THE FLORIDA LAW BLOG

THE FLORIDA-LAWBLOG

The Florida Lawblog covers current legal topics, and stories of interest in Florida law. Some content  is based on guest commentary, or links to previously published articles, and court cases which have appeared in other publications. Posts may include the opinion of contributing authors, and readers are encouraged to view the referenced materials and links, and come to their own conclusions. You should not rely on any information contained within this site when making legal decisions or handling legal matters.  This site is limited to Florida law topics, and does not constitute legal advice, nor does this site constitute an advertisement or solicitation for business, always seek the advice of a lawyer in your state before making any decision or taking any course of action on any legal matter. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements. Before you decide to hire a lawyer, ask them to send you free written information on their qualifications and experience. Feel free to contact attorney Charles Scott at 727-300-4878 if you have questions or want to schedule a free legal consultation.

Why Should I Carry Uninsured Motorist Insurance?

Uninsured motorist insurance is a type of car insurance that provides coverage for damages or injuries you sustain in an accident caused by a driver who does not have insurance. It can also provide coverage in hit-and-run accidents where the at-fault driver cannot be identified.

There are several reasons why you should consider having uninsured motorist insurance:

1. Protection from uninsured drivers: Despite mandatory car insurance laws in most states, there are still many drivers who do not carry insurance. If you are in an accident with an uninsured driver, you could be left with hefty medical bills and repair costs. Uninsured motorist insurance provides protection and can cover these costs.

2. Hit-and-run accidents: If you are involved in a hit-and-run accident, you may not be able to identify the at-fault driver. In this case, uninsured motorist insurance can help cover your damages and injuries.

3. Lower deductibles: Uninsured motorist coverage typically has lower deductibles compared to other types of car insurance, which means you would pay less out-of-pocket if you are in an accident.

4. Peace of mind: Knowing that you have uninsured motorist insurance can provide peace of mind and protect you from potential financial loss in case of an accident caused by an uninsured or underinsured driver.

Overall, uninsured motorist insurance is a valuable coverage option that can protect you in the event of an accident with an uninsured or underinsured driver. It is important to check with your insurance provider to determine the coverage options available and to choose a policy that best meets your needs.

How is Child Support Calculated in Florida?

Child support in Florida is calculated using the Income Shares Model, which takes into account both parents' incomes and the number of children involved. The following factors are considered when calculating child support in Florida:

1. Each parent's gross income: This includes all sources of income, such as wages, bonuses, tips, and commissions.

2. The number of children involved: The more children, the more support is required.

3. The parenting plan: The amount of time each parent spends with the children affects the amount of support required.

4. Childcare costs: If one or both parents pay for child care, those costs are factored into the calculation.

5. Health care costs: If one or both parents pay for health insurance, those costs are factored into the calculation.

6. Other expenses: Other expenses, such as educational expenses or travel costs, may also be factored into the calculation.

To calculate child support in Florida, a formula is used that takes into account the above factors. The formula considers the combined income of both parents, the number of children, and the amount of time the child spends with each parent. The formula also takes into account any deductions for things like taxes and other child support obligations.

The State of Florida has a child support calculator available online to help determine the amount of child support that is due. This calculator can be accessed on the Florida Department of Revenue website.

What is No Fault Insurance

Florida No Fault refers to the state's motor vehicle insurance law, which requires drivers to carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance to cover their own injuries in the event of an accident, regardless of who is at fault. The purpose of the law is to provide quick access to medical care and compensation for injuries sustained in an accident, without the need to determine who was at fault for the accident.

Under Florida's No Fault law, each driver's insurance company is responsible for paying up to a certain amount for their own medical expenses, lost wages, and other related costs, regardless of who caused the accident. However, if the accident results in serious injuries or damages that exceed the PIP coverage limit, the injured party may still be able to pursue a claim against the at-fault driver's insurance company.

It's important to note that while Florida is a No Fault state, drivers are still required to carry liability insurance to cover damages they may cause to other people or property in an accident.

Should I Get An MRI After A Car Accident?

Whether or not you need an MRI after a car accident depends on various factors, including the severity of the accident, the type of injuries you have sustained, and your overall health condition.

If you experienced a minor fender-bender and do not have any apparent injuries, then an MRI may not be necessary. However, if you experienced a more severe accident, especially one in which you hit your head or experienced a jarring impact, an MRI may be necessary to detect any internal injuries that may not be immediately apparent.

An MRI can detect injuries such as soft tissue damage, spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, and other serious conditions that may not be visible on an X-ray or CT scan. If you experience symptoms such as headaches, neck or back pain, numbness or tingling in your arms or legs, or other signs of injury after an accident, then an MRI may be recommended by your doctor to evaluate the extent of your injuries.

It's always best to seek medical attention after a car accident, even if you don't think you're seriously injured. Some injuries may not be apparent right away, and delaying medical treatment can result in more serious complications down the line. Your doctor will be able to evaluate your condition and determine if an MRI is necessary.

