Medical malpractice and general personal injury are both civil claims for harm caused by someone else’s negligence—but they follow very different legal rules in Florida. Medical malpractice requires a formal presuit investigation, expert review, and a specific notice process before you can even file a lawsuit. General personal injury cases, such as car accidents or slip and falls, do not. Understanding this distinction determines how your claim is built, how long it takes, what evidence you need, and what your attorney must do before stepping into court.

This guide covers Florida’s legal definitions, the key differences between these two claim types, Florida-specific statutes, filing deadlines, fault rules, damages, and the evidence needed to support each type of case.

Key Takeaways

  • Medical malpractice arises specifically from the failure to meet the accepted medical standard of care during diagnosis, treatment, surgery, or other health care services.
  • General personal injury covers a broader range of negligence-based claims, including car accidents, slip and falls, and product liability.
  • Florida medical malpractice claims require mandatory presuit investigation and a formal notice of intent under Florida Statute § 766.106 before a lawsuit can be filed.
  • Both claim types now carry a two-year statute of limitations in Florida, following the 2023 tort reform (House Bill 837).
  • Medical malpractice cases are generally more complex, involve more procedural steps, and require qualified expert medical opinions to support the claim.

Medical Malpractice vs. Personal Injury in Florida

Both claim types seek compensation when someone suffers preventable harm due to another party’s carelessness. The difference lies in who caused the harm and how the law evaluates their conduct.

General Personal Injury Claims Usually Involve Ordinary Negligence

General personal injury law covers a wide range of situations where a person, business, or property owner failed to act with reasonable care. Common examples include:

  • Car accidents — a distracted or reckless driver causes a crash on I-95 or the Dolphin Expressway
  • Slip and fall accidents — a wet floor with no warning signs at a Miami hotel
  • Premises liability — unsafe property conditions, broken stairs, or poor lighting
  • Negligent security — inadequate measures that allow a foreseeable assault on a property
  • Defective property conditions — a structural hazard a landlord knew about but ignored

These cases ask one core question: did the responsible party act with the care that a reasonable person or business would have exercised under similar circumstances?

Medical Malpractice Claims Involve Negligent Medical Care

Medical malpractice involves a health care provider’s failure to meet the accepted medical standard of care, resulting in patient injury. The standard applies to professionals such as:

  • Physicians and surgeons
  • Nurses and nurse practitioners
  • Anesthesiologists
  • Specialists
  • Emergency room providers
  • Diagnostic testing teams

The central question shifts from what a “reasonable person” would have done to what a reasonably competent medical professional with similar training and experience would have done in the same situation.

That distinction—between ordinary negligence and medical professional negligence—drives nearly every procedural and legal difference that follows.

What Is Medical Malpractice in Florida?

Florida’s Legal Definition of Medical Malpractice

Florida Statute § 766.106 defines a “claim for medical negligence” or “claim for medical malpractice” as a claim arising out of the rendering of, or failure to render, medical care or services.

This statutory definition is precise for good reason. A claim must originate from the act of providing—or failing to provide—medical care. If the injury has a different source, it may fall under general negligence law instead, even if a hospital or clinic was involved.

Common Examples of Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice takes many forms. Recognized examples under Florida law include:

  • Misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis — failure to identify a condition that another competent physician would have recognized
  • Surgical errors — wrong-site surgery, unintended organ damage, or post-surgical complications caused by negligence
  • Medication errors — prescribing the wrong drug, wrong dose, or failing to check for dangerous interactions
  • Birth injuries — preventable harm to a newborn or mother during labor and delivery, including cerebral palsy linked to oxygen deprivation
  • Anesthesia mistakes — administering too much or too little, or failing to monitor the patient properly
  • Failure to order appropriate tests — missing a diagnosis because a provider skipped a necessary diagnostic step
  • Failure to monitor a patient — not tracking vitals or symptoms that should have signaled a worsening condition
  • Emergency room errors — delays in treatment, failure to stabilize a patient, or premature discharge
  • Hospital-acquired complications caused by negligence — preventable infections or falls tied to inadequate staffing or protocols
  • Failure to obtain informed consent — performing a procedure without adequately explaining the risks to the patient

According to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation’s 2024 Medical Malpractice Annual Report, Florida insurers reported 3,651 closed professional liability claims in 2023. These numbers reflect only insured closed claims reported through the PLCR system—the true volume of medical errors causing harm is likely higher.

