Child Injury

Parents go to great lengths to protect their children from harm. Despite the precautions, however, their kids can still suffer injuries due to the carelessness of others. If your child was hurt in an accident, the attorneys at Frankl Kominsky can help you seek justice. Our child injury lawyers represent families of young victims in West Palm Beach. Contact us to discuss how we can help assert your child’s rights.

Each year, one out of 10 children under the age of 19 suffers an injury that requires a trip to the emergency room or hospitalization, according to the Florida Department of Health. Falls and motor vehicle accidents were the leading causes of non-fatal injuries to Florida children in 2012. When a child is hurt because a person or entity was negligent, that party can be held accountable for any harm caused.

Children are often injured at schools, playgrounds, or on the property of others. Premises liability law can be used to hold property owners accountable for accidents when a victim was lawfully on the property, and the property owner did not sufficiently fix or warn against dangerous conditions there. For example, if a school’s staff or maintenance crew failed to keep the grounds safe, an injured student can potentially hold the school accountable for his or her harm.

Property owners may also bear a special responsibility for child trespassers. The attractive nuisance doctrine sometimes imposes liability on an owner when there is an artificial condition on the premises, such as a swimming pool. To hold the owner liable, the child’s family must show that the defendant should have been aware that children were likely to be near the artificial condition and that their child was too young to understand the danger that it posed.

Additionally, Florida’s Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act requires residential property owners to place safety features on pools, such as a fence. The Act is specifically meant to protect children from pool-related injuries. A property owner may be liable under the rule of negligence per se if a violation of this law injures a child.

Toys, car seats, and other children’s products can cause harm to small bodies. Product recalls may help prevent further injury to children, but they generally occur only after several kids have been hurt. A maker of a defective product can be held strictly liable for any harm resulting from a flaw in the design or manufacture of the item if that makes the product unreasonably dangerous to its users.

Children may be victims of mistakes by the people entrusted with their health. A doctor, pharmacist, or hospital can be held responsible for injuries that result from an incident of medical malpractice. To hold a health care provider liable for your child’s harm, the provider must have performed below the standard of care that a similarly situated and qualified provider would consider reasonable under the circumstances.

Children are often the victims of dog bites, for which the dog’s owner may be liable. Florida law imposes strict liability for dog bites regardless of whether the dog owner knew of the animal’s propensity to bite. The owner may post a sign that indicates a vicious dog is on the property, which may limit his or her liability under the statute. However, a sign will not shield a dog owner from liability when the victim is a child under age six.

You may be able to get compensation for the harm that your child has endured. Recoverable damages if you prevail in your claim may include current and future medical costs, pain and suffering, and more. Florida law sets time limits on a person’s right to file a negligence lawsuit. This statute of limitations usually is two years. In medical malpractice claims, however, people over age eight must file a claim two years from either the date of the injury or from the date the injury should have been detected, but not more than two years from the date of injury. However, the time window does not close for a lawsuit concerning a child under eight.

At Frankl Kominsky, our accident lawyers are dedicated to helping families in West Palm Beach and elsewhere pursue fair compensation for their children’s injuries. Our lawyers aggressively litigate negligence claims on behalf of our clients. We provide dedicated counseling and advocacy for people in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, and Lake Worth, as well as other cities throughout Palm Beach County. For a no-obligation consultation, call us at (855) 800-8000 or contact us online. We are fluent in Spanish and Creole.