Fort Lauderdale Car Accident Attorney Blog
The collateral source rule is one that limits or prohibits evidence of benefits paid by third parties to plaintiffs in injury lawsuits. The basis for the rule is that defendants should not be permitted to pay less for wrongdoing simply because an injured person was protected by third-party insurance or other benefits.
Primarily, this applies to evidence of health insurance and workers’ compensation insurance. However, there was a narrow exception carved out for evidence pertaining to free or low-cost benefits, such as those provided through the government via Medicare or Medicaid.
Now, the Florida Supreme Court has changed that in the recent case of Joerg v. State Farm, following an appeal from Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal. The court ruled that all defendants will be precluded from presenting evidence of future government benefits because: Continue reading →