Fla. 1st DCA: How Can a Plaintiff/Decedent’s Own Negligence Reduce Collection in a West Palm Beach Wrongful Death Case

Are you currently suing on behalf of a deceased relative’s estate   for wrongful death? Do you know how your relative’s own negligence may reduce your recovery of money? Experienced West Palm Beach probate lawyers know that Florida is a pure comparative fault state meaning the other actor’s negligence judgment will be reduced by how negligent the decedent was.

Comparative Fault

• Florida including West Palm Beach is a pure comparative fault state meaning that the jury’s award is reduced by the plaintiff’s negligence.
• In fact third parties you choose not to sue that are negligent will also reduce the defendant’s obligation to you.
• Does that include when someone like a municipality is negligent and they are immune from suit?
• When you go into trial in West Palm Beach the other side is going to try to prove that your negligence or your relative’s negligence is more to blame than them in order to reduce the damages.
• In some states if they can prove you are more than 50% at fault the court will not award you any damages, lucky that is not the rule in Florida.

Sells v. CSX Transportation

• The Appellant in this case went to a jury trial for a wrongful death that occurred while her husband was at work.
• The jury found that the decedent’s own negligence contributed to the death.
• On appeal the court affirmed all of the issues raised by the Appellant.
• Experienced Palm Beach probate litigators know that you have to win your fight in trial court over issues like this because appeals courts do not like to revisit facts.
• Appeals courts do not rehear evidence they just review the record from the trial court as such on these types of issues they are usually going to defer to the trial court.

Want to learn more?

Check out the entire case by clicking here.