Moradiellos v. Community Asphalt: Florida Estates, Workman’s Comp., & Wrongful Death Lawsuits

Have you lost a loved due to another’s negligence or tortuous conduct? Did you know that you might have an action for wrongful death? What about if the person collected under workman’s compensation? Do you know what Workman’s Compensation Immunity is and how it affects your ability to collect for wrongful death? You may want to see what happened in a Third District Court of Appeals case where a person was denied recovery due to this immunity.

Wrongful Death

• All states have wrongful death statutes, which allow the personal representative of an estate to sue for damages caused by the defendant.
• Have you read Florida’s wrongful death statute?
• Do you know who is allowed to collect and when?
• One of the more common places people unfortunately die is at work but that creates a problem when there are multiple collections from other sources such as workman’s compensation.
• Do you know how the two co-mingle?

Workman’s Compensation

• Workman’s compensation is a regime designed for rapid compensation of injured workers.
• The system works on an insurance style of collection from employers.
• So why is an employer willing to pay into this system?
• For one thing it can create immunity from tort suit.
• This is known as workman’s compensation immunity.
• Experienced Palm Beach probate litigators can tell you workman’s compensation may be quick but it is not nearly as large of a payday as a tort judgment.
• Can you forfeit what you are entitled to under workman’s compensation to pursue the tort judgment?
• One large exception to the rule is when the damage is caused by an intentional act of the employer.

Moradiellos v. Community Asphalt

• A wife on behalf of her deceased husband filed a wrongful death action after her husband was killed on the turnpike working for the defendant.
• The wife claimed her claim fell within the intentional tort exception but the court did not agree.

Want to learn even more?

Check out the entire case here.