Attacks/assault at businesses, hotels and apartments. Negligent security cases.

You’ve been attacked in a public place, be it a mall, nightclub, hotel, restaurant, apartment complex, or other public business. What happens next? Unfortunately, situations such as these happen all too often — shootings, beatings, muggings, rapes, and other criminal acts of violence. It’s even more unfortunate that the property owner of wherever the incident occurred will often times deny their responsibility, simply blaming it on the criminal or dangerous third party who caused the attack. But the property owner is at least partially responsible for providing reasonable safety and security measures to protect their guests and visitors from preventable harm. Even further, according to the Premises Liability Law, the property owner or renter is in fact legally responsible to provide safe premises for those who enter the vicinity, and protect them from harm’s way, whether it be a slippery floor that causes and slip-and-fall accident or any type of victimization by a third party on the premises.

The first step that must be taken in order to win a negligent security case is to work with a skilled negligent security attorney like those at Wolf & Pravato, a leading personal injury law firm in Fort Lauderdale, to determine whether or not the property owner or manager is indeed responsible for said negligence, and owes a duty to the person who was injured. Examples of property owners or managers who would owe this duty to the injured party include those owners of properties that are open to the public or of properties where guests are invited in, such as store-owners who open their stores up to customers; landlords who rent property to tenants, and employers who operate a place of business and invite employees to come to that place of business to work.

If the property owner or manager has not taken adequate precautions to ensure their public property is up to safety standards for its guests, there is a risk for dangerous results. Even worse, most of the time the victims are completely unsuspecting and have no idea danger is coming their way, giving them no advantage or ability to even attempt to save themselves from the situation.

Now that we’ve determined the types of people who owe a duty, let’s differentiate between the types of people who are obligated to this duty. The highest duty of care goes to the Invitees, which refers to people in a place of business who were “invited” to do business with the property owner or renter. These Invitees are owed the most amount of duty by the property owner or manager, landlord, business operator, or whoever is responsible for this open-to-the-public property, and have a legal right to be kept safe from foreseeable harm or criminal acts of violence. Then there are Licensees who are owed an intermediate duty of care, such as friends, acquaintances, and neighbors who are invited over for casual visits that benefit both sides. Lastly, there are Trespassers, who, believe it or not, actually are owed a minimal duty of care. Trespassers refer to anyone who goes onto a piece of property without invitation. It is generally the obligation of a property owner to avoid setting any kind of trap for a trespasser; however, if there is some kind of “attractive nuisance” created that could potentially lure someone in, such as a swimming pool, the duty of the property owner can increase.

How a PI attorney can help you through your recovery from a tragic accident.

There’s no doubt that after a tragic accident, one of the first things you need to do is contact a personal injury lawyer to handle your case after you’ve made a claim. And if you’ve been injured in South Florida, there’s no doubt that the team of personal injury attorneys at Wolf & Pravato, a personal injury law firm in Fort Lauderdale, are the ones to call.

A personal injury lawyer is a civil litigator, which means that they provide legal representation to plaintiffs who have been injured as a result of the negligent or careless acts of another person, entity, or organization, and they are willing and able to go to court, if necessary, to protect their clients. If you have suffered from any kind of injury that caused you to get medical attention, miss days of work and lose out on earnings, or suffer from pain on a regular basis, you need to hire a personal injury lawyer to seek out the compensation to cover things like medical expenses, , pain and suffering, loss of companionship, and any other damages incurred.

When you hire a personal injury attorney, they will investigate your claim form legal theories. A personal injury case . Wolf & Pravato handles all kinds of personal injury cases, including any type of automobile accident (car, bike, motorcycle, truck, pedestrian or aviation), wrongful death (auto-motorcycle-pedestrian, nursing home, defective products), slip, trip and fall (negligent conditions, negligent construction), medical malpractice (hospitals and doctors, birthing injuries, dental), funeral negligence (lost remains, gravesite negligence), negligent security (hotels, communities, apartments, businesses and restaurants), and brain injury.

How do you know if you need a personal injury lawyer? If you are feeling completely overwhelmed with the aftermath of your accident, and have no clue where to begin, a personal injury attorney is the right person to turn to.

Did your accident cause you to be out of work? If you’ve lost wages or any amount of income due to injuries incurred by an accident, a personal injury lawyer can help you get your wages paid while the case is going on.

