When someone else's carelessness upends your life, the law provides a path to accountability and compensation. The firm pursues it in Florida and Washington, D.C.
Personal injury law allows a person harmed by another's negligence to recover for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other losses.
Under changes enacted by House Bill 837 in 2023, the general deadline to file a negligence lawsuit in Florida is now two years from the date of the injury under Section 95.11(5)(a) of the Florida Statutes, reduced from the four-year period that applied to injuries occurring before March 24, 2023.
The same 2023 law adopted a modified comparative negligence standard under Section 768.81, which bars recovery entirely for a plaintiff found to be more than fifty percent at fault for their own injury. Below that threshold, a recovery is reduced in proportion to the plaintiff's share of fault.
Because the filing deadline in Florida is now shorter than it once was, and because the amount of a recovery can turn on how fault is apportioned, it is important to evaluate a claim promptly and to build the evidence of the other party's responsibility carefully.
In the District of Columbia, the deadline to file most personal injury lawsuits is three years from the date of the injury.
The District follows the doctrine of contributory negligence, one of the strictest fault rules in the country, under which a plaintiff found even slightly at fault can be barred from recovering. A statutory exception softens this rule for pedestrians, cyclists, and other vulnerable road users injured in vehicle collisions.
The contributory negligence rule makes the District a demanding forum for injury claims, because the defense will often try to assign the injured person some share of the blame. Presenting a clear, well-supported account of how the injury happened is essential.
The firm approaches injury cases the way a trial lawyer does, preparing each matter as though it will be tried even when it ultimately settles. That means gathering the evidence early, documenting the full extent of the harm, and being ready to hold an insurer or defendant accountable in court if a fair resolution is not offered.
Alec Kohn handled a wide range of high-stakes civil matters at a prominent civil litigation firm, from pre-suit demands through post-trial litigation, and has stood across from Fortune 500 companies and large defense firms. You work directly with the attorney on your case, there are no case managers standing between you and your lawyer, and the firm is reachable 24 hours a day.
The figures on this page are drawn from the following primary and secondary sources. Statutes and penalties change; this summary is reviewed by the firm and is not a substitute for legal advice on your specific matter.
