Author Archives: Site Administrator
DUI While Driving a Boat in Florida?
The answer is yes. The same standards that apply to automobiles under Florida law also apply to operating a vessel while intoxicated, meaning a blood alcohol content at or above .08. Over the 4th of July holiday through “Operation Dry Water” the law enforcement agencies, primarily the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (known… Read More »
What Is an EPIRB and Do I Need an EPIRB ?
An EPIRB is an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon. These units which can be handheld or larger provide a beacon which is then picked up by a network of satellites which then relay the emergency beacon to land-based search-and-rescue (“SAR”) personnel. There are two types of EPIRBS as far as having GPS or no… Read More »
How to Choose a Boat Crash Attorney in Florida
How to Choose a Boat Crash Attorney in Florida Literally today I received two unsolicited emails from two different attorneys advertising respectively, boating crash services, and cruise ship injury services. In the first instance—it was certainly an email advertising blast probably to all known contacts of that attorney—it had the wrong statute of limitations… Read More »
How Many Attorneys Are Licensed in Florida?
How Many Attorneys Are Licensed in Florida? Currently for the 2020-2021 time period there are 109, 830 [1] attorneys licensed to practice in the State of Florida. (The numbers are not complete for 2022) For 2016-2017 by comparison the number was 104, 676. This does not mean that all of the almost 110,000 attorneys… Read More »
Who Has the Most Important Recreational Salvage Award Case in Florida? We Do.
It is not just a salvage award of $328,755.37. It is also now precedent-setting caselaw for marine salvage work in the State of Florida. In late December 2013 the 110-foot M/V BlackSheep entered into the approach to Key West bight. Its captain pulled to the side of the channel to check his vessel before… Read More »
Parasail Company Could File Suit in Federal Court Against Victims to Limit Liability
The insurer for the parasail company, Lighthouse Parasail, may file a Limitation of Liability action in federal court. This action would seek to limit the recovery of any claimant to the worth of the towing vessel only. You read that correctly. In many boating casualties involving severe injury, or even death, the insurer of… Read More »
Who Is Responsible When a Boat Hits an Object Causing Injury?
Who Is Responsible When a Boat Hits an Object Causing Injury? The Miami Herald just reported that on Sunday May 22, 2022 a 22-foot Hydra-Sport center-console power boat crashed into a concrete power pole carrying seven people just off Islamorada, Florida. All of the occupants—the captain and six passengers—were ejected into the water. The… Read More »
Boat Rental Injury Cases
Florida is a state which does not require a license to operate a vessel if the person was born before January 1, 1988. One of the likely reasons for such a law—which seems counter-intuitive from a public safety aspect—is that it allows tourists to rent vessels without going through the protocols that Florida does… Read More »
5 Myths About Finding a Boating Accident Attorney .
All Personal Injury Attorneys Know How to Handle a Boating Accident Case. No they don’t. Yes, all personal injury attorneys will take in your boating accident case, but that doesn’t mean they know the law relating specifically to boating accidents. Boating law is not car accident law. It is not slip and fall law…. Read More »
How to Find a Boating Accident Attorney
How to Find a Boating Accident Attorney The first thing to know is that most boating accident cases in Florida do not apply Florida law. They apply federal maritime law. Most car accident attorneys do not know this. They believe the same laws that apply to auto accidents apply to boating accident cases. That’s… Read More »