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Accident Reconstruction: a scientific procedure by which the circumstances of a traffic collision are proven, or estimated, by working backwards from the resulting damage and evidence. For example, the length of skid marks, the slipperiness of a road surface, and the amount of damage to the involved automobiles can be used to determine, or at least approximate, the speeds and/or directions of travel of the vehicles before the collision occurred.
Accident Reconstructionist / Accident Reconstruction Expert: a person specially trained in determining collision circumstances. The Reconstructionist is an Expert Witness, retained by either the Plaintiff or Defendant in a Lawsuit, who can be of great benefit in cases where fault for a collision is in dispute.
Accident Report / Traffic Collision Report / Crash Report: a summary of the statements of the people involved in the crash, summarized statements of any witnesses to the crash, and a description of the relevant facts regarding the involved people, vehicles, streets, weather conditions, etc. These statements are usually taken by an officer who responds to the scene of an accident.
An experienced Personal Injury Attorney will be able to rapidly determine the relevant facts of the crash by closely reviewing all elements in the Crash Report; by contacting, or having an investigator contact all listed Witnesses; by examining and comparing the location and physical details of the accident scene with the facts listed in the Report; and, where necessary, by seeking correction from the investigating officer of any obvious errors that may be contained in the report.
Action: a proceeding taken to a Court of Law; Synonymous with: Case, Suit, and Lawsuit.
Acute Pain: short-term, severe pain, perhaps from a traumatic injury.
Additional Insured: a person, other than the one listed on the policy, who is also protected under the listed, or named, Insured’s policy.
Adhesion: the process whereby scar tissue binds to nerves and other tissues; often causes pain.
Adjourn / Adjournment: to suspend proceedings to another time or place.
Adjudication: the process by which a judge or arbiter reviews evidence and legal reasoning set forth by opposing parties, or litigants, to come to a decision which determines rights and obligations between the parties involved.
Adjustor / Insurance Adjustor: an employee or independent contractor of insurance companies, given the job of investigating and settling insurance claims.
Administrative Agency: a state or federal government body responsible for administering and implementing a particular legislation, such as laws governing workers’ compensation. These agencies may have rulemaking power and judge-like authority to decide disputes.
Administrative Hearing: a proceeding before an Administrative Agency, consisting of an Argument, a Trial, or both. Rules governing the proceeding, including Rules of Evidence, are generally less strict than in Civil or Criminal Trials.
Administrator / Administratrix: a person appointed by the Court to administer a deceased person’s Estate. An Administrator is male; Administratrix is female. In Florida, we generally use the title of Personal Representative.
Admissible Evidence: evidence that that the Court should receive since it is relevant, not unfairly prejudicial, based on hearsay, or privileged.
Adversary System: the basic U.S. Trial system, in which each of the opposing parties has the opportunity to state his viewpoints before the Court. “Plaintiff” argues for “Defendant’s” guilt in criminal cases, or liability in civil cases. “Defense” argues for Defendant’s innocence in criminal cases, or against civil liability.
Affidavit: a written statement or declaration under oath.
Affirm: the decision of a Higher Court (Supreme Court, Appellate Court) that the judgment of the Lower Court is correct and should stand. Also used as a substitute for swearing an oath for those who have religious concerns about doing so.
Allegation: a statement made by a party to an action, made in a pleading, stating what he/she expects to prove.
Alternative Dispute Resolution: ADR is the process of resolving disputes without using the Court system. The most widely used methods are Mediation, where a neutral third person helps facilitate an agreement between the parties, and Arbitration, where a neutral third person hears both sides of a dispute, then issues a decision.
Pursuant to Florida Statute 44.1011, judges order most types of civil cases to Mediation prior to Trial.
Answer: a formal response to a claim, admitting or denying the allegations in the claim.
Anterior: a medical directional term meaning towards the front of the body.
Anti-Theft Device: something designed to reduce the chance an auto will be vandalized or stolen, or to assist in its recovery. These include: car alarms, keyless entry, starter disablers, motion detectors, parts of the vehicle etched with the Vehicle Identification Number, and recovery systems.
Appeal: a request to a superior, or Higher Court, to review and change the result in a case decided by an inferior, or Lower Court, or Administrative Agency.
Appellate Court: a Court having jurisdiction to hear an Appeal and review the decisions of a Lower Court. In Central Florida, the Appellate Court is the 5th District Court of Appeal, which is superior to the Circuit Courts.
Arachnoid Layer: the middle of the three membranes that envelop the brain and spinal cord.
Arbitration: a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution in which the parties bring their dispute to a neutral third party and agree to abide by his or her decision. In Arbitration, there is a Hearing at which both parties have an opportunity to be heard. Arbitration is best used in cases involving factual conflicts. Many people feel more comfortable having their dispute settled by an expert who is uniquely capable in a particular area, rather than by a judge who is accustomed to handling a wide variety of cases and may not be well-versed in the area at issue.
Arbitrator: a person who conducts Arbitration.
Argument: the remarks of the attorney, or Counsel, that analyze and point out, or repudiate, a desired inference, for the assistance of a decision-maker.
Assigned Risk: a risk, not ordinarily acceptable to insurers, which is, according to state law, assigned to insurers participating in a plan in which the insurers agree to accept their share of these risks.
Assumption of the Risk: a situation in which a person voluntarily and knowingly proceeds in the face of an obvious and known danger, and assumes the risk. The theory behind the rule is that a person who chooses to take a risk cannot later complain that he/she was injured by the risk that he/she chose to take. Therefore, he/she will not be permitted to seek money damages from those who might have otherwise been responsible.
In Florida, this is a defense in only very narrow circumstances, and usually is part of a Comparative Negligence analysis.
At issue: the time in a lawsuit when the complaining party has stated his claim; the other side has responded with denial; and the matter is ready to be tried.
Attorney / Counsel: for the purposes of Personal Injury cases (as opposed to divorce attorneys, probate attorneys, tax attorneys, etc.), attorneys come in two types: the Plaintiffs’ Personal Injury Attorney (PI Attorney / Plaintiff’s Attorney), and the Insurance Defense Attorney (Defense Attorney).
Personal Injury Attorneys are paid by their clients out of the proceeds collected on their behalf via jury verdicts, mediation awards, and/or settlements. These fees are specified by the contingent fee agreement that the Client and Attorney signed when the case was begun.
Insurance Defense Attorneys are paid by insurance companies to represent the company’s “Insureds,” the negligent persons who have insurance policies, and who are being sued as the Defendants in Personal Injury lawsuits. Defense Attorneys technically represent the Defendants, but are actually being paid by the Defendant’s insurance company.
Attorney-Client Privilege: most communications between an attorney and his/her client are “privileged” — that is, they are entirely confidential, being given special protection under the law. No one else, particularly their opponents in a lawsuit, are entitled to gain access to them.
Attorney-Work Product Privilege: most documents produced by an attorney, or his/her staff, regarding a client’s case are privileged. A Defense Attorney may seek to acquire access to these documents through the Discovery process. However, there are only very narrow and specific instances where they are entitled to do so.
Personal Injury Attorneys know these exceptions, and zealously guard the confidentiality of the documents, and the privacy of his/her clients.
ATV / All-Terrain Vehicle: a small, open-motor vehicle with three or more wheels; usually used off-road. See also Quad / 4-wheeler / Trike / 3-wheeler
Automobile Insurance: a form of insurance that protects against losses involving autos. Examples of coverage types include: Collision, Personal Injury Protection (PIP), Bodily Injury Liability (BI), Property Damage Liability, Medical Payments, and Comprehensive coverage for physical damage to the Insureds vehicle.