Medical Malpractice Is Not Just a Bad Medical Outcome

Not every poor result qualifies as malpractice. Surgeries carry inherent risks. Treatments sometimes fail despite correct execution. A patient can die from a correctly diagnosed and properly treated condition.

Malpractice requires proving that the provider breached the applicable standard of care and that the breach caused a specific, preventable harm. The outcome alone is not the legal test—the process and judgment used by the provider are.

What Is a General Personal Injury Claim in Florida?

Personal Injury Claims Are Based on Preventable Harm

Personal injury law covers injuries caused by another party’s carelessness, recklessness, or wrongful conduct. The law holds individuals, businesses, and property owners accountable when their failure to act reasonably causes harm to others.

Florida personal injury law applies in civil court. It allows injured people to recover compensation for medical bills, lost wages, pain, and other losses caused by the at-fault party.

Common Types of Florida Personal Injury Cases

Florida courts handle a broad range of personal injury claims, including:

  • Motor vehicle crashes — cars, trucks, and motorcycles
  • Pedestrian and bicycle accidents
  • Slip and fall accidents
  • Dog bites
  • Negligent security
  • Product liability — defective consumer goods, medical devices, or vehicles
  • Premises liability — unsafe conditions on someone else’s property
  • Wrongful death — when negligence causes a fatal injury

Each of these cases draws on the same core legal framework: duty, breach, causation, and damages.

The Main Question in Most Personal Injury Cases

To succeed in a Florida personal injury claim, the injured party must establish four elements:

  1. Duty — the defendant owed a legal duty of care to the plaintiff
  2. Breach — the defendant violated that duty through negligent conduct
  3. Causation — the breach directly caused the plaintiff’s injury
  4. Damages — the injury resulted in measurable harm (medical bills, lost income, pain)

In a car accident case, this might mean proving that a driver ran a red light (breach), causing a collision (causation), resulting in a broken arm and $40,000 in medical bills (damages).

The Key Difference — Medical Standard of Care vs. Ordinary Negligence

Ordinary Negligence Uses a Reasonable Person Standard

Most personal injury claims measure the defendant’s conduct against what a reasonably careful person would have done in similar circumstances. No special training or expertise is required—courts ask what any responsible adult would have done.

Example: A store owner fails to place a wet floor sign after mopping. A customer slips and breaks a hip. The standard asks: would a reasonable store owner have placed a warning? Yes. Breach established.

Medical Malpractice Uses a Professional Medical Standard

Malpractice cases measure the provider’s conduct against what a reasonably prudent medical professional with similar training and experience would have done in the same clinical situation.

Example: A patient presents with persistent headaches and nausea. The treating doctor dismisses the symptoms without ordering imaging. The patient later suffers a stroke from an undetected brain tumor. Would a reasonably careful physician in the same specialty have ordered a CT scan? If yes, the failure to do so may constitute malpractice.

The standard is higher because the professional holds specialized knowledge that ordinary people do not.

Why Expert Testimony Is Usually Critical in Medical Malpractice Cases

Juries, judges, and insurers cannot evaluate clinical decisions on their own. They need qualified medical experts to explain:

  • What the standard of care required in the specific situation
  • How the provider’s conduct deviated from that standard
  • How the deviation caused the patient’s specific injury

Without a credible medical expert, a malpractice claim typically cannot survive. This requirement adds time and cost to the process—but it also provides structure and accountability.

Florida Medical Malpractice Claims Have Special Presuit Requirements

This is one of the most important ways Florida medical malpractice claims differ from standard personal injury cases. Florida’s Chapter 766 establishes a mandatory presuit process that applies before any lawsuit can be filed.

A Reasonable Investigation Is Required Before Filing

Before a medical malpractice lawsuit can begin, Florida law requires a reasonable investigation to confirm that there are grounds for the claim. An attorney must review the medical records, consult a qualified expert, and determine whether there is a reasonable basis to believe negligence occurred and caused harm.

This investigation is not optional. Skipping it exposes the claimant and their attorney to sanctions.

Notice of Intent to Initiate Medical Malpractice Litigation

Florida Statute § 766.106 requires the claimant to notify each prospective defendant of the intent to initiate medical negligence litigation after completing the presuit investigation. The notice must:

  • Be served on each prospective defendant
  • Include an authorization for release of protected health information (under § 766.1065)
  • Be accompanied by a verified written medical expert opinion from a qualified medical professional corroborating that malpractice occurred

No such formal notice is required in a typical personal injury case. A car accident victim can file a lawsuit directly, subject only to the statute of limitations.

