someone else unless you are licensed attorney in that jurisdiction. If you do try to represent someone else, you could be criminally liable for practicing law without a license.

Next, you need to decide if you want to represent yourself. If you do, you need to understand what you are up against. If you were injured in a slip and fall accident, there are certain things you should know about slip and fall accidents including what to do after a slip and fall accident in Miami. If you were injured on a business owner’s property such as a mall, retail store, restaurant, boutique or supermarket then you need to think it through. Business owners are not likely to just give you money because you might have been hurt on their premises.

Jury Divides Fault on Shopping Cart Injury Accident in Miami

May 5, 2016 | Wolfson & Leon

personal-injury-lawyer-300x168 A Miami jury split the fault in a Miami premises liability personal injury case involving a shopping cart. The plaintiff claimed Home Depot was negligent because it allowed a threshold to exist which caught a shopping cart the plaintiff was pushing. When the cart got stuck, it jerked back and struck the plaintiff . He seriously injured his neck and back as well as his shoulder. The jury awarded approximately $328,000 which was reduced by the 50/50 finding of the jury.

Generally, a property owner owes two duties to an invitee. First it owes the duty to use reasonable care in maintaining the property in a reasonably safe condition. Second, the property owner has the duty to warn of concealed or latent hazards or dangers which the owner knows about, or should have known about. The hidden dangers must also be unknown to the invitee. Finally the concealed hazard is not discoverable through the exercise of due care. A property’s owner may be discharged of the duty to warn when the hazard is open and obvious. But even with open and obvious hazards the landowner continues to have the duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition.

The injured plaintiff must generally prove that the property owner had constructive or actual notice of the dangerous condition. A property owner, like Home Depot, can be held liable for injuries and damages if the hazardous condition existed for a sufficient period of time to charge the premises owner with constructive knowledge. Constructive knowledge can be inferred, or assessed, if a hazardous condition existed for long enough that in the exercise of reasonable care the concealed or latent hazard should have been known to the premises owner.