EMAIL US info@mcmillenlawfirm.com	IF NO RECOVERY - NO FEE OR EXPENSES	CALL US 1-800-974-4929
	WE ACCEPT MALPRACTICE CASES ALL OVER FLORIDA

 

PRE-SUIT ARBITRATION ALLOCATION

(STATUTES)

Disclaimer:  This is part of the 2009 version of Florida Statutes and it is offered for general information purposes.  The statutes on this site should not be relied on without reviewing your legal situation with an experienced medical malpractice lawyer and making sure you are using the appropriate version of the statute for your case.  The provisions applicable to your potential claim may or may not be the version that was in effect at the time of the incident because some changes to statutes are retroactive and some changes are not.  Other statutes and other case law interpreting or applying these statutes may also apply to your case. 

(The information on this site applies to Florida only)

766.208  Arbitration to allocate responsibility among multiple defendants.--

(1)  The provisions of this section shall apply when more than one defendant has participated in voluntary binding arbitration pursuant to s. 766.207.

(2)  Within 20 days after the determination of damages by the arbitration panel in the first arbitration proceeding, those defendants who have agreed to voluntary binding arbitration shall submit any dispute among them regarding the apportionment of financial responsibility to a separate binding arbitration proceeding. Such proceeding shall be with a panel of three arbitrators, which panel shall consist of the administrative law judge who presided in the first arbitration proceeding, who shall serve as the chief arbitrator, and two medical practitioners appointed by the defendants, except that if a hospital licensed pursuant to chapter 395 is involved in the arbitration proceeding, one arbitrator appointed by the defendants shall be a certified hospital risk manager. In the event the defendants cannot agree on their selection of arbitrators within 20 days after the determination of damages by the arbitration panel in the first arbitration proceeding, a list of not more than five nominees shall be submitted by each defendant to the director of the Division of Administrative Hearings, who shall select the other arbitrators but shall not select more than one from the list of nominees of any defendant.

(3)  The administrative law judge appointed to serve as the chief arbitrator shall convene the arbitrators for the purpose of determining allocation of responsibility among multiple defendants within 65 days after the determination of damages by the arbitration panel in the first arbitration proceeding.

(4)  The arbitration panel shall allocate financial responsibility among all defendants named in the notice of intent to initiate litigation, regardless of whether the defendant has submitted to arbitration. The defendants in the arbitration proceeding shall pay their proportionate share of the economic and noneconomic damages awarded by the arbitration panel. All defendants in the arbitration proceeding shall be jointly and severally liable for any damages assessed in arbitration. The determination of the percentage of fault of any defendant not in the arbitration case shall not be binding against that defendant, nor shall it be admissible in any subsequent legal proceeding.

(5)  Payment by the defendants of the damages awarded by the arbitration panel in the first arbitration proceeding shall extinguish those defendants' liability to the claimant and shall also extinguish those defendants' liability for contribution to any defendants who did not participate in arbitration.

(6)  Any defendant paying damages assessed pursuant to this section or s. 766.207 shall have an action for contribution against any nonarbitrating person whose negligence contributed to the injury.

History.--s. 55, ch. 88-1; s. 31, ch. 88-277; s. 305, ch. 96-410.

Serving All of Florida - Free Consultation   Send Us an E-mail Call Toll Free  1-800-974-4929 No Fee or Expenses Unless Recovery is Obtained   ORLANDO 390 North Orange Avenue Suite 140 Orlando, Florida     32801 Phone:   (407) 843-0126 Map and Directions TAMPA BAY 2202 North West Shore Blvd. Suite 200 Tampa, Florida 33607 Phone: 813-639-7644 Map and Directions JACKSONVILLE 10151 Deerwood Park Blvd.  Bld. 200, Suite 250 Jacksonville, Florida 32256 Phone:   904-371-3518 Map and Directions MIAMI 201 South Biscayne Blvd 28th Floor Miami, Florida 33131 Phone: 1-800-974-4929 Map and Directions WEST PALM BEACH 777 South Flagler Ave. Suite 800 - West Tower 4 West Palm Beach, Florida 32256 Phone: 1-800-974-4929 Map and Directions FORT LAUDERDALE 110 East Broward Blvd Suite 1700 Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301 Phone: 1-800-974-4929 Map And Directions SARASOTA 1990 Main Street Suite 750 Sarasota, Florida 34236 Phone: 941-309-5144 Map and Directions ATLANTA 3455 Peachtree Road N.E. 5th Floor Atlanta, Georgia 30326 Phone: 1-800-974-4929 Map and Directions