Personal Injury Attorneys in Ocala, Florida
Personal injury accidents can happen with little notice. No one wakes up one morning and expects to have a life-changing accident before the day is over. If you are one of the millions that are suffering from a personal injury accident, our Ocala legal staff is dedicated to getting you the maximum compensation you need to start your life over.
The personal injury lawyers at Steven A. Bagen & Associates concentrate on handling serious personal injury claims. If you have been injured by a motor vehicle, medical malpractice, or any other type of personal injury accident, then the time to act is now.
Receive a free evaluation of your case today when you contact Steven A. Bagen & Associates at 352-377-9000.
Why Choose Us to Handle Your Personal Injury Claim
Steven A. Bagen & Associates is an award-winning Florida personal injury law firm serving the needs of Ocala, Florida. As one of the most respected teams of personal injury lawyers in Florida, we have dedicated ourselves to protecting your rights and getting you the maximum compensation you deserve. When you have been wronged or catastrophically injured, you need legal representation by your side. Turn to our Ocala personal injury lawyers in Ocala, Florida, for immediate action.
Our attorneys have recovered substantial damages for our clients injured through no fault of their own. Some of our most notable successes include:
- $3.5 million for a car accident
- $2.5 million for a truck accident victim
- $1 million for a products liability claim
Although we can’t guarantee how much you will compensation you will receive, we can promise to fight hard to maximize your financial recovery so you can focus on getting better. Over the years, we have secured millions of dollars for injured people in Ocala and across Florida, including many verdicts and settlements over a million dollars. From our success, we have earned memberships in the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, and our attorneys have received national recognition as among the top trial lawyers in the country.
We have also won awards for our outstanding client service, and our compassionate attorneys are here to support and fight for you each step of the way to increase your chances of getting the favorable outcomes you seek. We offer free consultations, and our lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. This means you won’t pay us anything to represent you, and we will only accept a fee if we recover compensation for you.
Don’t delay in contacting Steven A. Bagen & Associates for a free initial consultation concerning your personal injury claim. You deserve compensation for the financial losses you incurred, and we can help get the money you need for the injuries and losses you suffered because of someone else’s negligence.
The Types of Accidents That Result in Ocala Personal Injury Claims
Officially named the “Horse Capital of the World” due to the presence of over 600 horse farms in the region, Ocala offers a lot more than horses to residents and visitors.
In Ocala, you can enjoy water and land sports along with outdoor adventures. There are also plenty of places to take in the musical offerings of Ocala’s local performers, and you can enjoy delicious meals prepared by one of our many amazing chefs.
Unfortunately, for all the fun times in Ocala, someone else’s carelessness or recklessness can injure you here.
At Steven A. Bagen & Associates, PA, we have helped recover compensation in the millions of dollars on behalf of our Ocala personal injury clients after they suffered injuries from:
Motor Vehicle Accidents
There are more than 6,000 traffic-related crashes on Marion County roadways each year, resulting in dozens of fatalities, and more than 5,000 injured victims. Our attorneys have handled all types of motor vehicle accident claims, including those arising from:
- Car accidents
- Truck accidents
- Motorcycle accidents
- Taxi and rideshare accidents
- Scooter accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Watercraft and aircraft accidents
Our legal team can thoroughly investigate the crash to determine who caused it and help you obtain compensation for the serious injuries you incurred.
Medical Malpractice
Medical malpractice refers to negligence by a doctor, nurse, or other healthcare provider that injures a patient. Common examples of medical negligence that can give rise to a medical malpractice claim include:
- Diagnosis errors, such as misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis
- Prescription errors, such as giving the patient the wrong medicine or the wrong dose
- Surgical errors, including errors involving the administration of anesthesia, wrong-site or wrong-patient surgery, or leaving a surgical tool in the patient’s body cavity
- Birth injuries, such as failing to perform a Cesarean section when it is medically indicated or failing to monitor the newborn for signs of distress in the hours after delivery
- Discharge errors, such as releasing a patient too soon or failing to provide follow-up care or aftercare instructions
- Failure to obtain informed consent, which involves failing to disclose all risks associated with a recommended medical procedure, particularly risks that would result in the patient seeking an alternative treatment if they were disclosed.
Proving negligence in a medical malpractice case can be tricky, and you need a personal injury lawyer to help you hold the negligent medical provider accountable so you can get the compensation you need.
Premises Liability
Premises liability refers to the responsibility of property owners or possessors of residential, commercial, or public property in Ocala to regularly inspect the premises for hazards that could injure guests and promptly mitigate them. The most common premises liability claim is a slip and fall claim. Slip and fall accidents occur when an individual slips or trips over an obstacle, debris, or damages to flooring. Other premises liability claims include swimming pool accidents, elevator or escalator accidents, dog bites or animal attacks, fires or flooding, or negligent security.
Product Liability
Product liability, or a defective product claim, refers to the responsibility of product manufacturers and others in the supply chain to ensure that the products consumers purchase do not pose unreasonable risks if used according to label instructions. Product defects that can result in a personal injury case include design defects in the planning of the product before manufacturing as well as manufacturing defects. Foods and medications are among the most common culprits in product liability claims, along with defective medical devices, auto parts, appliances, and children’s toys and clothing.
Common Injuries People Suffer in Ocala Accidents
The types of injuries represented in a personal injury claim often depend on the accident. Some examples of common injury cases include:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Broken bones
- Internal injuries
- Soft tissue injuries
- Burns
- Deep cuts or lacerations
Car accidents are among the most common causes of catastrophic injuries, which pose a high likelihood of permanent deficits that affect the individual’s ability to earn an income or live independently. Medical malpractice can result in sicknesses caused by improperly diagnosed worsening ailments, organ damage from prescription errors, damage to the brains and bodies of infants due to birth injuries; paralysis from surgical errors; and even wrongful death from a failure of the facility and staff to prevent common hospital-acquired infections.
