Miami Florida Law Blog

Protect your business against a bad-faith insurance claim

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in insurance defense on Friday, September 13, 2019.

As a business owner, one frustrating thing you may have to deal with is a denied insurance claim. If you believe that your claim was made in good faith, then you may feel that the only option is to pursue a bad-faith insurance claim.

A bad-faith insurance claim occurs when an insurance company fails to process, investigate or pay your claim in a reasonable manner. For example, think about water damage to your business. If it is caused by a flood, you might believe that your insurance covers flood damage. You may have even clarified this with an insurance agent before agreeing to buy the policy. Now, if you're denied because of a lack of flood-damage coverage, you may feel that the policy was misrepresented and file a claim against the insurance company.

Medical providers: Protect yourselves against medical malpractice

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez on Saturday, September 7, 2019.

There are plenty of times when patients believe they've been victimized by their medical providers, even though the medical provider couldn't have known that anything would go wrong. A patient may have failed to inform the provider about a medication they were on or lied about using a substance that they weren't supposed to have before a surgery.

In other cases, there's simply no way to predict how a patient will react to new medications or treatments. Perhaps a patient is allergic to a particular adhesive or has a reaction to a medication given during anesthesia. It's often not until the first reaction that anyone knows the patient can't be exposed to those medications or medical items.

What is a right of rescission?

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in contract disputes on Thursday, September 5, 2019.

Imagine making a purchase and then having immediate buyer's remorse. It happens all the time, and in most cases, people have the opportunity to return what they've bought.

Other times, a contract can get in the way. Fortunately, there is something called a "rescission of contract" that can help.

Heat stroke in dogs: Get them help but protect against bites

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in personal injury on Thursday, August 29, 2019.

Animals are all around. You probably see multiple dogs and cats in your neighborhood alone. One thing to keep in mind is that these animals can be dangerous. Of them, dogs are the pets that can cause the most significant bite injuries.

Miami is hot, and there is no question that the weather can have an impact on your own health and hydration. The same is true for animals. In the heat, there is a chance that some pets could become aggressive or aggravated. It's important to recognize the signs of an ill pet to help avoid bites.

Texting bans: Florida among the last states to implement changes

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez on Thursday, August 22, 2019.

Imagine driving toward home. You're leaving after a long day of work, and you just want to get home to have some dinner and spend time relaxing.

As you approached a busy intersection, you looked into your rear-view mirror and noticed that the driver behind you seemed to be approaching quickly. You had a red light, so you couldn't move forward. Moments later, the vehicle hit you from behind.

What are some common mistakes made when building a property?

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in construction litigation on Thursday, August 22, 2019.

A building code is an agreed-to set of safety standards that is created for a specific area. This code regulates things such as the materials used in the building, the design of the building and construction requirements.

As a construction business owner, you know that a construction project requires the team to build in accordance with local building codes. If they failed to do so, you may have an angry customer seeking to litigate. Failing to meet the required building codes can mean that a building is unsafe or that requires more work to bring it up to code, so you will want to speak with your attorney about protecting your business and negotiating to resolve this situation.

What can you seek compensation for after a crash?

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in personal injury on Wednesday, August 14, 2019.

You were driving toward your home after a busy day of work when a vehicle headed your way crossed the centerline. You had no time to react and ended up in a head-on collision just minutes from home.

The next thing you knew, you were waking up in the hospital with a head injury and pain throughout your body. You are fortunate to be alive, but you will have many injuries to deal with in the future. Your primary concern should be your health, but the idea of the cost of your medical care keeps coming to the surface. How will you afford it?

What are some ways to resolve a contract dispute in Florida?

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in contract disputes on Friday, August 9, 2019.

Some people may believe that breaching a contract isn't a big deal, but the truth is that it can be. If you are relying on a party to fulfill their obligations and they fail to do so, it can mean that you're unable to fulfill your own duties to clients or consumers.

When another party breaches a contract, you have a few options. You can speak with the other party to see what happened and find out if you can come to an agreement on how to resolve the situation. You can also go through arbitration (if there is an arbitration clause in your contract) and have an arbitrator enforce the contract. You can also seek to recover compensation for any financial harm you suffered due to the other party's breach.

Medical malpractice and what you can do to fight claims

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez on Wednesday, August 7, 2019.

In medical malpractice cases, it's often the medical provider who is accused of wrongdoing when they may not be to blame. Mistakes made by others could fall on them, or complications they could not imagine would occur could be used to claim errors happened when the reality was that the patient's complications were unpredictable based on the information that the provider had at that time.

There are many defenses for medical providers. Some include:

Arguing that the standard of care was in line with the standards of the medical profession
Disproving negligence by showing that the patient's injuries weren't a result of a medical error
Showing that a patient's negligent act actually led to the injury
Using Good Samaritan laws to shield the professional from accusations after coming to the aid of someone in medical distress

Who can you hold liable for a dog-bite incident at the beach?

On behalf of Law Office of Alexander Alvarez posted in personal injury on Tuesday, July 30, 2019.

With summer here, you know that Miami is going to be booming with tourists. One thing that is also almost certain is that many of these people will bring their pets with them to the city.

There's something endearing about watching a family pet play with a Frisbee on the beach, but it's also potentially dangerous if an animal isn't well-controlled. Any pet could become irritated from the hot weather or be scared by a sudden ocean wave. In the wrong circumstances, that once-friendly pet could cause trauma on the beach when it attacks a person or another pet.