The 90-Day Presuit Screening Period

After notice is served, Florida law triggers a presuit screening period—generally 90 days—during which:

  • The defendant and their insurer investigate the claim
  • The defendant may request records, conduct a physical examination, or take a sworn statement
  • The defendant must respond by admitting liability, rejecting the claim, or offering to settle

The lawsuit cannot be filed during this window. This screening process was designed to encourage early resolution and reduce unnecessary litigation. It also means a medical malpractice case requires months of preparation before a complaint can be filed.

Why These Requirements Can Affect Case Timing

Medical malpractice cases move more slowly than most personal injury claims. Before a single court date appears on the calendar, an attorney must:

  • Gather and review all medical records
  • Identify a qualified expert willing to provide a sworn corroborating opinion
  • Complete the presuit investigation
  • Serve proper notice
  • Wait through the 90-day screening period

This timeline reinforces why early action matters. Waiting too long may compress this process dangerously close to the statute of limitations.

Statute of Limitations

Florida Medical Malpractice Deadline

Florida medical malpractice claims must generally be filed within two years from the incident or from when the injury was discovered, or reasonably should have been discovered—subject to an absolute outer limit.

The 2025 Florida Statutes confirm this two-year window for medical malpractice actions. Exceptions exist for cases involving fraud, concealment, or where the injury could not reasonably have been discovered. These exceptions have strict outer limits and require legal analysis to apply correctly.

Florida Personal Injury Deadline

Following Florida’s 2023 tort reform (House Bill 837), the statute of limitations for most general negligence-based personal injury claims was reduced from four years to two years from the date of the accident.

Wrongful death claims also carry a two-year filing window. Some exceptions and nuances apply depending on the type of claim and the parties involved.

Claim Type Florida Statute of Limitations
Medical malpractice 2 years from discovery (subject to outer limits)
General personal injury 2 years from the date of the accident (post-HB 837, 2023)
Wrongful death 2 years from the date of death

 

Why You Should Not Wait to Speak With an Attorney

The presuit notice and investigation process in malpractice cases means the practical deadline is often earlier than the statutory one. Attorneys need time to gather records, find an expert, and prepare the corroborating opinion before serving notice.

Beyond timing, evidence deteriorates. Witnesses forget details. Medical records become harder to obtain. Surveillance footage gets overwritten. In personal injury cases, physical evidence at a scene disappears within days. The earlier you act, the stronger your case.

Comparative Fault Rules May Apply Differently

Florida’s Modified Comparative Negligence Rule for Many Injury Claims

Florida adopted a modified comparative negligence standard under House Bill 837 (2023). Under Florida Statute § 768.81, a party found to be more than 50% at fault for their own harm may not recover any damages.

For a standard personal injury case—say, a car crash where both drivers share fault—this rule applies. If a jury finds you 51% responsible, your recovery is zero.

Medical Negligence Has a Notable Exception

Florida Statute § 768.81(5) carves out a specific exception. In actions for personal injury or wrongful death arising out of medical negligence under Chapter 766, the greater-than-50% fault bar does not apply.

This means a patient who is found partially at fault in a malpractice case is not automatically barred from recovering. Pure comparative fault principles apply to medical negligence actions.

This distinction can have a significant effect on case outcomes, particularly in cases involving patient noncompliance, delayed care-seeking, or pre-existing conditions.

Why Fault Arguments Still Matter

Even without the 50% bar, defendants in malpractice cases aggressively argue fault. Common defense strategies include:

  • Claiming the injury resulted from a pre-existing condition, not the provider’s conduct
  • Arguing the patient failed to follow discharge instructions or medications
  • Disputing causation—asserting the patient would have had the same outcome regardless of the alleged error
  • Asserting informed consent was provided and the risk was disclosed

These arguments don’t bar recovery, but they can reduce a jury award significantly.

Evidence Needed in a Medical Malpractice Case vs. a Personal Injury Case

Evidence Often Used in General Personal Injury Claims

Standard personal injury cases rely on evidence most people intuitively understand:

  • Accident reports and police reports
  • Photos and videos of the scene
  • Witness statements
  • Insurance records and policy documents
  • Medical bills and treatment records
  • Property maintenance records
  • Vehicle damage documentation
  • Surveillance footage

This evidence is generally accessible to a non-specialist. An accident reconstructionist may be used in complex car crash cases, but a medical expert is rarely necessary.

