Florida Injury Attorney Blog

A Florida judge has approved the birth defects personal injury settlement between tomato grower Ag-Mart and the family of 3-year-old Carlitos Candelario, a boy who was born without legs or arms. Under the terms of the agreement, Ag-Mart will cover all of Carlitos’s medical costs and provide financial support for life. His medical expenses are expected to run in the millions of dollars.

Carlitos’s parents, Francisca Herrera and Abraham Candelario, worked as tomato pickers for Ag-Mart in fields that were sprayed with pesticides. They filed a birth defects lawsuit against Ag-Mart in 2006, claiming that the pesticides that Herrera had been exposed to during her pregnancy caused his birth defects.

Their personal injury lawsuit claims that at least three of the pesticides sprayed over the fields had caused deformities in lab animals when used on them in high doses. Florida and North Carolina health officials, however, found no connection between the pesticides and the birth defects.

Carlitos is one of three babies with birth defects, born in 2005, whose parents picked tomatoes for Ag-Mart and lived in Immokalee.

An expert testified that Francisca had been heavily exposed to pesticides during the first trimester of her pregnancy. In her deposition, Francisca said that the company forced her to work in fields that were freshly sprayed with pesticide and that pesticides on nearby fields also affected her. Other employees have supported her claims.

Ag-Mart has voluntarily agreed to stop using five products linked to developmental problems in lab animals.

The Shriner's Children's Hospital in Tampa and Miami Children's Hospital have agreed to take care of Carlitos until he turns 18. Doctors are hoping to fit him with prosthetics one day. He continues to use a wheelchair.

The settlement amount is confidential. Ag-Mart continues to maintain that pesticides did not cause Carlitos’s defects.

Our Florida personal injury law firm represents children and their families that have been seriously injured because of the negligence or recklessness of others.

Ag-Mart to pay for limbless child's needs, Palm Beach Post, April 17, 2008

Farmworker Family's Ag-Mart Settlement Amount 'Significant, MSNBC.com, April 16, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Pesticides the Root Cause of Birth Defects in Farmworkers, Palm Beach Post/Organic Consumers Association, March 13, 2005

Pesticides and Pregnancy

Continue reading "Florida-Based Tomato Grower Ag-Mart Settles Birth Defects Lawsuit With Lifetime Financial Support for 3-Year-Old Boy Born Without Limbs" »

Posted by Paige Trop & Ameen | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Injuries to Minors , Personal Injury

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The 70-car collision on Florida’s I-4 on January 9 injured 38 people and killed at least 5 people. The multi-vehicle collision in Polk County is considered one of the worst highway disasters in the state’s history. Many personal injury lawsuits are expected to be filed as a result of this catastrophic accident.

At the time of the pileup, visibility was zero on a freeway made even more challenging to drive on by thick fog and the smoke from a 400-acre controlled fire. Florida’s Department of Agriculture and the Florida Highway Patrol are among those investigating the cause of the accident. The first collision occurred at 4:30am, just a little over one hour after a Florida officer had given the all clear.

Car drivers, truck drivers, truck companies, motor vehicle manufacturers, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation, the Department of Transportation, the Florida Highway Patrol, and other government agencies will be investigated for possible liability in causing the multi-vehicle collision. While the Florida Highway Patrol says 10 collisions occurred within the 70-car pileup, the state of Florida might say that there was just one accident involving 70 motor vehicles.

One family that has already filed a personal injury lawsuit is the Gomez family. Five family members were in one of the cars involved in the crash. Three of them were hospitalized in critical condition. One of the family members, Adrian Gomez, died from his injuries last week.

The Gomez family claims that there were no sign to warn them that there was a controlled burn taking place near the vicinity of the freeway. The drivers that struck their car and the Division of Forestry are named in the Gomez family's injury lawsuit.

Florida’s waived sovereign immunity only lets an injured driver recover up to $100,000 or $200,000 for dependents. Any other recovery must be filed through a law called the Claims Bill.

While Florida’s PIP (personal injury protection) insurance coverage covers up to $10,000 in medical costs for drivers—regardless of who caused the accident—some injuries require medical treatment that go well beyond this financial limit.

A good Florida motor vehicle accident lawyer can help you file a claim or lawsuit against any and all negligent parties so that you have the financial recovery you need to pay for your medical care and other associated costs.

Smoke Closes Same Stretch Of Highway Tuesday Morning, News4Jax.com, January 15, 2008

Slew of I-4 pileup lawsuits will cover wide range of blame, Orlando Sentinel, January 13, 2008

4 Killed, 38 Injured In 70-Car Pileup, Local6.com, January 10, 2008

Related Web Resources:

Florida Highway Patrol

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation

Florida Department of Transportation

Continue reading "Personal Injury Lawsuits Expected in 70-Motor Vehicle Crash on Florida’s I-4" »

Posted by Paige Trop & Ameen | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Car Accidents , Personal Injury , Wrongful Death

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The mother of Amber Kraus, a 15-year-old girl who died during a parasailing accident at a resort in Pampano Beach, Florida has filed personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits against Island Waves Parasail and Wyndham Vacation Resort. Amber Kraus’s sister Crystal, 17, was also injured in the parasailing accident.

The Broward Sheriff’s Office says that the fatal accident took place on August 18, while a 28-foot-boat belonging to Island Waves Parasail pulled the girls on a parasail.

The boat captain says that the winds suddenly accelerated from 15 mph to approximately 40mph. The wind dragged the boat to shore and the hydraulic winch was unable to lower the parachute. The two girls spend two minutes hovering over the beach until the parachute started to spin out of control. The line broke and the two teenagers flew onto the roof of the Beachcomber Hotel and Villas and through a number of trees in its courtyard where their parachute left them hanging.

The plaintiff’s side says that Island Waves Parasail should not have taken the girls out in such bad weather. It also blames the Palm Beach Gardens company for not having the proper equipment and using an inexperienced driver. The girls also allegedly told the driver at one point that they wanted the operator to bring them down from the air but that the operator refused to do so.

The Leighton family is from Ocala, Florida. They are suing Wyndham Vacation Resort because the resort arranged the parasailing trip for the girls. The lawsuits were filed in Miami.

Personal Injury Cases
When a person is seriously injured in an accident because another party acted negligently, carelessly, or recklessly, a personal injury claim or lawsuit can be brought against the responsible party. The claim or lawsuit allows the injured person to claim damages, such as compensation for pain and suffering, medical costs, and lost wages.

If you are seriously injured in any kind of accident that was someone else’s fault, you should speak with a personal injury lawyer immediately. Your attorney can deal directly with any other parties so that you are not persuaded to reach a settlement that will not cover all your costs and give you the compensation that you deserve.

Wrongful Death Cases
A wrongful death claim or lawsuit can be brought by mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, husbands, and wives that have lost loved ones in personal injury accidents caused by the negligence of others. While obtaining compensation in a wrongful death case cannot bring your loved one back, it is an acknowledgment of your loss and a way to hold the responsible party liable. It also provides the surviving loved ones a means of financial recovery for medical costs related to their loved ones’ death, funeral costs, burial or cremation expenses, and compensation for lost income and benefits brought about by the death.

Mother Files Lawsuit After Parasail Accident, Local10.com, August 29, 2007

Related Web Resources:

Teen Taken Off Life Support After Parasail Crash, Local10.com, August 22, 2007

Personal Injury, Nolo

Continue reading "Florida Mother Files Wrongful Death and Personal Injury Lawsuits Against Wyndham Vacation Resort and Island Waves Parasail" »

Posted by Paige Trop & Ameen | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Personal Injury , Wrongful Death

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