If the accident you were involved in was not your fault, you should consult a personal injury lawyer. Wolf & Pravato offers free consultations, during which the injured party has a chance to seek out advice, and the potential lawyer who will represent him or her has the opportunity to ask questions and dig deeper to figure out how they will be able to handle, and ultimately, win the case. It’s crucial to make sure that when you do schedule this consultation, you bring all of the necessary information about the case with you, including details of your injuries and how they have affected you in your personal life and your work life.

At Wolf & Pravato, we will dedicate our time to provide tireless legal representation to every aspect of each and every one of our client’s cases. With over 20 years of significant trial experience, over 5,000 cases won, and over $100 million in settlements, we know how to protect your rights and get you the compensation you deserve. Wolf & Pravato is the right choice to handle your personal injury case, and get you through this time of recovery. We have the experience and the winning record, and we give every client personalized attention.

“Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” We all know this universally recognized statement as a comedic punchline — but in our line of work, it’s so much more. A slip-and-fall accident can occur on the street or sidewalk, a stairway, or swimming pool… It really can happen anywhere. If you slip and fall on another person’s property and are seriously injured, you are going to need the expert advice and guidance of a personal injury attorney with experience dealing with slip-and-fall cases. A slip-and-fall accident occurs when a person loses foot traction while walking, and is no longer able to maintain balance, causing them to fall either forward or backwards. Some injuries can be severe; some embarrassing, but it’s important that you, as the victim, not be embarrassed when the incident occurs; it’s not your fault. Stop, take a deep breath, and seek out where the fault lies. Then it’s time for you to take action, and call us at Wolf & Pravato. Let us be the ones to put the blame where it belongs.

Wolf & Pravato, a leading personal injury law firm in Fort Lauderdale, has extensive knowledge about, and successful experienced in, premises liability cases. A premise liability law is based on the idea that a property owner or renter is obligated to ensure that his or her premises are safe for visitors and guests. If the owner or renter breath this obligation, he or she can be held liable for any damages that may occur as a direct result of an accident that happens on their property. As premise liability law specialists, we can help prove negligence by collecting evidence from the accident scene, gathering relevant documents, and helping to prove your right to compensation for things like pain and suffering (past, present and future), medical expenses (past, present and future), lost income (past, present and future), loss of enjoyment of life, and wrongful death damages. Without the help of a premises liability lawyer, fighting for compensation will not be an easy feat.

Slip-and-fall accidents most commonly occur in outdoor spaces, at work, or in public places such as retail, grocery stores, and hotels. These businesses have a duty of care to uphold to their customers and/or shoppers. These places that are open to the public are legally obligated to make sure their property is safe for those who may come onto the premises. The property owners must take extreme care to check for any hidden dangers such as snow or ice accumulation in the entryway or loose carpeting, and repair any apparent hazards such as problems with an escalator or elevator or faulty staircases. Other hazards include an item not displayed properly that could fall in the pathway of a customer, poor lighting in the store leading to poor visibility, or lack of cleaning up a prior incident such as if a customer spills their coffee and an employee neglects to clean it up right away, leaving a puddle on the floor that could easily cause someone to slip.

They are also responsible for warning their customers if there are existing property threats that are not visibly obvious, i.e. putting out a caution sign if the floor is wet and/or oily. Grocery stores, for example, should also make frequent aisle and bathroom checks to ensure all is clean and safe for shoppers. If something were to happen at any one of these open-to-the-public locations, the business may be liable for any injuries sustained if it can be proven that the slip and fall occurred due to unsafe conditions on the property. What exactly the store will end up being responsible for depends on the specifics of each particular case.

The owner of a store is responsible for any unsafe conditions if the actual unsafe condition was created by him or her, i.e., extra slippery wax used to clean the floor, or if he or she was aware of the condition and did not take the necessary steps to fix it. The injured party is responsible for proving that the store knew about the poor conditions that caused the accident, or should have reasonably known about it, and failed to take care of it. The injured party would also need to find a way to show that the condition was not obvious to them to the point where they could have avoided the accident. For instance, if the injury happened because you tripped over a large item that was very clearly on display in the store, you will not likely have a case. Customers are expected, within reason, to have the common sense to protect themselves in situations that are very apparent and noticeable.

In the case that the accident could have been prevented due to the property owner’s negligence, this is where having a good personal injury lawyer comes in handy. You need a lawyer who can prove the level of duty that is owed to you by the property owner or renter, and that this level of duty was breached, making the property owner or renter negligent of the situation that directly caused an injury which led to some kind of financial or physical loss that you, the victim, should be compensated for.

