Florida’s Tort Reform Bill 2023: What to Expect
When the Florida state legislature met this year, they made significant changes to liability laws. As a no-fault state, Florida’s previous statutes laid the responsibility for damages and injury at your feet.
Now, as of March 24, 2023, lines have shifted significantly. Instead of addressing the rising cost of civil justice by making them easier to prosecute, tort reform made it worse. Plaintiffs have a much more significant burden than before.
Personal injury attorneys around the state filed thousands of suits against the state. They aimed to preserve the rights of their clients in the face of changing laws.
We’re running through the major changes to liability laws this year and hitting the high points. Jump on board, and let’s get technical.
What are the outcomes of the 2023 Tort Reform Bill?
Tort refers to the infringement of your rights by another person. Laws related to tort cases control how much you can or can’t sue for in a civil case. Judges developed many of the principles based on common law through established cases.
In the case of personal liability for the state of Florida, tort law is changing in favor of the defendant.
The statute of limitations
Previously, you had up to four years to file a lawsuit as the injured party. After an accident, once your insurance worked its way through the system, you had extra time to decide. New changes to the law in 2023 reduce that time down to two years. Depending on the severity of the damages, that’s not enough time to get facts together.
The new statute of limitations also governs medical malpractice.
Negligence
As much as we all want to believe the best in people, the truth is far from it. No one wants to admit fault, especially in cases that relate to negligence. For people making claims against another party’s insurance, the company might bog down the process.
Lawmakers suggest that they were simply trying to reduce frivolous lawsuits with this reform. Instead of reducing cases, they’ve actually made it much more difficult for injured parties. For example, under the pre-existing law, if you were injured in a car accident, you could recover against the other party for the percentage the other party was found to be at fault. So, if the other party was only found to be 40% at fault and you were found to be 60% at fault, you could still recover 40 percent of the damages the other party for which the other party was liable. Now, under the new law, you would not be able to recover anything in the above scenario, if you were found more than 50% at fault.
Defamation law is affected by these changes as well. In cases of defamation, negligence used to be the standard. Now, plaintiffs must prove actual malice as well.
Medical bills and damage
The new law changed the nature of liability in Florida. Pre-existing laws allowed injured parties to sue for the percentage that the other party was found liable.
Additionally, the ability of injured parties to show the value of past and future medical expenses changed. Previously, if you needed surgery after an accident, you could seek care from a chosen expert and present those expenses for reimbursement. Injured parties were able to seek care from a doctor out of network or without health insurance using a Letter of Protection–a contract allowing the injured to receive care and the doctor will not collect payment until the settlement is agreed upon.
Now, if you don't have health insurance or want to select a doctor out of network, you could still get costs covered in court. However, you can only be reimbursed what your insurance company or 120-170% of what Medicare/Medicaid would pay for the procedure. This cost is significantly less than the actual cost of care and places the burden on the injured party, who was injured at no fault of their own.
This leads to some physicians not being willing to treat based on their ability to recoup costs in court. Even the American Medical Association came out against these reforms.
Letters of protection changes
If you’ve been injured in an accident in the past and needed treatment, your doctor could issue a letter of protection. This essentially gave them the ability to treat you without charging upfront. When an in-process lawsuit settles, then they’d get paid.
The new law still allows for this provision. However, plaintiffs must now disclose previously private information. Now they must disclose all billing, including coding, the name of the physician(s), their own health care coverage at the time, and who referred them.
Disclosing who referred them could violate attorney-client privilege.
Juries may also be affected by tort reform
In civil cases, juries used to be able to determine the value of damages. The jury could decide how much the plaintiff was entitled to depending on the evidence presented. The new law codifies amounts and caps what you can collect.
If you’re found more than 50% liable, you’re not entitled to any economic damages.
There are more limits set on bad faith lawsuits
There are new challenges for attorneys who represent injured parties in bad faith lawsuits. These lawsuits are fighting for the interest of the injured and ensuring the Insurance company is not intentionally failing to meet their obligation. Proving bad faith against an insurance company requires significant research and preparation. The new law has gone too far to deprive the injured people of Florida of leverage against bad faith and their ability to show a jury of their peers the true reasonable value of their damages as a result of someone else’s negligence.
What do these changes mean for you personally?
When significant changes to state laws happen, knowing precisely how they affect your bottom line is challenging. As you can see, the new changes make it much more difficult for you to recover damages in court.
See how your insurance company is affected by this
Insurance companies get a mixed bag from the tort reforms passed in 2023. In negligence actions, they’re protected from paying out for damages if the other party is 50% liable. They’re also protected from negligence actions by reducing the statute of limitations.
In fact, the climate for insurance companies is more favorable than before. The new law makes bad faith claims much harder to prove and can even be avoided. If the insurer pays out to the policy’s limit within 90 days, they’re protected. If they don’t, they get another 90 days to make payment.
If you ever find yourself needing compensation, make sure to have a good lawyer
With all of these new statutes and changes to tort law, it’s harder for individuals to get compensation. Even if they’re entitled to it, there are new hoops to jump through that protect businesses over individual needs.
If you find yourself in the plaintiff’s chair, you’ll need an excellent lawyer to prevail. Laws change, so ensure that you have a knowledgeable and stoic lawyer on your side to fight for what you deserve.
For any information on new laws in Florida, Busciglio Sheridan & Schoeb can help!
Tampa law firm Busciglio Sheridan & Schoeb is ready to represent your interests in Florida courts. We’re here to help you get reimbursed and protect you in the face of new laws. Tort reform makes getting compensated for damages even more challenging than before. Our team of experts knows the ins and outs of the new laws and can confidently represent you. As always, retaining Busciglio Sheridan & Schoeb to fight your personal injury case is at no up-front cost to you!
If you have any questions about new laws in Florida, need representation, or need a consultation, reach out! Book a FREE consultation today and let us change your mind about law firms!