Coral Gables, FL 33134
633 S. Andrews Avenue Suite 400
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
(954) 323-4400
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Haggard Law Firm Happy Holidays Video
We want to wish everyone the happiest of holidays. We hope the good will of this season extends year-around…no matter who you cheer for…
May is National Swim Safety Month. Our team at Haggard Law is passionate about observing this time as we have unfortunately had to represent families who have suffered the loss or a significant injury to a loved one in a drowning or near drowning. With these tragic experiences, we have learned that water safety involves active participation of family, friends, the swimmers and the people who are responsible for pools, pool equipment, and properties that have other bodies of water such as ponds and lakes.
According to the Florida Department of Health, Florida leads the country in drowning deaths of children ages 1-4 years. Annually in Florida, enough children to fill three to four preschool classrooms drown before their fifth birthday.
According to the U.S Swimming Foundation, in 2017 Florida lost more children to drowning than any other state. There were 51 fatal child drownings in Florida pools or spas in 2017, a 20 percent spike compared to 2016. The drownings last year involved children 15 and younger, with 80 percent involving children under the age of 5. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death in children ages 1-4 nationwide.
Th American Red Cross has these swim safety tips:
Also parents remember your pool gate safety and pool pump safety.
We are very proud to announce the Haggard Law Firm Trial Attorney and Partner Todd Michaels has been named a recipient of the Florida Justice Association’s 2018 Bronze Eagle Award.
Bronze EAGLE recipients are those members who go to great lengths by contributing time and money to the EAGLE cause which aims to provide resources to power FJA’s mission of:
Bronze EAGLE Award recipients have been very involved in EAGLE over the years and continue to be active in EAGLE.
CLICK HERE TO CONTACT TODD MICHAELS
When asked by the FJA what the FJA and EAGLE program meant to him, Michaels responded “When it comes to protecting the rights of the injured, the aggrieved, and the voiceless, there is no more important organization than the Florida Justice Association. The EAGLE program ensures FJA’s staff and leadership remain focused on protecting our practices and the rights of our clients without distraction.” Michaels has been an active member of the FJA since September of 2009.
He will receive the honor during the FJA’s Presidential Luncheon on Friday June 22, 2018 at The Breakers in Palm Beach.
READ TODD MICHAELS BIO: CLICK HERE
For a free consultation or if you are a referring of co-counsel attorney, call 305.446.5700
On April 6th of this year, I celebrated my 1 ½ year KIDNEYVERSARY!! How did I celebrate? By preparing for Trial….that was awesome!!! I could only do that due to God’s grace, my prayers were answered and my brother-in-law, Major Allen Buckhalt (US Army Blackhawk Pilot and Iraq/Afghanistan war Veteran) was a match to donate me a kidney and save my life!! As all of you know (BECAUSE YOU HAVE BEEN THERE FOR ME AND MY FAMILY THIS WHOLE TIME), I have Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) a genetic, life-threatening and incurable disease. There are only two treatments, DIALYSIS or a KIDNEY TRANSPLANT. Most PKD patients have to go on Dialysis and suffer the debilitating effects. The PKD Foundation is changing all that as we march towards TREATMENT and a CURE!!!!
It is not lost on me, that I am now 100% back to normal and Allen is proudly serving us overseas once again!! Living Kidney Donation is phenomenal and we need to encourage everyone to GIVE LIFE!! However, the PKD patient community is on the verge of something amazing—-Through all the $$$$ you have raised with us, we are on the verge of the FIRST EVER PKD DRUG to be released to market!!!!! Not to mention, all the clinical trials still ongoing to develop not only a Treatment but a CURE!!!
As most of you also know the curse of this disease is also the blessing!! It is genetic…….Both Maddie and Carson each have a 50% chance of inheriting this disease……and as you can imagine that “haunts” me each night! But even if you told me tomorrow Maddie and Carson were in the clear, we would never stop fighting this fight. All you have to do is see the devastating effects of PKD on families. I have lost my maternal grandmother, uncle and mother to this disease and I intend on beating it out of existence! Because it is genetic we have made advances that have never been accomplished in other disease research—-because we can isolate the Gene!!!!
This year we are hosting our 8th ANNUAL PKD KIDNEY CASINO FOR A CURE!!! Last year we raised well over $100,000 for the PKD FOUNDATION and this year WITH YOUR HELP, we hope to surpass that Goal!!! WE HAVE CHANGED LOCATIONS this year and are going to Host the event at the University of Miami’s UM Newman Alumni Center at 7 pm. It is a phenomenal venue and we know all of our Friends and Family will enjoy!!!