Common injuries that can result from a slip-and-fall accident include broken bones or fractures of the arms, legs, wrists, hands, ankles, feet or hips, back or neck injuries, concussions, traumatic brain injuries, knee injuries, spinal trauma, herniated discs, and in the most severe case, even paralysis. If you have experienced any one or more of these injuries due to the negligence of a property owner or renter, Wolf & Pravato is ready to handle your case, and maximize your recoveries. We provide each client with the highest level of personalized respect and attention. Every client’s case is different, and every client deserves unique care for their individual situations.

For 21 years, our team has handled thousands of personal injury cases, many of which have involved slip-and-fall accidents. With each case comes more knowledge about our community and how to best serve our clients. Our four office locations in Fort Myers, Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Miami allow us to conveniently and efficiently serve people in communities all over South Florida, including Aventura, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Cape Coral, Coral Gables, Deerfield Beach, Delray Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Hallandale Beach, Hialeah, Hollywood, Homestead, Jupiter, Lake Worth, Margate, Miami, Miami Beach, Pembroke Pines, Pompano Beach, Port Charlotte, Port St. Lucie, Tamarac, Tampa, West Palm Beach and Weston.

If you or a loved one have been the victim of a slip-and-fall accident in South Florida, it’s time you reach out to Wolf & Pravato so our team can thoroughly review your case and explain your legal options. You should not have to suffer at the hands of someone else’s negligence. Contact us today to schedule a consultation, and let our skilled team of attorneys help get you the compensation you deserve.

In recent memory, the horrible trauma experienced by soldiers during war has gained more national attention and exposure, particularly with the coining of the phrase Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). However, PTSD is not confined to those who experience the horrors of war. Any major trauma or harrowing experience can lead to a person developing PTSD. In this same vein, approximately one percent of all Americans are involved in a serious car accident each year. One billion dollars are spent annually as a result of these wrecks. As a result of this, some people may actually be suffering from PTSD as a result of motor vehicle accidents and they might not realize it.

What is PTSD?

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is an anxiety disorder that affects people who are involved in a traumatic or damaging experience such as war or violence. Even if your physical injuries have healed or may not even have existed in the first place, PTSD can still creep in and cause underlying mental anguish and despair. Perhaps the most common symptom of PTSD is nightmares or flashbacks that are so realistic that they cause the person mental pain as they “relive” the experience. Even if you do not have these flashbacks, you may also experience depression, anxiety, or nervous tension. This latter is the second major symptom, called “hyperarousal.” Finally, those who suffer from PTSD may be the victim of avoidance behavior. For instance, a person who is injured in a violent car wreck who suffers from PTSD may find themselves avoiding driving or even all cars because of the anxiety that is caused.

How can PTSD be treated?

There are three main types of therapy for those suffering from car accident PTSD: cognitive, exposure, and group therapy. In cognitive therapy, a doctor or therapist will guide the patient so that he or she changes how they think about the accident. Once they become aware of things such as triggers and warning-signs, they can modify not only how they approach the trauma, but also how they deal with it in the future. With exposure therapy, the therapist will help the patient go over the accident and its details repeatedly until the trauma loses the horrific feeling  from a car accident that it once had. This is similar to a person who has a fear of something being exposed to it time and time again until they build up a tolerance to the fear. Finally, group therapy involves working through the problems of PTSD with other patients. By sharing their thoughts, experiences, and fears, the patients can help each other come to terms with what happened, something that will greatly ease their anxiety levels. There is no one definitive cure for PTSD, so patients are encouraged to find the one that works best for their particular situation.

Horrible events in your life can sometimes be amplified because you may not be finished with them even after the event has happened. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder can be a serious problem leading to mental anguish and, in extreme cases, physical harm such as suicide. That is why anyone who is suffering from PTSD or who thinks that they might be, are strongly urged to seek professional treatment for the condition.  Please call the car accident attorneys in a Miami

Article Updated: 10/2/2017

If you are a parent, then you probably remember that moment: the first time your child fell and hurt themselves and started to cry. You probably vacillated between wanting them to be independent and care for themselves and wanting to run right over to comfort them. But what is also more nerve-wracking is letting go as your child goes off to school where you don’t know what is happening to them for eight hours. First-time parents can create the most horrific scenarios in their minds about what could possibly go wrong at school. But what if those mental scenes became real? What exactly can you do if your child is injured at school?