Evidence Often Used in Medical Malpractice Claims

Medical malpractice cases require a different—and far more specialized—evidentiary foundation:

  • Complete medical records from all treating providers
  • Test results, lab work, and imaging (MRIs, CT scans, X-rays)
  • Surgical notes and operative reports
  • Nursing and progress notes
  • Medication administration records
  • Hospital policies and protocols
  • Qualified expert medical opinions
  • Timeline of symptoms, complaints, and treatment decisions
  • Prior and follow-up care records showing how the patient deteriorated

Records alone rarely win a malpractice case. They must be interpreted by a medical professional who can explain what the standard of care required and where it was breached.

Why Medical Records Alone May Not Prove Malpractice

A stack of medical records tells you what happened. It does not tell you whether what happened was wrong. A notation that a physician “chose conservative management” may appear reasonable in the record—but an expert might testify that the same notation reflects a failure to escalate care that a competent specialist would have made.

Without that expert translation, the records mean little to a jury.

Who Can Be Liable for Medical Malpractice in Florida?

Individual Medical Providers

Several individual health care professionals may face liability in a Florida malpractice claim:

  • Physicians and surgeons
  • Anesthesiologists
  • Registered nurses and licensed practical nurses
  • Physician assistants and advanced practice registered nurses
  • Specialists (cardiologists, oncologists, radiologists, and others)

Each provider’s conduct is evaluated individually against the standard of care applicable to their specialty and role.

Hospitals and Medical Facilities

Hospitals face liability in malpractice cases through multiple legal theories:

  • Vicarious liability for employed staff who commit negligence within the scope of their employment
  • Direct liability for negligent hiring, credentialing, or supervision
  • Institutional failures—inadequate staffing ratios, unsafe protocols, or failure to follow clinical guidelines that a reasonable hospital would have maintained

Notably, Florida’s 2025 Medical Malpractice Annual Report from the Florida OIR reflects claims closed against individual providers as well as facility-level claims, indicating that both types of defendants are regularly named.

Clinics, Urgent Care Centers, and Other Health Care Businesses

Liability in outpatient settings depends on the ownership structure, employment relationship, and level of control each entity exercised over the provider’s actions. A staffing agency that placed a negligent nurse may share liability with the hospital that used that agency. An urgent care franchise may bear responsibility for policies that allow an undertrained clinician to practice unsupervised.

These relationships require careful legal analysis of each party’s role in the patient’s care.

Damages in Medical Malpractice and Personal Injury Cases

Economic Damages

Both malpractice and personal injury cases allow recovery of economic damages—objectively measurable financial losses:

  • Past and future medical bills
  • Future medical care and ongoing treatment costs
  • Rehabilitation and physical therapy
  • Lost wages during recovery
  • Loss of earning capacity (if the injury affects future employment)
  • Home health care and in-home assistance
  • Medical equipment and modifications to living arrangements

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages compensate for subjective, harder-to-quantify harm:

  • Pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress and mental anguish
  • Loss of enjoyment of life
  • Disability and loss of bodily function
  • Disfigurement and permanent scarring

It is worth noting that Florida’s earlier statutory caps on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases were struck down by the Florida Supreme Court in North Broward Hospital District v. Kalitan (2017), which held that such caps violated the equal protection provisions of the Florida Constitution. Non-economic damages in malpractice cases are no longer capped under that ruling, though the legal landscape continues to evolve.

Wrongful Death Damages

When a medical error or accident causes a fatal injury, surviving family members may bring a wrongful death claim under Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. Recoverable damages may include:

  • Funeral and burial expenses
  • Lost financial support the deceased would have provided
  • Loss of parental guidance and companionship
  • The deceased’s pain and suffering before death

Wrongful death claims arising from malpractice follow Chapter 766 presuit requirements, just as non-fatal malpractice claims do.

How to Tell Whether Your Case Is Medical Malpractice or General Personal Injury

Ask Whether the Injury Happened During Medical Care

If the harm occurred during diagnosis, treatment, surgery, hospitalization, medication management, or follow-up care, the claim likely involves medical malpractice analysis. The physical setting—a hospital, clinic, surgical center, or provider’s office—often signals which legal framework applies.

Ask Whether a Medical Judgment or Medical Procedure Is Being Challenged

If the case depends on proving that a provider made the wrong clinical decision, ordered the wrong treatment, failed to recognize a diagnosis, or mismanaged a procedure, it is a malpractice claim. The negligent act is professional in nature.

If the case depends on proving that someone failed to clean up a hazard, drive safely, or maintain safe property, it is ordinary negligence.

