Miami Beach Personal Injury Lawyer

Types of Personal Injury Cases We Handle in Miami Beach

No matter what type of personal injury case you bring us, our attorneys have the experience to help.

Car Accidents

Our familiarity with Ocean Drive traffic and hit-and-run cases can help when you are the victim of a serious car accident.

Truck Accidents

When you are the victim of a truck accident on nearby Interstate 95, call a personal injury lawyer in Miami Beach at Bernstein & Maryanoff immediately.

Motorcycle Accidents

The beautiful weather in Miami Beach makes motorcycles popular. Our attorneys can help you get the medical care you need after a life-threatening motorcycle accident.

Bicycle and Pedestrian Accidents

Between the beach and tourists, a bicycle or pedestrian accident can be devastating. Thankfully, our attorneys understand Florida laws for these types of accidents and can help.

Cruise Ship Accidents

What are your options when you are injured after getting on a cruise ship? The lawyers at our law firm can help you navigate maritime laws.

Slip and Fall/Premises Liability

If you are injured at a public location like a store, don’t sign anything. Contact our law firm right away instead.

Medical Malpractice

In Florida, lawyers must attest that they believe their clients have the grounds to file a claim. Our attorneys have the experience to accurately judge your case.

Wrongful Death

If you are the personal representative for a deceased loved one, we’ll help you navigate complex issues of law to get fair compensation for that loss.

Catastrophic Injuries

Our familiarity with local doctors and hospitals can help you get the medical care you need after a catastrophic injury.

Product Liability

At Bernstein & Maryanoff, we have established connections with industry experts who can provide support for product liability claims.

Nursing Home Abuse

Due to the prevalence of nursing homes in the area, our attorneys are familiar with abuse and know how to identify signs of neglect accurately.

How Our Miami Beach Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help You

When you file a personal injury claim, our Miami Beach injury attorneys can help you with every step of the process.

We will:

• Give you a free consultation and case evaluation.
• Thoroughly investigate your claim and gather relevant evidence.
• Arrange for medical treatment for your injuries.
• Communicate and negotiate with insurance companies.
• Assist with property damage claims.
• Help you get compensation for lost wages.
• Determine a fair value for your pain and suffering.

At our Miami Beach injury law firm, we charge no upfront fees and take every case on contingency. This means that you will be represented by a top personal injury attorney at no risk to you.

What To Do After a Personal Injury Accident

The actions you take after suffering an injury in an accident in Florida can affect your ability to get compensation.

To best protect your rights, you should:

• Seek immediate medical attention and follow-up, if needed.
• Call 911 and ask the responding officers about how to get a police report.
• Take photos or videos of the accident scene and your injuries.
• Get contact information from all witnesses.
• Contact a Miami Beach accident and injury lawyer at Bernstein & Maryanoff.
• Report the accident to the appropriate insurance company while your lawyer is present.
• Avoid discussing your accident on social media.

Acting swiftly is imperative. Evidence that supports your claim can disappear in days or even hours if your Miami Beach personal injury claim lawyer doesn’t act quickly to preserve it. Furthermore, Florida has a two-year statute of limitations. Any delays could permanently rescind your right to file personal injury claims in Miami Beach related to your accident.

Personal Injury Law in Florida

Before you can get fair compensation, you need to understand the basics of personal injury law in Miami Beach. You can file a personal injury claim against another party when you suffer an injury due to their negligence.

Negligence is a legal term that is defined by four elements:

• The negligent party had a duty of care toward you.
• They breached that duty.
• That breach resulted in your injuries.
• Your injuries caused financial harm.

When the negligent party is entirely at fault for your injuries, you can get compensation for all financial harm, either by filing a lawsuit or a liability injury claim against them. The former is a legal process controlled by the courts. The latter is a less formal process controlled by the insurance company and regulated by state law.

In Florida, though, there are limits to both processes. For example, if you are partially responsible for your injuries, you may only pursue compensation if you are 50% or less at fault. Furthermore, if you choose to file a lawsuit, you must act within two years of your injury.

Additionally, motor vehicle accidents are regulated by the no-fault insurance system. This means you can only pursue damages from another party if you meet the serious injury threshold.

Finally, Miami Beach residents and visitors often face unique complications. For example, when tourists are involved in a personal injury claim, they typically don’t live in the state.

Types of Compensation You Can Recover

There are three types of compensation you can recover after a personal injury: economic, non-economic, and punitive. The last can only be recovered from a jury trial and is quite rare. It is only awarded when a defendant engages in intentional misconduct or gross negligence. This category of award is capped at $500,000 or three times the other damages.

Economic damages are the most common type of compensation. These damages can be enumerated and typically proven through documentation.

This category includes:

• Medical bills
• Lost wages
• Property damage
• Future medical expenses

Finally, non-economic damages are compensation for physical and psychological suffering. The value of this compensation is usually calculated as a multiple of economic damages.

Catastrophic Injuries and Wrongful Death Cases

When is it most important to hire a Miami Beach personal injury lawyer? You will need legal help most when you have suffered a catastrophic injury or lost a loved one in a wrongful death case.

