Attorney, Rick Ellsley, Civil Trial Lawyer, The Ellsley Law Firm, Plantation, FL. Courtesy photo

Here's What's New

On March 24, the governor signed HB 837. This law changes many aspects of the civil litigation system as it relates to personal injury and insurance claims.

Among other modifications, the new law shortens the statute of limitations from four years to two years in the majority of negligence cases. It also requires that a plaintiff prove that he or she was less than 50% at fault for the injuries sustained, mandates that the criminal be placed on the verdict form in a civil trial in which negligent security is alleged, and restructures the manner in which medical expenses are to be presented at trial. Interestingly, the law provides an insurance company with immunity from a bad faith action in a multiple claimant case under certain conditions.

The new Florida Statute s. 624.155(6) states: "an insurer is not liable beyond the available policy limits for failure to pay all or any portion of the available policy limits to one or more of the third-party claimants if, within 90 days after receiving notice of the competing claims in excess of the available policy limits, the insurer complies with either paragraph [the filing of an interpleader action with the court] or pursuant to binding arbitration that has been agreed to by the insurer and the third-party claimants, the insurer makes the entire amount of the policy limits available for payment to the competing third-party claimants before a qualified arbitrator agreed to by the insurer and such third-party claimants at the expense of the insurer." This will undoubtedly increase the number of binding arbitrations that trial lawyers will be required to participate in, so it is a good idea to become familiar with the process.