Bekki and I have recently agreed to Chair the PKD FOUNDERS COUNCIl–where we are accelerating all efforts to have every DOLLAR raised go immediately into PKD Research!! Over $10 Million has been raised in this effort!! With your incredible help the past decade we have raised an additional $600,000 which has funded multiple PKD research projects!!! We will find a cure for PKD in my lifetime!!! I have been given a Second Chance at Life and I will not waste it……I know you will help us with our goal. Many of you have donated in the past and we desperately need your help again!!! Please do what you did last year or if you possibly can—-DO EVEN MORE!!! We want all of you to come to the event, but if you cannot please look at the sponsorship levels and consider being there in spirit with us!!!
I cannot thank each of you enough for your past support and hope that you will continue to support our efforts this year. If you cannot join us on Saturday, May, 19th, you can still donate to our cause. NO donation is too small. Checks should be made payable to the PKD Foundation and can be mailed directly to The Haggard Law Firm, 330 Alhambra Circle, Coral Gables, FL 33134. ATTN: Sibyl Fernandez. The attached document also allows you to RSVP, sponsor a table, purchase tickets or donate directly to the PKD Foundation. The Kidney Casino Night is live on the PKD Foundation’s website so you can RSVP and register online
using a credit card!! Visit http://bit.ly/kidneycasinoforacure
Platinum All in Presenting Sponsor: $10,000 (The Haggard Law Firm)
Thanks again and I really hope to see you on SATURDAY MAY 19TH!!!!!!!!!!!
Michael A. Haggard | Managing Partner
T: 305.446.5700
F: 305.446.1154
330 Alhambra Circle, Coral Gables, Florida 33134
The International Academy of Trial Lawyers has announced it is supporting assault weapons. The Haggard Law Firm’s Managing Partner Michael Haggard and Senior Partner Andy Haggard are both members of this renowned legal organization. Michael is currently on the Board of Directors and Admissions Committee Board Member.
IATL is an international legal association both in spirit and membership. The Academy limits Fellowship to 500 active trial lawyers from the United States and includes over 150 Fellows from nearly 40 countries across the globe.
Fellowship in the Academy is by invitation only, and trial lawyers become Fellows only after an extremely rigorous vetting process, which includes both peer and judicial review. The Academy seeks out Fellows who have achieved a career of excellence as shown by their skills in trial, and as demonstrated by their integrity and professionalism. Members are often heavily involved in pro bono efforts and contribute generously of their time and resources to their local communities.
The organization sent out the following news release on the day of the March for our Lives protests around the country:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Janel Fick, Executive Director
info@iatl.net
Elite legal organization backs assault weapon ban, student protests
Austin, Texas, March 24, 2018 – The International Academy of Trial Lawyers this week adopted a resolution supporting an assault weapons ban and endorsing protests aimed at ending gun violence in communities and schools.
The Academy’s board unanimously approved the resolution March 21, citing its interest in maintaining a civil society. The resolution said:
We, as an Academy, believe all assault weapons and high capacity magazines should be banned. The Academy also gives its undisputed support for the protests going on around the United States, including the March for Our Lives events, which demand that safety become a priority and that we end gun violence in our schools and communities.
The Academy, chartered in 1954, is an organization of elite lawyers nominated and selected based on their demonstrated skill and ability in jury trials and other court proceedings. The organization promotes professional excellence, legal reforms, and integrity in the legal profession.
Our Michael Haggard will be one of the featured presenters during the upcoming 2018 National Drowning Prevention Alliance Educational Conference’s Aquatic Law Symposium. The objective of the symposium is to provide plaintiff and defense attorneys with information about principles and practices of aquatic law. The event will be held April 2nd to the 7th at the Marriott Waterside in Tampa. Haggard’s seminar “Developing Theories of Negligence Citing Important Litigation Cases by Firm” is scheduled for the morning session which begins at 8:50am on Saturday, April 7th.
The legal symposiums are certified by the Florida Bar and in every state via reciprocity agreement for CLE credits (8 Credits Available)
Michael Haggard’s Aquatic Law Experience
Michael Haggard and The Haggard Law Firm has a long history of successfully litigating cases involving drownings and near-drownings…
Continue reading “Haggard to Lead Seminar During Aquatic Law Symposium”
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”
The Haggard Law Firm recognizes National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month throughout January. The Department of Defense defines Human Trafficking as” a crime in which force, fraud or coercion is used to compel a person to perform labor, services or commercial sex. It affects all populations: adults, children, men, women, foreign nationals and U.S. citizens, and all economic classes.”
Studies show that a large percentage of locations where sex trafficking takes place are commercial businesses like hotels, truck stops and massage parlors.. One survey found hotels and motels are the single-most common venue for sex trafficking in Florida during the first half of 2017. Experts say it is because the traffickers want to remain transient to avoid suspicion and arrest.”
Continue reading “January is Human Trafficking Prevention Month”
The Haggard Law Firm, P.A. represents the rights of people seriously injured or killed through the fault of others. We are passionately committed to our clients and stress the highest level of personal service, professionalism and case preparation.