What Should You do After an Automobile Accident?

If you've been involved in an automobile accident, it's important to take the following steps:

1. Check for injuries: The first thing you should do is make sure that you and anyone else involved in the accident are not injured. If there are any injuries, call emergency services immediately.

2. Move to a safe location: If the accident is minor and there are no injuries, move the vehicles involved to the side of the road, out of the way of traffic. If the accident is more serious, leave the vehicles where they are, turn on hazard lights, and wait for emergency services to arrive.

3. Exchange information: You should exchange information with the other driver involved in the accident, including name, address, phone number, insurance company, policy number, driver's license number, and license plate number.

4. Document the accident: Take photos of the damage to both vehicles and the scene of the accident. This will help when filing an insurance claim.

5. Report the accident: Call the police and report the accident. The police will come to the scene, assess the situation, and create an accident report.

6. Contact your insurance company: Call your insurance company and report the accident. Most insurance policies require that you report any accident even if it is not your fault.

7. Seek medical attention: Even if you feel fine, it's important to see a doctor after an accident. Some injuries, such as whiplash, may not be immediately apparent.

8.  Seek the assistance of an attorney that handles auto accident cases before speaking to the at fault drivers insurance company so that you know your rights.

Can I Avoid Paying Alimony in Florida?

In Florida, it may be possible to avoid paying alimony, but it will depend on the specific circumstances of your case. Alimony, also known as spousal support, is a court-ordered payment that one spouse makes to the other after a divorce.

There are several factors that a court considers when deciding whether to award alimony in a divorce case, including the length of the marriage, the financial resources of each party, the standard of living during the marriage, and the earning capacity and education level of each spouse.

If you are seeking to avoid paying alimony, you will need to present evidence to the court that shows that you should not be required to pay. This might include evidence that your ex-spouse has a significant earning capacity, or that the length of the marriage was very short. You may also be able to negotiate with your ex-spouse to come to a mutual agreement on alimony payments that is acceptable to both parties.

It's important to note that trying to avoid paying alimony should not be your primary goal in a divorce case. It's important to prioritize the well-being of any children involved and to ensure a fair distribution of assets and debts. It's also important to work with an experienced family law attorney who can help you navigate the complex legal process and advocate for your interests.

 

The Requirements for Divorce in Florida

In Florida, the basis for divorce is the irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. This means that the marriage is no longer viable and cannot be saved. In legal terms, this is referred to as "irreconcilable differences." The party seeking the divorce does not need to prove fault or wrongdoing by their spouse, and there is no waiting period for a divorce to be granted. However, if the divorce involves minor children, the court may require the parties to attend parenting classes or mediation to address issues related to the children's well-being. Additionally, property division, alimony, child custody, and child support may be contested issues that must be resolved during the divorce proceedings.

WHY AUTO ACCIDENT VICTIMS SHOULD GET AN MRI

Florida auto accident victims normally go to a chiropractor as the first stop in treatment for an auto accident. This is because most primary care doctors such as MD's do not treat auto accident injuries. Further if you go to the hospital after a car accident, they normally will take an x-ray, and if you don't have broken bones and are not bleeding they send you home with some Tylenol. When the back pain sets in a day or two after the accident, this is when people normally seek an auto accident doctor. The chiropractor is uniquely qualified to diagnose and treat auto accident spinal injuries.  This is accomplished by numerous modalities, such as electrical stimulation, laser treatment, ultra sound, hot packs, massage and chiropractic adjustment. The course of therapy for chiropractic may need to continue several times a week, tapering off to once a week, or once a month over a course of several months. Normally patients improve after a month of chiropractic treatment. If improvement is not seen or if the patient is experiencing numbness or tingling in the arms or legs, an MRI is recommended to determine if there is a disc injury to the spine. A disc injury is known as a permanent injury and normally warrants a second opinion by an orthopedic surgeon or neurologist. If the patient fails to obtain an MRI, or the treating physician does not order an MRI,  it becomes more difficult to prove the patient has a permanent injury. Chiropractors are qualified and allowed to determine whether an injury is permanent or not, however an MRI certainly bolsters the diagnosis.

In addition to not having imaging proof  of a permanent injury that might require surgery, the lack of an MRI presents a unique problem for the  personal injury lawyer. When the personal injury lawyer makes a claim for damages, the claim must be supported by medical evidence in the form of medical records. Often the only records are those of the initial visit to the hospital and the chiropractor, and no MRI.  Without an MRI to prove that there was a permanent injury, and no consultation with an orthopedic surgeon or neurologist, the personal injury lawyer faces a challenge.

