News & Insights

Judge Agrees Insurer Not Liable on Owner’s Misrepresentations Senior Partner John Joy (Ft. Laud.) and Junior Partner Kelly Corcoran (WPB) recently obtained a Final Declaratory Judgment on behalf of the insurer in an action to determine insurance coverage regarding the existence of Chinese drywall in a home. The claims against the insured were related to representations by the insured during the sale of a home regarding the non-existence of Chinese drywall (even though it was alleged the insured knew Chinese […]

Claimed L2 back injury didn’t prevent work, work and more work Allison Chittem Hartnett and Lourdes C. de Armas-Suarez obtained a favorable ruling on behalf of WLSC’s Employer/Carrier client, defeating a workers’ compensation permanent and total disability claim. The Claimant in this case was working as a mezzanine installer when he suffered a compensable fall from a mezzanine and injured his back. Medical treatment was authorized and the Claimant was diagnosed with a L2 compression fracture. Back surgery was performed […]

No catastrophic injury; no loss of earning capacity. Senior Partner Gregg Margre and Associate Michele Bachoon, attorneys in the firm’s West Palm Beach Office, prevailed before the Judge of Compensation Claims in a Permanent Total Disability (“PTD”) claim which was previously litigated. The Claimant, a bus driver, was injured in three separate workers’ compensation accidents on September 26, 1996, August 21, 2001, and November 10, 2004. The Claimant continued to work for the Employer following her accidents and retired on […]

Partner Douglas Cohen Esq. of WLSC’s Fort Lauderdale office successfully defended Citizens Property Insurance Corporation against a first party property loss claim by arguing the lawsuit should be dismissed solely based on the Pleadings. Judgment on the Pleadings may be available when Plaintiff’s allegations, even if taken as true, are excluded under the unambiguous language of the insurance policy. The Plaintiff’s Complaint alleged that while the Plaintiff was performing a remodeling of his bathroom, he lost control of the chipping/sledgehammer […]

TALLAHASSEE — For the second year our partner, Scott Berglund Esq., in the North Florida office, located in Tallahassee, was honored to accept the invitation of the Department of Financial Services/Division of Risk Management to speak at the “Loss Prevention Academy.” This is a two day event/seminar for the leaders of the multiple State Agencies to further the State’s agenda of “Safety First.” Mr. Berglund was asked to contribute to this event with a lecture explaining the “Litigation of a […]

Orlando attorney Nathan Stravers ensured a Claimant was not allowed to cash in on two separate dates of accident in a victory for the Employer/Carrier. The Claimant, who worked for a local family-owned diner, experienced two different back injuries with different insurance carries covering the dates of accident. Following the initial injury in 2002, the Claimant underwent a lumbar fusion, and subsequently was placed at MMI and returned to work. Shortly after being placed at MMI, the Claimant requested additional […]

Since 2003 Amendments, Employer/Carriers Have Enjoyed Reduced Exposure — But is the Tide Turning? The Florida First District Court of Appeals, in a lengthy landmark decision dated February 28, struck down as unconstitutional the 104-week cap on temporary total benefits found in §440.15(2)(a). The cap had been a key component of the state’s 1994 reforms of the workers’ compensation system, ending the “wage loss” category of benefits. In the case Westphal v. City of St. Petersburg, the court found that […]

With the threat of a pending hearing on Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment, Plaintiff’s counsel filed an 11th hour Notice of Voluntary Dismissal on a products liability case that was initiated in 2007 in West Palm Beach. The claims against our client, a pharmacy, sounded in negligence, failure to warn, breach of warranty, false advertising, and improper compounding. According to the Plaintiff’s allegations, she used human grown hormone (HGH), which was compounded and provided by our client. It was further […]

Attention to Detail Helps Universal Property Avoid Exposure in Expensive Residential Mishap Joseph Suarez, Esq., partner in the Miami office, successfully defended against Petitioner’s declaratory judgment action seeking a determination of coverage under her homeowner’s insurance policy relating to damage to her tile floor. Petitioner claimed that she dropped a cooking appliance the day after the inception of the policy, which caused damage to one floor tile. The first notice of the claim was more than three years after the […]

Understanding the recent judicial changes to the proof of loss policy condition WLSC likes to keep our clients well informed as to the most recent changes in the law. To that end, below we present a summary of two recent Florida cases which have drastically changed the ability of insurers to be granted a Motion for Summary Judgment based on the insureds failure to comply with the proof of loss provision in the insurance policy. As the case law below […]