Ask Whether the Claim Could Be Understood Without a Medical Expert

A helpful practical test: could a jury understand the alleged wrong without a doctor explaining it?

  • A wet floor with no sign—no expert needed. Ordinary negligence.
  • A surgeon leaving a sponge in a patient’s abdomen after a routine procedure—arguably obvious enough that expert testimony may be minimal, but malpractice analysis still applies.
  • A delayed cancer diagnosis due to a radiologist misreading a scan—requires expert testimony. Malpractice.

If expert medical interpretation is needed to understand whether something went wrong, the claim almost certainly falls under malpractice law.

Examples of Close Calls

Some situations blur the line between ordinary negligence and malpractice:

Scenario Likely Classification
Patient slips on a wet floor in a hospital hallway Premises liability (general negligence)
Patient falls because nurses ignored documented fall-risk protocols Potential medical malpractice
Pharmacy dispenses wrong medication due to a labeling error May involve malpractice or pharmacy negligence, depending on facts
Delayed cancer diagnosis due to failure to order appropriate imaging Medical malpractice analysis
Anesthesiologist administers wrong dosage due to chart error Medical malpractice

 

Getting this classification right from the start affects every procedural step that follows. An attorney who files a malpractice claim as ordinary negligence—or vice versa—can create serious complications for the case.

Why Medical Malpractice Cases Are Often More Complex Than Personal Injury Cases

They Require Medical Expert Review

Expert review is required before the claim can even move forward. A qualified medical professional must corroborate that malpractice occurred before the attorney can serve the presuit notice. Finding the right expert takes time, and expert fees represent a significant litigation cost.

They Involve More Procedural Rules

Medical malpractice cases in Florida carry a procedural burden that standard personal injury cases do not. Presuit investigation, the corroborating expert opinion, formal notice, the 90-day screening period, and mandatory responses from defendants all add layers before litigation formally begins.

Missing any of these steps can result in dismissal.

They Often Involve Multiple Defendants

A single adverse medical event can involve a surgeon, an anesthesiologist, scrub nurses, a hospital, a specialist, and a medical equipment manufacturer—each with separate legal representation and separate insurers. Managing multiple defendants and coordinating discovery across all parties makes these cases substantially more complex than a two-car accident.

Causation Is Usually Heavily Disputed

Defense attorneys and expert witnesses in malpractice cases routinely argue that the patient’s underlying condition—not the provider’s conduct—caused the harm. A patient who dies after cancer surgery may have had an advanced tumor that no surgeon could have cured. Separating the injury caused by negligence from the injury caused by pre-existing disease is one of the hardest challenges in malpractice litigation.

This is why the expert’s analysis of causation is just as critical as the analysis of the standard of care breach itself.

What to Do If You Suspect Medical Malpractice in Florida

Request and Preserve Your Medical Records

Obtain records immediately from every treating provider: hospitals, primary care physicians, specialists, imaging centers, pharmacies, and any follow-up providers. Florida law gives patients the right to access their records, though providers may charge a copying fee.

Do not rely on the facility to maintain or preserve records on your behalf. Request your own copies.

Write Down a Timeline of What Happened

Memory fades. Document as much as possible, as soon as possible. Include:

  • Dates and locations of every appointment, procedure, or hospitalization
  • Names and titles of every provider who treated you
  • Symptoms you reported and how they changed
  • Tests ordered—and tests that should have been ordered but were not
  • Diagnoses given and changes in diagnosis
  • Medications prescribed and any reactions reported
  • Discharge instructions and whether follow-up care was recommended

This timeline becomes a critical tool for your attorney and the medical expert who reviews your case.

Avoid Assuming the Hospital or Insurer Will Explain What Went Wrong

Medical facilities and their risk management departments protect the institution’s interests, not the patient’s. Insurers work to limit exposure. Neither party is required to tell you whether malpractice occurred, and neither party will proactively preserve your claim or advise you of your rights.

Do not sign any release or settlement offer from a hospital or insurer without speaking to an independent attorney first.

Speak With a Florida Medical Malpractice Attorney Early

The presuit requirements under Chapter 766 mean that timelines in malpractice cases are tighter than they appear. Attorneys need time to gather records, retain an expert, and complete the investigation before serving notice—and all of this must happen before the statute of limitations closes.

The earlier you consult with an attorney, the more time your legal team has to build the strongest possible case.

