330 Alhambra Circle

Coral Gables, FL 33134

633 S. Andrews Avenue Suite 400
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301

(305) 446-5700

(954) 323-4400

Speak with an Attorney

Safety Questions To Ask Your Landlord

How Safe Is the Apartment You Want to Rent? Key Questions to Ask a Landlord Before Signing a Lease

A sense of security and safety for you and your family is key to making a house feel like a home.

Unfortunately, many landlords don’t provide, and in some cases aren’t legally required to share, crime and safety information to a potential tenant.

“Along with costs and amenities, tenants should be prepared to ask a variety of questions about safety measures before signing a lease and moving into a new apartment or home” says Michael Haggard. Haggard is the Managing Partner of The Haggard Law Firm (www.haggardlawfirm.com) which has made a mark successfully representing tenants who are injured or killed by someone committing a crime that could have been prevented if the landlord of the property where the crime occurs had taken proper security measures.

Continue reading “Safety Questions To Ask Your Landlord”

The Role Crime Statistics Play In a Negligent Security Case

 

by Jason Brenner, Associate at The Haggard Law Firm

Although each negligent security case may bring about different facts or require ingenuity with your strategy, there are certain elements of your case that remain constant.  One of those elements is crime statistics.  The importance of crime statistics in your case cannot be stated enough.  Not only do these statistics help establish notice and foreseeability to the defendants, they are also a treasure trove of information.

With respect to notice and foreseeability, your crime statistics establish what the defendants “knew or should have known” prior to and at the time of subject incident.  So what should you request?  You begin by requesting the calls for service and all police reports for the subject property.  This needs to be done in one request.  From there, depending on your jurisdiction, you will order up to a mile radius for the calls for service.  Once you receive each respective request, you must synthesize the data.  For example, you will detail the violent and non-violent crimes and their frequency on the property.  This provides a picture of what type of crime was going on at the property.  It provides you with the ability to illustrate to the jury the level of crime occurring and can be used effectively to show that it is an improbability for a defendant to be unaware of the police being called to the property.

Continue reading “The Role Crime Statistics Play In a Negligent Security Case”

NCVBA National Conference – Civil Actions for Criminal Acts

Make your plans now to join The Haggard Law Firm‘s Michael Haggard from December 5th to the 7th in Portland, Oregon for the 2017 National Crime Victims Bar Association’s National Conference, Civil Actions for Criminal Acts. Haggard, the organization’s President-elect will be among the speakers during the conference.  The event offers attorneys a chance to network and learn from other attorneys in the field, and connect with victim advocates, counselors, program managers, attorneys, social workers, psychologists, researchers, nurses, volunteers, administrators, clergy, nonprofit managers, system-based service providers, and leaders from across the country.

Conference Training Highlights Include:

  • 15 workshops and four plenary sessions covering topics such as violence against women, campus crimes, elder abuse, victims with disabilities, underserved populations, children and youth, and many more;
  • Option to obtain Continuing Legal Education credits; and
  • Networking opportunities over lunch.

Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with other professionals in the field, or to attend Haggard’s workshop session!

Learn more about Michael Haggard by clicking here

 

To register, click here: http://victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/national-crime-victim-bar-association/conferences 

 

Haggard Named Recipient of Nichols Award by FJA

Congratulations to The Haggard Law Firm’s Managing Partner Michael Haggard who was named the recipient of the 2017 Perry Nichols Award.

The Perry Nichols Award was created in 1977 in honor of the visionary who first brought Florida’s leading trial attorneys together to create the Negligence and Compensation Lawyers of Florida, the predecessor to today’s Florida Justice Association. It is the most prestigious award given by our organization and is given to the attorney whose perseverance, commitment, and unmatched dedication to the civil justice system is at the forefront of their lives. The FJA says the award is bestowed upon the attorney who sets the standard for the rest of us to aspire to achieve.

Continue reading “Haggard Named Recipient of Nichols Award by FJA”

Observant Neighbors Lead to Trafficking Arrests

Three women have been charged in a human trafficking investigation. The arrests, made in Miami Beach Friday, were the result of local residents’ suspicions that illegal activity was taking place at several massage parlors.

According to reports from the Miami Herald, the seven-month sting by Miami Beach Police detectives led to the closing of four massage parlors and the rescuing of two women who had been trafficked in from China to provide money for sex.

Continue reading “Observant Neighbors Lead to Trafficking Arrests”

REPORT: Some Uber Drivers Work Dangerous Shifts

A recent story from USA Today lays out how some Uber drivers work dangerously long shifts to maximize revenue. The article written by USA Today‘s Dinana Kruzman reads in part:

For some Uber drivers, long shifts have become the norm.  Dropping fares and profitable incentives lure them to keep driving past safe limits. Because the ride-hailing service doesn’t set a cap on how many hours its drivers can work at a time, there are few legal ways to stop them. By contrast, rival Lyft shuts off its app, which drivers need to find customers, after 14 hours at a time and doesn’t let drivers back on for six hours to let them rest. As a result, the potential danger for Uber passengers and drivers alike continues to grow, even as efforts to limit driving hours spring up across the country.

Continue reading “REPORT: Some Uber Drivers Work Dangerous Shifts”

Swim Safety: Broken Pool Gates

May is National Swim Safety Month. The Haggard Law Firm wants to take this opportunity to share swimming safety tips, including those we have unfortunately have become experts on because of catastrophic injury cases we have litigated over the years. One example is the 2001 case of Loren Hinton. A 2-year old that suffered a significant brain injury when she fell into a residential complex pool after pushing over a broken safety gate.

This video details that case and includes safety factors to consider to make sure a tragedy like this does not happen again.

Click for more on Haggard Law Firm Pool Drowning Accidents

RED CROSS: Swim Safety Tips


May is National Water Safety Month. The Haggard Law Firm is committed to sharing swim safety information to help decrease the number of drownings and near drownings.

This graphic features safety tips from the American Red Cross.

Learn more about Haggard Law Drowning cases by clicking:

Pool Drowning Accidents

Understand Survivors and the Catastrophically Injured

Today’s issue of the Daily Business Review includes a Board of Contributors article authored by The Haggard law Firm‘s Jason Brenner. The article, Understanding Your Client: Survivors and the Catastrophically Injured, discusses the challenges to successfully representing and emotionally supporting during the civil litigation process the tragically injured or loved ones of someone who has died.

Continue reading “Understand Survivors and the Catastrophically Injured”

ABC Miami Coverage of Rob Stewart Wrongful Death Lawsuit

The Haggard Law Firm has the honor to represent the family of conservationist and award-winning filmmaker Rob Stewart in an effort to seek justice in his death. We hope the wrongful death lawsuit against several parties responsible will help send a message to bad operating dive instructors, boat captains, and dive equipment sales and manufacturing outlets out there to follow the rules and standards or close your business.