Injured in Jacksonville? Get a Personal Injury Lawyer Who Fights for Results.

📞 Call (904) 619-5244 · Text Us · Free Case Review

Free and confidential. You’ll speak with an attorney, not an intake screener. No fee unless we recover compensation for you; costs and expenses may apply.

Common Types of Personal Injury Cases

• Understanding the common types of personal injury cases can help families recognize when they might have a legal claim. These cases often involve:

  • Car Accidents: Frequently caused by reckless or distracted driving, resulting in severe injuries and significant medical bills.

  • School, Daycare, Playground, or Amusement Park Accidents: Injuries due to inadequate supervision or unsafe equipment.

  • Dog Bites: Attacks due to owner negligence, leading to serious injuries.

  • Slip and Fall Accidents: Occur when property owners fail to maintain safe premises.

  • Medical Malpractice: Substandard care resulting in patient harm, often requiring expert testimony.

  • Product Liability: Injuries caused by defective or dangerous products.

  • Truck accidents: When an 18-wheeler collides with a car, the injuries are often devastating. We move quickly to preserve evidence and hold commercial carriers accountable.

  • Motorcycle accidents: Motorcyclists are vulnerable on Florida roads. We fight bias and pursue full compensation for riders injured by careless drivers.

  • Pedestrian accidents: Pedestrians hit by vehicles often suffer life-altering injuries. We investigate aggressively and fight to make reckless drivers pay.

  • Slip and falls: Property owners must keep their premises safe. If you slipped on a wet floor, uneven surface, or poorly lit walkway, you may be entitled to compensation.

  • Negligent security: When landlords or businesses fail to provide basic security and someone is hurt or assaulted, we pursue justice for preventable harm.

  • Child injuries: When children are injured—at school, in stores, or on playgrounds—the impact is deep and lasting. We bring expertise and compassion to every case.

  • Premises liability: From dog bites to deck collapses, we handle all types of unsafe property claims and hold negligent owners responsible.

  • Medical malpractice (in select cases): 

    Doctors and hospitals make mistakes. If you or a loved one was harmed by negligent care, we can evaluate your case and fight for accountability.

Frequently Asked Questions About Personal Injuries

How long do I have to file a personal injury lawsuit in Florida?

Two years from the date of the injury for most negligence claims. Florida Statute § 95.11(5)(a) sets that deadline, cut from four years to two effective March 24, 2023, so injuries before that date may still fall under the old four-year rule. Different rules apply in some situations. Claims against a city, county, school district or state agency require written notice to the agency and the Florida Department of Financial Services within three years (two years for a wrongful death) under § 768.28(6), and damages are capped at $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident unless the Legislature passes a claim bill. Medical negligence follows separate rules. And the deadline does not pause because the injured person is a minor; a parent or guardian has to act within the same window. Miss the deadline and the court can dismiss the case regardless of how strong the facts are. In practice the useful deadline is far earlier, because surveillance video, vehicle data and witness memory all degrade within weeks.

What kinds of injury cases does Plata Schott Law handle?

We handle serious injury and death cases: car and truck crashes, motorcycle crashes, Uber and Lyft collisions, wrongful death, injuries to children, negligent security, e-bike crashes, short-term rental injuries and amusement park injuries. We are a trial firm, and we take cases we are prepared to try. We do not handle appeals, post-conviction relief, expungements, probation or parole violations, or standalone civil rights claims that do not involve death or serious injury. If your matter falls outside what we handle, tell us during the consultation and we will point you toward someone who does that work. It costs you nothing and saves you time.

Can I still recover money if the crash was partly my fault?

Yes, as long as you are 50 percent or less at fault. Under Florida Statute § 768.81(6), anyone found more than 50 percent responsible for their own harm recovers nothing at all. At 50 percent or below, your damages are reduced by your share: on a $100,000 case with 30 percent fault assigned to you, you recover $70,000. Florida moved to this modified comparative negligence standard in 2023, replacing the older pure comparative system. Two things worth knowing: a police officer's opinion on a crash report is not a legal finding of fault and binds no one, and insurers routinely assign more fault to injured people than the evidence supports. Fault percentages are argued, not assumed.

What does it cost to hire a personal injury lawyer?

Nothing up front, and no attorney's fee unless we recover compensation for you. We work on a contingency fee, so our fee comes as a percentage of the recovery rather than an hourly bill. Consultations are free. We also advance the costs of building the case (investigators, medical records, expert witnesses, depositions, filing fees), and if there is no recovery, the firm absorbs those costs. You are not billed for them. This matters more than people expect: serious injury cases can carry substantial expert costs, and a fee structure that leaves the client holding those costs after a loss changes what kind of case anyone can afford to bring.

What is my personal injury case worth?

No lawyer can tell you that at the first phone call, and you should be cautious of one who tries. Value depends on the severity and permanence of the injury, the available insurance, how fault is apportioned and your documented losses. Florida allows recovery for economic damages (medical bills, future care, lost wages, reduced earning capacity) and for non-economic damages like pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment of life, though in motor vehicle cases those require meeting a permanent injury threshold. Since 2023, Florida Statute § 768.0427 also changed how medical expenses are proven at trial, so the amount billed is not necessarily the amount a jury hears.

The insurance adjuster wants a recorded statement and offered me a settlement. What should I do?

You are generally not required to give a recorded statement to the other party's insurance company, and you should not accept an offer before you know the full extent of your injuries. Your own insurer may have separate cooperation requirements under your policy; that is a different question. Adjusters often call within days, before anyone knows whether an injury is permanent, and early answers about how you feel get used later to minimize the claim. A fast offer is an opening number, not a valuation. Signing a release closes the claim permanently, even if you need surgery three months later. You can decline politely, ask for everything in writing and get advice first.

My child was injured. Is a child's injury case different from an adult's?

Yes, substantially, and the differences are procedural, not just emotional. The claim belongs to the child, while parents are entitled to reimbursement for the medical bills and other out-of-pocket expenses they paid. Under Florida Statute § 744.387, a settlement of more than $15,000 net to the child requires court approval, and the court may appoint a guardian ad litem to review it and require the funds to be placed in a guardianship or structured settlement until the child turns 18. Damages are also harder to calculate, because future medical needs and lost earning capacity have to be projected across an entire lifetime. Plata Schott Law is the only private firm in Jacksonville led by two attorneys Board Certified in Juvenile Law by The Florida Bar, a certification held by a small fraction of Florida lawyers.

I was attacked at an apartment complex. Can the property owner be held responsible?

Sometimes. It depends on what the owner knew about the risk and what they did about it. These are negligent security cases, and they turn on foreseeability: prior crimes on or near the property, inadequate lighting, broken gates or locks, absent or untrained security, and whether the owner ignored complaints. Florida Statute § 768.0706 gives owners of multifamily residential properties a presumption against liability if they substantially implement specified security measures, including recorded entry and exit cameras retained at least 30 days and lit parking areas and walkways. The owner has the burden of proving it did all of that. These cases are evidence-intensive and time-sensitive, because surveillance footage is often overwritten within days.

Please note: we do not handle appeals, post-conviction relief, or standalone civil rights (Section 1983) claims.

Plata Schott Law · (904) 619-5244 · 4411 Sunbeam Road #23519, Jacksonville, FL 32241 · Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm. Serving Jacksonville, Duval County and Northeast Florida including Clay, St. Johns and Nassau Counties.