How Jimenez Mazzitelli Mordes Can Help

We understand how disorienting a serious medical injury can feel. You may not know whether what happened qualifies as malpractice, whether you’re within the filing window, or where to start. That uncertainty is exactly where we come in.

At Jimenez Mazzitelli Mordes, we handle both medical malpractice and general personal injury claims across Miami, Miami-Dade County, and throughout South Florida. Our Miami medical malpractice attorneys carry deep courtroom experience—and a track record that includes a $1.65 million medical malpractice settlement and a $1.1 million verdict in a nursing home negligence case.

We are recognized by Super Lawyers, Florida Legal Elite, and the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Every case is handled on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.

Our firm also offers bilingual legal services in English and Spanish, ensuring our entire Miami community has access to experienced legal representation.

We handle the entire process—from the presuit investigation and expert consultation through settlement negotiations or trial. You focus on recovery. We focus on results.

If you believe you or a loved one suffered harm due to a medical provider’s negligence in Florida, we invite you to schedule a free, confidential case consultation with our team today. The sooner we review your situation, the better positioned we are to protect your rights and meet every filing deadline.

Call Jimenez Mazzitelli Mordes at (305) 548-8750 or contact us online to schedule your free case review. Our office is located at 9350 S Dixie Hwy PH 5, Miami, FL 33156.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between medical malpractice and personal injury in Florida?

Medical malpractice involves harm caused by a health care provider’s failure to meet the accepted medical standard of care. Personal injury covers a broader range of negligence claims—car accidents, slips and falls, and similar incidents—where the defendant is not necessarily a medical professional. Malpractice cases require presuit investigation and formal notice under Florida Statute § 766.106. Standard personal injury cases do not.

How long do I have to file a medical malpractice claim in Florida?

Florida medical malpractice claims must generally be filed within two years from the incident or from when the injury was discovered, or reasonably should have been discovered. Outer time limits and exceptions apply. Given the time needed for presuit investigation and expert consultation, consulting an attorney well before the deadline is critical.

What is the statute of limitations for personal injury in Florida after 2023?

Following Florida’s 2023 tort reform (House Bill 837), the statute of limitations for most general negligence-based personal injury claims dropped from four years to two years from the date of the accident. Wrongful death claims also carry a two-year filing window.

What is the presuit notice requirement for Florida medical malpractice cases?

Before filing a medical malpractice lawsuit, Florida law requires completing a presuit investigation, obtaining a verified expert medical opinion corroborating that malpractice occurred, and then formally notifying each prospective defendant of the intent to file. Under Florida Statute § 766.106, this notice triggers a 90-day screening period during which a lawsuit cannot be filed.

Does Florida’s modified comparative negligence rule apply to medical malpractice cases?

No. Under Florida Statute § 768.81(5), the greater-than-50% fault bar that applies to many negligence cases does not apply to personal injury or wrongful death actions arising out of medical negligence under Chapter 766. Patients may still recover even if they bear some portion of fault.

What types of evidence are needed to prove medical malpractice in Florida?

Medical malpractice claims rely on complete medical records, test results, imaging, surgical and nursing notes, hospital policies, medication records, and qualified expert medical opinions. The expert must explain how the standard of care was breached and how that breach caused the specific harm.

Who can be held liable for medical malpractice in Florida?

Potentially liable parties include individual physicians, surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, specialists, and physician assistants, as well as hospitals, surgical centers, clinics, urgent care facilities, and staffing agencies—depending on the employment relationships and roles each party played in the patient’s care.

Can a hospital be liable for medical malpractice in Florida even if an independent contractor performed the procedure?

Potentially, yes. Liability depends on whether the hospital exercised control over the provider, held the provider out as a hospital employee, or committed its own negligence through hiring, credentialing, or supervision. Florida courts analyze these relationships on a case-by-case basis.

How do I know if my injury is medical malpractice or just a bad outcome?

A bad outcome alone does not establish malpractice. The question is whether the provider deviated from the accepted medical standard of care and whether that deviation caused your specific injury. A qualified medical malpractice attorney can review your records, consult a medical expert, and give you a clear assessment of whether your situation meets the legal threshold.

What damages can I recover in a Florida medical malpractice claim?

You may recover economic damages—including past and future medical bills, lost wages, and loss of earning capacity—as well as non-economic damages such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. Following the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling in North Broward Hospital District v. Kalitan (2017), statutory caps on non-economic damages in malpractice cases were struck down as unconstitutional. Wrongful death malpractice cases also allow recovery for surviving family members.