Helping with a loved one’s claim starts with knowing who can decide
After a spinal cord injury in Miami, a relative may be gathering records while the injured person focuses on care. Being the family contact does not automatically give someone authority to sign legal documents. Miller & Jacobs helps clarify those roles, investigate the event, and assess the losses supported by the evidence. The person’s own choices remain central when they can make legal decisions.
Free consultation. No attorney fee unless compensation is recovered for you, under the fee agreement.
$300M+
Reported Recoveries for Injured Clients
50+ Years
Combined Legal Experience
230+
Combined Jury Trials Across Their Careers
Former Prosecutors
Experienced Trial Attorneys
Clarify what help is authorized
A relative may have incident photos, work records, or contact details that the injured person cannot easily gather. Those can be useful at an initial call. In a Miami care setting with several providers, however, each request for private records or permission to act needs the right authority. Start by explaining the patient’s wishes and any documents already in place.
If the injured person can make legal decisions, ask whom they want involved and how they prefer to communicate. Difficulty moving, fatigue, or a lengthy hospital stay does not by itself determine legal capacity. Discuss practical communication needs without assuming someone else must take over.
Being listed as an emergency contact may not answer who can obtain private records or approve their release. Keep existing authorizations and tell the attorney which facilities hold the records. A release of medical information is not the same document as a release of the legal claim.
Bring any power of attorney, guardianship order, or other relevant document for review. Its terms and the law determine what it permits. A family relationship or permission to help with appointments does not automatically authorize hiring counsel or accepting a settlement for another adult.
Preserve the claim without placing the investigation on the patient
A helper can keep a list of witnesses, agencies, employers, insurers, and providers. That does not require choosing the legal theory or deciding fault. The attorney’s review should distinguish firsthand information from later accounts and identify what further proof is needed while medical care continues.
Keep the date, exact place, original files, and report number. Note who witnessed each part of the event and who supplied facts later. A relative’s summary can help organize the record, but it should not be presented as the patient’s own memory or as an eyewitness account when it is neither.
A crash, unsafe property condition, faulty product, or alleged medical error can require different claims. The diagnosis alone does not prove liability. Identify the relevant duty or other legal basis, the alleged failure, and its connection to the harm before assuming that a named person or business must pay.
Florida section 768.81 reduces damages for shared fault in covered negligence cases and bars recovery above 50 percent claimant fault under the applicable rule. Exceptions include medical-negligence actions. An insurer’s allocation still needs to be tested against the evidence and the rules governing the claim.
The Miami personal injury overview explains the wider claim process. A spinal cord injury adds the need to document function and supported care needs without turning the diagnosis into an assumption about fault or value.
The person’s voice belongs in the record
Help should make it easier to express their needs, not replace their account.
A caregiver may see tasks that take longer, help needed between visits, or barriers the person has not yet raised with a provider. Record those observations and their dates. Where possible, distinguish the caregiver’s account from the person’s own description of pain, goals, and daily life.
Speak with the care team about medical concerns or conflicting instructions. Legal counsel can help organize evidence and explain the claim, but cannot choose treatment or promise a recovery outcome. Both improvements and continuing difficulties belong in an honest account.
Separate today’s arrangements from supported long-term needs
Clinical findings guide the assessment. MedlinePlus explains spinal cord injuries and the role of treatment and rehabilitation. Cord damage is not the same as every back or neck injury. Keep the actual diagnosis, later assessments, and limits the treating team identifies. Do not infer one fixed future from a label or test result.
Record tasks, frequency, equipment, and the instructions supporting them. Include unpaid help, but distinguish hands-on care from ordinary visits or household activity unrelated to the injury. Caregiver records can explain the present situation; they do not guarantee that every recorded hour is recoverable.
Keep recommendations for future services, equipment replacement, transport, or access changes. Note whether a proposal is firm or awaits further assessment. A supported plan should explain why the need follows from the injury, how long it may last, and the basis for its cost. No standard renovation or care package fits everyone.
Compare the person’s actual duties before and after the injury. Keep pay, hours, restrictions, and accommodation records. Returning to a modified role may differ from regaining prior earning ability. Future loss needs evidence of realistic work options, not an assumption that every spinal cord injury ends employment.
A free consultation
Call 954-465-8733 for a free consultation. Tell us who was injured, who is helping, and what documents or offer need review. We can explain what is needed to move forward. If the firm accepts the matter, the written agreement sets out fees and costs.
Our South Florida office is at 1600 S Federal Highway, Suite 1101, Pompano Beach, FL 33062. Call 954-465-8733 before visiting.
View Pompano Beach office directionsThe gap between a care need and a settlement offer
A future-care estimate and an insurer’s offer answer different questions. The estimate addresses supported needs; the offer also reflects liability positions, policy terms, and available funds. Pain and changes in daily life may also matter under the applicable rules. There is no fixed payment for a spinal cord diagnosis or assurance that a claim will fund every need.
Identify the insured parties, limits, exclusions, and any other coverage worth investigating. Review fees, expenses, liens, or repayment claims that may affect the amount received. A large estimate of damages does not create coverage or establish that the full amount can be collected.
Read which parties and future consequences the agreement covers. Confirm that the signer has authority for this decision, not merely access to records. Any required court approval or other legal step must be addressed. Do not assume a claim can be reopened if needs later exceed the settlement.
Many Florida negligence actions arising after March 24, 2023 have a two-year period under section 95.11. Other theories, older events, and exceptions need review. Government, medical, or maritime matters can have special requirements. Hospitalization, care, or a dispute about who can act does not automatically suspend every deadline.
Miller & Jacobs
Mark J. Miller and Rick S. Jacobs are Partners at Miller & Jacobs, serving Miami clients from the Pompano Beach office. Their published biographies describe their backgrounds. A consultation can focus on authority, the incident evidence, and the needs the medical records support.
Partner
Mark's biography describes work in insurance defense and prosecution before his plaintiff-side practice. That background informs the firm's evaluation of liability disputes and insurance positions.
Partner
Rick's biography describes his service as an Assistant State Attorney in Miami-Dade County and his trial work. Read the published background for details of his professional experience.
Caregiver questions
Ask the treating team to clarify the current plan and keep each dated instruction. Tell the attorney about the change or conflict without deciding which medical view is correct yourself. The legal record should reflect the actual course of care and any remaining uncertainty.
Identify the requesting insurer, purpose, deadline, and any claimed obligation to respond. Explain practical limits on participation and seek advice about the request. A relative should not supply a statement as if it were the patient’s own recollection or consent.
Record the date, task, time, and reason help was needed. Separate observations from medical conclusions and avoid estimates presented as exact logs. Notes should reflect real assistance, including changes over time; their existence alone does not establish the legal value of that help.
Keep the old and new duties, hours, pay, restrictions, and accommodations. Explain which tasks were removed or added. A job title alone may miss a meaningful change, but a different role does not automatically prove lost earning capacity.
Keep referral dates, appointment records, and any documented reason for the delay. Tell the treating team about problems accessing care. Do not fill the gap with assumed treatment or symptoms. The attorney can review the facts and explain what records may be needed.
Not necessarily. Record access and settlement authority are different. The relevant documents and law must be reviewed, and some situations require court involvement. Before signing, confirm whose rights the release affects and whether you have authority for that specific act.
Related guidance