You need a permanent injury to be entitled to compensation for most (not all) car accident cases in Florida. This is stated in Florida’s law as follows:  “In order to recover damages in tort against the owner or operator of a motor vehicle (with respect to which security has been provided as required by Florida Statutes ss 627.730-670.7405), the plaintiff may recover damages for pain, suffering, mental anguish, and inconvenience because of bodily injury, only if the injury consists of:

*Significant or permanent loss of an important bodily function
*Permanent injury within a reasonable degree of medical probability
*Significant and permanent scarring or disfigurement
*Death.

Compensation for suffering, mental anguish, inconvenience, and pain are known as non-economic damages. Unfortunately, in Florida, most motor vehicle accidents will only provide the plaintiff money if they suffer a permanent injury (or another injury listed above). This permanent injury requirement is also known as the tort threshold.

Fortunately, there are exceptions to the tort threshold. Whether you qualify for compensation may depend on the specific types of vehicles involved in the accident. More specifically, you may or may not get compensation depending on whether:

You were driving a “motor vehicle” when the accident occurred; and/or
The person-at-fault was carelessly driving a “motor vehicle” when the accident occurred

While an MRI is not needed in every auto accident claim, it provides significant and important evidence to assist the personal injury attorney pursuing your claim.

 

 

Governor vetoes alimony legislation

Nearly three months after it sparked a heated debate in both chambers, Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed an alimony reform measure citing its retroactivity.

SB 1796 would have abolished permanent alimony, given ex-spouses who pay alimony a “pathway to retirement,” and created a legal presumption that 50-50 timesharing was in the best interest of a child.

“If CS/CS/SB 1796 were to become law and be given retroactive effect as the Legislature intends, it would unconstitutionally impair vested rights under certain preexisting marital settlement agreements,” Gov. DeSantis wrote in his veto letter, citing Art. I, §10 of The Florida Constitution.

The Family Law Section, and others, lobbied against the measure arguing it would interfere with existing agreements, spark bitter custody battles, and put children at risk.

“The Family Law Section of The Florida Bar has long advocated for legislative proposals that have a positive, productive impact on couples and families that are impacted by divorce,” Family Law Section Chair Philip Wartenberg and immediate past Chair Heather Apicella said in statement posted on the Family Law Section’s Facebook page from the Bar’s Annual Convention in Orlando shortly after the announcement of the veto. “The dissolution of a marriage and the subsequent custody issues are very traumatic for all involved, and it has been our mission to advocate on behalf of those impacted by divorce proceedings.

“From the very beginning of the 2022 Legislative Session, we voiced concerns over the retroactive impact of Senate Bill 1796. If signed into law, this legislation would have upended thousands upon thousands of settlements, backlogging the courts and throwing many Floridians’ lives into turmoil.

“We thank Governor Ron DeSantis for vetoing this measure and for understanding the bad precedent the retroactivity of the bill would have set for settled contracts in the state of Florida.”

(The Family Law Section advocated for this veto on its own behalf. Under Bar policies, sections, which have voluntary membership and dues payments, are given wide latitude on subjects they wish to lobby and sections must also make it clear they are representing only themselves and not the Bar as a whole.)

Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota, sponsored the bill in the Senate and Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka, R-Ft. Myers, carried the companion in the House. They had called the measure the culmination of a 10-year effort to eliminate permanent alimony in Florida, and insisted it was not retroactive.

One provision would have created a “wind-down” period that would, in certain circumstances, have permitted a retiring ex-spouse, after providing formal notice, to reduce alimony payments 25% per year over four years.

A similar reform bill stalled last year when the Senate objected to the equal time-sharing provision.

In 2016, Gov. Rick Scott vetoed an alimony reform measure that contained an equal time-sharing provision. In his veto message, Scott wrote that the provision would “put the wants of a parent ahead of a child’s best interest.”

Four years before that, Scott vetoed another alimony reform measure, citing concerns about retroactivity and its impact on alimony recipients.

HOW CAN ONE DRINK GET YOU A DUI?

In Florida the charge of DUI has some simple elements that the state must prove for you to be found guilty. First that you consumed alcohol or controlled substances. Second that you were operating a motor vehicle on the roads of the State of Florida. Third that your normal faculties are impaired.

If you have one drink, you have satisfied the first element of proof required for the state to convict you. Even one drink qualifies for “having consumed alcohol” or controlled substances. If you are driving on the road, you have also met the second element of DUI, that is operating a motor vehicle on the roads of the State of Florida.

The third element is interesting because the question of “normal faculties impaired” can be one of the police officers opinion, and does not require the evidence of a breath test. Surprisingly the law does not require a breath test for prosecution of DUI. The third element can be proven by the officers testimony that “ in his opinion” you were impaired. This is normally proven by physical observations such as slurred speech, red bloodshot eyes, the smell of alcohol on your breath, poor balance, difficulty producing your license and registration, leaning on the car, and what most people are familiar with the road side field sobriety tasks. So even if there is no breath test, or you refuse a breath test, the police can still provide their opinion that you were impaired based upon their observations.

Moral of this story, it is better not to have even one drink and get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.