Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Avoiding the Brain-Eating Amoeba
The biggest creatures are the ones that inspire fear that keeps most people from venturing into the wilderness. Florida’s enormous population of American alligators is enough to prevent you from swimming in a lake or river, even if no gator sightings have been reported near where you are planning to swim. Although their range… Read More »
Personal Injury Lawsuits Take a Backseat to Criminal Cases
Unless you are a policy wonk, you have probably read many more news stories about criminal trials than about civil lawsuits. Yes, Supreme Court decisions arising from civil matters affect our daily lives even decades after they were issued; to name just one famous example, Brown v. Board of Education was not about a… Read More »
Ferry Boat Accidents
If you are a child just discovering the wonders of modern transportation, then riding a ferry boat is a peak experience. The only thing better than an interstate travel day, when you ride a minivan, an elevator, an escalator, a monorail, an airplane, a shuttle bus, and a rental car is a day trip… Read More »
Is Your Personal Injury Settlement Money Yours to Keep?
The amounts cited in news headlines about personal injury cases sound like more money than you can dream of, so what do lawyers mean when they say that no one ever gets rich off of a personal injury case? How can you not be rich when the court just awarded you millions of dollars?… Read More »
Parking Lots Can Be Dangerous
The transformation of Florida’s abundant swamp land into something profitable is an essential part of the brand identity of Sawgrass Mills. The few people who have consistently lived in Broward County for 40 years will remember when western Broward, where the enormous mall currently stands, was undeveloped wetlands, with more alligators than people. The… Read More »
Medical Malpractice Can Be a Result of Multiple Errors
Practicing medicine means making an almost endless series of decisions that depend on each other. In emergency situations, doctors must decide quickly on a course of action. They do not have time to take a complete medical history. If they are fortunate enough to have access to the patient’s complete medical chart, they must… Read More »
What Happens If Personal Injury Litigation Outlives the Litigants?
Anyone who thinks that suing someone who caused your injuries is a fast path to easy money has no concept of how long court cases take. The statute of limitations for filing a personal injury lawsuit in Florida is two years from the date of the accident or medical error that caused your injuries… Read More »
Seeking Damages Beyond the Acute Treatment for Your Accidental Injuries
Iatrogenic illnesses and injuries are those caused by medical treatment. They are not the same thing as medical malpractice. Rather, they occur when doctors adhere to the standard of care, but common or even unavoidable complications or side effects occur. For example, hearing loss is a side effect of a drug commonly prescribed to… Read More »
Slip and Fall Accidents at Food Courts
As a child you were in awe of adults who could carry a tray full of food and drinks from the counter of a restaurant to the table. The first time you attempted this maneuver, it may have resulted in a drink spill, or your parent may have insisted on carrying the drinks by… Read More »
Beware of Shoeless Drivers
For every Floridian who is obsessed with shoes, there is one who can take them or leave them. The proportion of Sawgrass Mills taken up by shoe stores vastly exceeds the proportion of the human body taken up by feet. People travel from South Florida from all over the world to buy sneakers, stiletto… Read More »
