More details to this question:
My wife was walking our my dog, without to much detail it knocked my wife off balance got away from her and bit a small dog, the dog died. In the process the owner of the small dog got a small bite on her arm. Went through the process with the police and animal control, we were not charged and no action against our dog. We offered to pay all expenses. Today received a call from the lawyer of the small dog, stating they want between $10-$20,000. We have no insurance, the police report stated the plaintiff had a scrape on her knee and small puncture wound and that is all. Do we need an attorney? Does this amount they are asking for sound high? And who should they sue, the dog is registered to me but my wife (common-law) was walking him. Thanks
1 ANSWER
Consumer Debt Collector Harassment & Abuse Attorney serving Tampa, FL
Partner at
Tischhauser Law Group
2 Awards
There is no common law marriage in Florida, so in theory BOTH of you are separately liable. Its unlikely that the lawyer actually sues if there is no homeowners insurance that covers the event, purely for finaincial reasons, but that also means you are on your own to defend the claim at your exoense, and need to account for the fact that they COULD file suit legally.Bottom line, defensive minimizing (ripped victims am off characterized as "small bite") is not a useful reference point for settlement negotiatons and since you have displayed that viewpoint its even more critical that you hire a lawyer to address the issue properly to at least make sure objective decisions are being made.
Answered on Feb 28th, 2019 at 5:21 AM
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