Additionally, slip and fall accidents often result in bone fractures, including fractured hips, which are one of the biggest risks of loss of independence or even wrongful death in individuals over 65. These types of accidents can also lead to back and neck injuries, and other types of broken bones. Swimming pool accidents often produce anoxic brain injuries, which involve permanent brain damage from a lack of oxygen. Dog bites frequently result in cuts and lacerations, as well as a high risk of a potentially life-threatening infection.
Finally, product liability claims can cause injuries such as severe burns or broken bones due to malfunctioning products such as vehicle parts and appliances. Children can suffer anoxic brain injuries as a result of choking on defective toys. Individuals who have a defective implanted surgical device can reinjure or worsen their condition because of the failure.
Whatever type of injury you incurred, in whatever accident, our personal injury attorneys at Steven A. Bagen & Associates, PA, can provide information about how to seek compensation for the expenses of your suffered injuries.
What Kinds of Compensation Can I Receive from an Ocala Personal Injury Claim?
Florida allows personal injury claimants to seek compensation—referred to as damages—for the expenses they incurred because of their injury (known as economic damages), as well as the psychological impacts they have suffered (known as non-economic damages).
Some expenses and impacts that plaintiffs regularly list in damage claims in Ocala personal injury cases include:
- Medical expenses, such as the cost of emergency treatment, ambulance transport, surgical services, physician services, prescription medication, physical therapy, rehabilitation, the provision of crutches or a wheelchair, and the provision of long-term care if the individual is no longer able to live independently as a result of the injury. Victims may also receive compensation for future medical bills they may incur due to treating chronic or life-long injuries resulting from the accident.
- Lost wages, which involves the income you could not earn while you were too injured to work. This can include bonuses, tips, commissions, and other work-related benefits.
- Loss of future earning capacity, which involves injuries that result in permanent disabilities that render the person unable to work at all, or unable to earn what they did before the accident. The most common injuries to result in permanent disabilities involve the organs that make up the body’s central nervous system: the brain and the spinal cord.
- Property damage your vehicle sustained in the accident.
- Pain and suffering from the injuries themselves or particularly painful medical treatments. For certain injuries, you may obtain future pain and suffering for injuries that normally have a high impact on the sufferer’s life, such as a spinal cord injury. Spinal cord injuries come with complications that can increase pain and suffering.
- Emotional distress from the injury, including post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, anxiety with being in public while visibly scarred from the injury, or stress if you can’t pay the bills or lose independence.
- Loss of the enjoyment of life, which occurs if your injury renders you unable to participate in activities that were previously very important to you.
How Do I Prove Who Was Liable for My Accident?
To prove who was liable for your Ocala accident, you must show:
- The at-fault party had a general duty to take safe and legal actions to protect others from injury or property damage.
- There was a breach of this duty when the at-fault party violated the duty to protect others from harm.
- This breach resulted in the accident, in which you became injured and from which you incurred expenses and psychological impacts.
Keep in mind that you may be able to hold more than one person or entity responsible for your personal injury accident. Examples of multiple sources of liability in an accident include:
- A car accident in which a driver, while following too closely, rear-ended a vehicle with a defective taillight. Liable parties could include the manufacturer of the taillight, as well as the tailgating driver.
- A personal injury claim in which a doctor, who was an independent contractor at the hospital, made a surgical error that a nurse witnessed and attempted to cover up. Liable parties could include the doctor and the hospital that employed the nurse and was responsible for their actions.
How Long Do I Have to File a Personal Injury Claim in Ocala?
The statute of limitations for most personal injury cases in Ocala is two years from the accident. If you lost a loved one due to an Ocala accident, you could seek compensation for your losses by filing a wrongful death claim within the statutory deadline of two years from the death. The same applies to medical malpractice.
How Much Is the Average Ocala Personal Injury Settlement Worth?
A fair settlement reflects not only the unique aspects of the claim but also the willingness of both parties to work together. Personal injury claims cover injuries sustained in many ways, from injuries that resulted in little time away from work to those that result in life-altering impacts such as the ability to earn an income or live independently. Because of this, there is no “average” settlement for an Ocala personal injury claim.
There are, however, factors that can affect the value of your personal injury claim, such as:
- The amount of insurance the at-fault party has. Insurance pays most personal injury claims.
- The money you earned before the accident. Income levels impact several damage categories, including wage loss and lost earning capacity, which is calculated based on your average weekly earnings directly before your accident.
- The severity of your injury. More severe injuries generally result in more time away from work, a higher likelihood of permanent disabilities that will affect your earning capacity, more intense medical treatments, a higher risk of costly complications, and more pain and suffering. These additional costs and impacts will result in a higher-valued claim.
- Your patience. Settlement negotiations can last from the time the at-fault party receives a demand package from your attorney until a jury renders a verdict.
What Can a Personal Injury Lawyer Do to Help Me With My Claim?
The most important things an accident injury lawyer can bring to your claim are experience and knowledge of the process. The claims process is difficult to comprehend with its deadlines and requirements. Likewise, insurance adjusters commonly use tactics against unrepresented claimants to reduce their claims. An attorney’s experience is the answer to keeping those tactics at bay.
From determining the value of your case and identifying the liable parties—and their insurance resources—to examining witnesses in the courtroom while litigating your case and collecting your settlement or award, a personal injury lawyer from Steven A. Bagen & Associates, PA, can provide the guidance and services you need. Keep in mind we also offer free consultations and our firm works on contingency fee arrangement, meaning you only pay if we win! To learn more about how we can help you with your claim, contact us online or by calling 352-377-9000. Steven A. Bagen & Associates, PA, is here to help.