Personal injury in
Miami.
Miami personal injury settlements are in flux post-HB 837 (March 2023), which converted Florida from pure comparative to modified-51 fault and halved the negligence limitation period.
Miami personal injury practice was upended by Florida HB 837, signed into law in March 2023. The bill flipped Florida from pure comparative negligence (where plaintiffs recovered proportionally at any fault percentage) to modified-comparative with a 51% bar, halved the general negligence limitation period from four years to two (Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a)), and overhauled the bad-faith and attorney-fee frameworks.
For cases that accrued before March 24, 2023, the old framework continues to apply; cases accruing after fall under the new regime. The transitional period is creating a meaningful split in how practitioners value claims, with the same fact pattern potentially worth materially different amounts depending on the date of injury.
Miami-Dade County Circuit Court (11th Judicial Circuit) and Broward County Circuit Court (17th) handle the bulk of metro filings. Cruise-ship and maritime claims are a Miami specialty given the port's dominance — most cruise lines' passenger contracts mandate venue in the Southern District of Florida federal court.