When you sustained an injury from a drunk driver’s actions, our attorneys understand the injustice you experienced. You may be struggling to pay medical and household bills if you can’t work, and you might not know your options for pursuing compensation. When your life is at a low point, you need a strong hand to guide you through the legal system and a relationship with your attorney built on trust.
Our practiced car accident attorneys at Dannheisser Injury Law can investigate your crash to help determine liability. We are committed to recovering full value for our clients’ injuries, damages, and lawsuits while building close relationships with them. After sustaining an injury in a drunk driving car accident in Sarasota, let us help advocate for you on your behalf.
Florida Statutes § 316.193 describes persons high on drugs to the point their driving is impaired or whose blood alcohol level is at or exceeds 0.08 grams as intoxicated. Drunk driving is a crime. If the drunk driver causes an accident that hurts others, injured motorists can bring civil lawsuits for negligence to be compensated for physical, emotional, and financial losses.
Your Sarasota attorney must prove four elements of negligence to recover damages for a drunk driving car accident. These elements are:
Motorists have a duty to others sharing the road to drive like the quintessential reasonable person similarly situated would drive. When they drive irresponsibly, they breach their duty to others. The elements are met when their driving is the foreseeable cause of an accident and someone is injured. The well-practiced attorneys at Dannheisser Injury Law will assess the evidence in your case, particularly police and medical reports, to build a solid case for negligence.
Under the doctrine of negligence per se, the drunk driver who slams into you establishes negligence, except for your damages, because they broke a state law. The law must be directed at people who are supposed to act cautiously and do no harm to the protected class who is at risk.
The harm that occurs must be an expected consequence of the behavior. Cautious drivers do not drink and put others on the road at risk of a collision. Because drunk drivers violate Florida Statutes § 316.193, negligence per se is a viable shortcut for your Sarasota attorney to prove negligence in the accident.
Accidents may not be clear when it comes to fault. The state recently revamped its tort laws, as set out in Florida House Bill 837, and realigned assessing blame from pure comparative negligence in which an injured person could still recover damages if they were up to 99 percent responsible for an accident, to modified comparative negligence.
The new law disallows any recovery if the injured person is found to be more than 50 percent responsible for the crash. Under pure and modified jurisdictions, the money awarded to an injured person is reduced by their percentage of fault.
The state’s tort reform also changed the Statute of Limitations or the amount of time an injured person has to file a negligence lawsuit against the drunk driver who caused the accident. Formerly four years, the new law reduces the filing deadline to two years from the date of the accident, with limited exceptions. Our Sarasota attorneys ensure all court filings for drunk driving car wreck claims are timely.
When planning to visit the beach or are headed to work, you risk encountering a drunk driver. If you are injured in a drunk driving car accident in Sarasota, call the experienced attorneys at Dannheisser Injury Law as soon as you can. The longer you wait, the more likely the evidence will disappear.
When you choose our law firm, you choose a local firm that cares about your outcome. You will have our cell phone numbers to answer your questions and allay your fears whenever you need us. We are experienced trial attorneys uniquely positioned to make a difference for you. Call our firm now to schedule your consultation.
