Watch: a prior injury doesn't kill your case
The four legal ingredients
Almost every injury claim is built on four elements. Miss one and there is usually no case:
- Duty. The other person owed you a duty of care — drivers must drive reasonably, property owners must keep premises reasonably safe, product makers must sell products that are not unreasonably dangerous.
- Breach. They fell short of that duty — ran the light, ignored a known hazard, sold a defective part.
- Causation. That breach actually caused your injury — not something unrelated.
- Damages. You suffered real harm — medical bills, lost income, lasting pain. A near miss with no injury, however frightening, usually is not a claim.
Question 5: Are you still within the deadline?
Even a perfect claim is worthless if the clock has run. For most Florida injuries the window is now two years from the date of injury — see our breakdown of every Florida filing deadline. Some claims are even shorter.
Question 6: Is there insurance or assets to collect?
This is the practical question lawyers ask that clients often forget: a judgment is only as good as your ability to collect it. The defendant’s insurance — and sometimes your own — usually determines the real value. If the at-fault driver is uninsured or barely insured, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage can become the most important policy in the case.
What can reduce — but not kill — your case
Some facts feel fatal but usually are not. Being partly at fault reduces your recovery rather than ending it, as long as you are 50% or less to blame. A pre-existing condition does not bar a claim — you can recover for how the incident aggravated it. Even a gap in treatment can be explained. These are arguments to manage, not automatic defeats.
Situations that usually qualify
Most viable Florida claims fall into familiar patterns: car, truck, and rideshare crashes; falls caused by a genuine hazard a property owner ignored; injuries from a defective product; and harm suffered at a short-term rental. What ties them together is a person or company that failed a duty and an injury that followed.
What a former defense lawyer checks first
When I look at a case, I check four things fast: how clear it is who was at fault, whether your injuries are on record and tied to what happened, what insurance is available, and how much time is left on the clock. You can run that same check yourself in a few minutes. If it points to a claim, the next step costs nothing.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if I have a personal injury claim in Florida?
You usually have a claim if someone had a duty to be careful with you, failed that duty, caused your injury, and you suffered real losses. You also need to be within the filing deadline, and there needs to be insurance or money available to collect.
Do I have a case if I was partly at fault?
Possibly. Florida lets you get paid if you are 50% or less at fault. Your payment is cut by your share of the blame. If you are more than 50% at fault, you get nothing.
What if I had a pre-existing condition?
You can still get paid. If the accident made an old injury or condition worse, Florida law lets you collect for that worsening.
Does it cost anything to find out if I have a case?
No. You pay nothing up front. Galimidi Law offers a free case review and works on a contingency fee. That means the fee comes out of the money the firm gets for you, and there are no attorney fees or costs unless the firm wins money for you.
How long do I have to act on a Florida injury claim?
Usually two years from the date of injury, and sooner is better because evidence and witnesses fade quickly after an accident.
Talk to a former insurance-defense attorney
You'll speak with Emanuel Galimidi. He spent nearly two decades on the insurance side. Now he's on yours. The case review is free, and there are no fees or costs unless we recover for you.
Get your free case review