Was the injury a result of negligence? The first thing that needs to be examined is whether or not the injury your child received was caused by negligence. When your child is at school, the school is responsible for most of his basic needs. If your child is injured by another student hitting them on the playground, then the child who hit yours is responsible. However, if there was no adult such as a teacher on duty at the time, then the school has been negligent because they were not properly supervising your child when he or she was injured. Negligent injuries on campus can include the following:

• Deficient equipment leading to an injury on the playground or in an athletic setting. Deficient bus equipment can also lead to an injury if the bus is involved in a traffic accident.
• Failure to properly supervise children in the classroom, the playground, the cafeteria, and the buses to and from school can also lead to injuries that are a result of negligence.
• Improper food preparation or handling can lead to food poisoning cases in the cafeteria.
• Defective building equipment or wet floors without proper signage can lead to slip and fall accidents.
• Older school buildings may also still contain asbestos tiles in the floor and ceiling. These have been linked to certain forms of cancers and respiratory problems for which the school may be liable.

Was the injury intentionally inflicted? The school may be liable if a child is injured by someone else intentionally as well. If a child is forcibly snatched out of a desk by a teacher and injured in the process, then the teacher (and the school) can be held liable for those injuries. If a child is beaten up or bullied by another student, then the parents of that child may be held liable. However, the school can also be seen as being responsible if the child had a history of violence and bullying and they did nothing to monitor or properly supervise the situation.

What about “Notice of Claim” and “Governmental Immunity”? Each state sets its own laws regarding negligence. Some states require notice in writing of a claim against the state for injuries within a certain time period. If you do not bring a claim within that window, then you cannot file suit. In Florida, for example, you must file a written claim with the school district within three years of the injury. Other states provide “governmental immunity” which limits the types of lawsuits that can be brought against government agencies. It is best to check with a lawyer who has experience in governmental lawsuits to determine what restrictions may apply in your state.

If your child has been injured at school, it is imperative that you seek qualified legal representation. The attorneys of Wolf & Pravato are available to offer a free consultation. We can assess your case and provide you information about your rights in such a case.

Updated September 28, 2017

The Serious Side of Concussions You Must Know

Fall is coming and for a large part of the country, that can mean one thing—local high school and college football! Every year, thousands of young men put on the pads and helmets and step out onto the gridiron to compete. Unfortunately, there are also some serious consequences for these young athletes. For instance, every year there are about 300,000 sport-related concussions suffered by athletes. And that is just for those in high school, not college or professional football players! So for those concerned students and their parents who are thinking about high school football and worrying about the lasting ramifications, here are some things that you need to know about the sport and concussions.

What is a concussion?

A concussion, also referred to as a mild traumatic brain injury, can result from several different types of incidents, most notably sports injuries and automobile accidents. It is most commonly referred to as a physical strike to the head that causes the brain to hit the inner wall of the skull, causing a disruption to the brain and how it functions. Many with concussions may describe it as feeling like they have “had their bell rung” and they may suffer from difficulty thinking clearly or remembering things or events.

What does this have to do with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)?

This is a brain disease that afflicts military vets and athletes who have had repeated brain trauma such as concussions. Over time, multiple traumas cause a protein (Tau) to cluster and clump in the brain. As this happens, the healthy brain cells die and the patient begins to suffer from decreased mental capacity. CTE can also greatly affect a person’s mood and violent mood swings, from depression to aggression, can be attributed to this affliction.

How should a concussion be treated?

One of the main methods for treating a concussion is with time. By stepping away from the activity that caused the concussion, the patient has a better chance of recovering. This usually involves rest for several days and a close supervision to ensure that the patient is not dizzy, disoriented, or nauseous. It is also important that the concussion is properly diagnosed as soon as possible. In sports, this would be done by an experienced athletic trainer with special preparation in dealing with concussions. Unfortunately, only about 1/3 of all high schools actually employ such a trainer. That means the diagnosis will possibly be left up to an emergency room doctor who may not know all of the causes of the trauma and who may not be able to follow-up with the patient in the long-term as he or she recovers.

The problems of concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) have become more and more well known in recent years. Following the groundbreaking lawsuit filed against the NFL, there has been more and more emphasis placed on stopping this problem and helping younger people avoid the long-term damage. Parents should be aware of this before making the decision to let their children play a contact sport that could result in concussions.

If you feel that you or a loved one has been misdiagnosed or could have a medical malpractice case, contact the Law Offices of Wolf & Pravato today!

Post updated on September 21, 2017

Other articles you might be interested in:
What is the Difference Between an Acquired Brain Injury and a Traumatic Brain Injury?
Sports Injuries Can Lead to Traumatic Brain Injuries
Mobile Apps for People with Brain Injuries