Looking Out for the Rights of Nursing Home Residents with Giroux & Associates’ Support
Due to the higher number of elderly people from the Baby Boomer generation, a Tampa nursing home negligence lawyer may see a spike in nursing home litigation cases. This area of the law continues to grow in Florida, a common destination for retired individuals. Nationally, reports of elder abuse continue to be released and increase in frequency.
Types of Cases
Some of the most frequent types of cases that a Tampa nursing home negligence attorney sees are the following:
- Physical abuse: intentional abuse of nursing home patients
- Neglect: including emotional, medical and physical neglect
- Misuse of restraints or sedatives
- Financial abuse: including theft and misuse of patient funds
Differences between Nursing Home Cases and Other Cases
A Tampa nursing home negligence attorney can explain that in many personal injury cases, the plaintiff seeks recovery from a defendant who may have only committed a minor lapse in judgment or moment of negligence. In these types of cases, the defendant has not usually acted with any malicious intent. Additionally, the defendant may be able to get the damages award reduced by blaming part of the injury on the plaintiff. Therefore, juries on these types of cases may not be as willing to severely punish the defendant because they are not outraged by his or her conduct. Instead, a juror may sympathize with the defendant and think that he or she could have been in the same situation. A Tampa nursing home negligence attorney can explain that nursing home abuse cases are much different. Often, a vulnerable person has been mistreated. Abuse may have occurred on a recurring basis until it was eventually discovered. Juries on these types of cases may be all too happy to render a more sizable verdict against the defendant. Unlike other types of personal injury cases, defendants cannot usually blame the victim for the abuse or neglect. Juries are usually unsympathetic to a defendant’s argument to reduce damages based on the victim’s limited life expectancy.
Legal Assistance
If you would like to learn more about nursing home litigation, contact Giroux & Associates, Inc. by calling (727) 895-5399.