These cases are two sides of the same coin. Catastrophic injuries are life-changing harm, like amputations or severe burns. They result in lifelong medical care and disabilities. That can add up to hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars in medical costs. If you don’t get enough personal injury compensation in Miami Beach, it could spell financial ruin.

Wrongful death claims involve similar financial difficulties. When a loved one dies unexpectedly, you may suddenly be bereft of financial support. These cases are complicated because only the personal representative of an estate can file them. Our attorneys will help you work with that person or petition the court to be named to that role.

Florida’s Statute of Limitations

The statute of limitations in Florida is two years from the date of your injury if you were injured after March 2023. Before that date, it was four years.

This time limit looms over every personal injury claim. If you don’t file a lawsuit within the time limit, you lose your right to legally pursue compensation. Insurance companies are aware of this time limit and will typically refuse to negotiate settlements once the time limit has passed.

The good news is that the statute of limitations includes several exceptions that can give you more time to act. If you don’t discover an injury at first, for example, the time limit doesn’t start counting down until you discover or reasonably should have discovered the injury. Similarly, the time limit for minors doesn’t begin until their 18th birthday.

Due to the complicated nature of these laws and the consequences of missing the deadline, you should get personal injury representation in Miami Beach as soon as possible.

The Contingency Fee Model: No Fees Unless We Win

There is no risk when you hire a Miami Beach negligence lawyer from our law firm. We use a “no win, no fee” structure known as the contingency fee model. Under this system, we offer a free consultation with no upfront charges or hidden fees.

If you hire our law firm, we will cover all case costs until the case is complete. Our attorney fees are always a percentage of what we win for you. Typically, this is 33% pre-lawsuit and 40%, if litigation is filed. This system makes legal representation accessible to everyone.

Common Miami Beach Accident Locations and Hazards

One of the benefits of our personal injury legal services in Miami Beach is that we are familiar with the locality and the types of injury claims that are most likely in the city.

For example, we know that the following is true:

• Pedestrian accidents and drunk driving are common on Ocean Drive.
• Due to crowded conditions, slip-and-fall accidents are common at Lincoln Road Mall.
• High traffic results in many car accidents on Collins Avenue.
• Premises liability claims are common at hotels and resorts in the area.
• Drowning accidents are most common at local public and private beaches.

At Bernstein & Maryanoff, we are familiar with local dangers and know how to use that information to identify whether another party is liable for your injuries.

Dealing With Insurance Companies

Insurance companies are corporations. This means that they are legally obligated to earn money for their investors. Unfortunately for you, the way that insurance companies make money is by denying or undervaluing claims. The less an insurance company pays claims, the more profit it makes.

Insurance adjusters typically use several tactics to minimize payouts. Some of the most common tactics are:

• Delaying claims
• Disputing the percentage of fault
• Offering a lowball settlement before the extent of injuries is known
• Drowning claimants in red tape

A Miami Beach negligence lawyer at Bernstein & Maryanoff can help you fight back against these tactics. We understand the insurance process and the legal system. Our Miami Beach personal injury lawsuit attorneys will handle all communications with the insurance company to ensure that it is acting in good faith at all times.

This is particularly important in car accident claims. Under the PIP system, your insurer can’t refuse your claim, even if you are at fault. However, insurers may try to undervalue it. Our experienced legal team will determine the fair value of your claim and will hold the insurance company accountable for every dollar of it.

Gathering Evidence for Your Personal Injury Case

Collecting evidence while injured can be quite challenging, especially if you are homebound or in a hospital bed. Our legal team can assist you by investigating your claim and preserving evidence before it becomes unavailable.

Typically, this means we will obtain and preserve:

• Police reports
• Medical records
• Photos and video from the accident scene
• Witness statements
• Security camera footage
• Expert testimony when appropriate

Many of these types of evidence are time sensitive. Witnesses may forget details of the accident, or security footage could be erased. Our resources ensure we can act swiftly to secure evidence.

Frequently Asked Questions

Contact Our Personal Injury Lawyers Now

Do you want the best personal injury lawyer in Miami Beach to help you get compensation after suffering a serious injury? Look no further than Bernstein & Maryanoff.

Our law firm offers free consultations and case evaluations for every potential client. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

You can’t afford to wait after suffering an injury. Delays only help the insurance companies. And with enough delays, you may run afoul of the statute of limitations.

Protect your rights today. Contact Bernstein & Maryanoff immediately to talk to an experienced personal injury lawyer.

About Bernstein & Maryanoff, Injury Attorneys

Established in 1983, Bernstein & Maryanoff has been helping Miami-Dade County clients get fair compensation for over 40 years. Our founder, Jack Bernstein, has been part of the law firm since day one. Although our law firm has six Miami Beach injury claims lawyers and approximately 40 staff members, Jack Bernstein is involved with every case that we handle. This cooperative approach gets results.

At Bernstein & Maryanoff, we have substantial financial resources that we dedicate to getting the maximum recovery for every client. This mirrors our philosophy that every member of our community is our neighbor. We aren’t satisfied until we have helped you recover fully from your injuries.