The Haggard Law Firm’s Adam Finkel and Michael Haggard obtained a $3.5 Million settlement in a drowning case involving a 3-year-old.
The names of the parties in the case are confidential per the terms of the settlement.
In the Fall of 2020, during the midst of the pandemic, a young mother moved across the country with her 3-year-old son and their dog. Laid off due to pandemic cutbacks, this mother and son sought to move in with a friend and start a new life in Brevard County, Florida. During the first full day in their new State, the mother was unpacking the car as she carried their belongings up and down three flights of stairs to the apartment. She left her son and their dog inside with the adult friend and her child. After making several trips up and down the stairs, the friend appeared in the parking lot and told her that she was leaving to pick up her elder son from school.
Immediately rushing upstairs to the apartment, the mother could not find her son. After searching the apartment, calling the police, and running throughout the complex, a police helicopter ultimately discovered the 3-year-old boy’s body at the bottom of a retention pond behind the apartment building. He drowned.
The mother filed a lawsuit against the owners and managers of the complex for negligently failing to maintain the apartment complex in a reasonable manner. In the lawsuit, The Haggard Law Firm highlighted that the land around the retention pond was too steep, and in fact, that there was a several-inch drop where the water met the land. Finkel and Haggard argued the drop from solid ground caused the child to fall into the water and made it difficult – if not impossible – for him to get out.
The Haggard Law Firm also highlighted that the owners and managers negligently closed off one of the stairwells that led from the building to the pond, thereby slowing down the mother’s path to the back of the apartment building. In response, the complex’s owners and managers argued that they followed all applicable regulatory laws regarding the pond and building, and even referenced a post-incident report from the local water management district that stated the pond’s slope was maintained in compliance with all laws.
The Haggard Law Firm has successfully litigated the most difficult drowning and near-drowning cases across the country for decades. Drowning is preventable. The law firm strives to achieve justice for families while also advocating for changes in laws to help prevent tragedies, such as this case, from happening to other families. The Haggard Law Firm is a proud partner of The National Drowning Prevention Alliance. Managing Partner Michael Haggard has been a board member of NDPA for several years.
