Our experience is that often people are injured because of someone else’s actions or inactions and then agree to settle before realizing they could receive a higher amount through the Florida courts. Partnering with an experienced law firm is the most important step in any legal process when it comes to your rights.
Learn more about what happens in a civil lawsuit in Florida below.
Start Here: How Florida Civil Cases Are Organized
A civil lawsuit is simply a legal dispute that seeks compensation or other remedies because of negligent, reckless, or criminal behavior. Negligence is the failure to use reasonable care, resulting in an injury or other type of harm.
The Courts at a Glance – Small Claims, County Civil, and Circuit Civil
Here are the main differences between civil court types in Florida:
- The small claims court handles disputes involving $8,000 or less. For example, you might take a contractor to the small claims court for failing to provide a service you paid for.
- The county civil court deals with disputes up to $50,000. A case might end up in this court if it’s more serious, such as one involving a dog bite that resulted in expensive medical bills.
- The circuit civil court aims to resolve disputes over $50,000. This might be a case involving a car accident that led to a long-term injury.
What Usually Happens in a Civil Case
Here are the typical civil lawsuit steps so you know what to expect:
Assessing a Civil Case and Sending a Demand Letter
Once you’re partnered with an attorney, they will evaluate your case and gather evidence that supports it—also known as the ‘intake’ stage. This step can involve interviewing witnesses, collecting documents, and getting opinions from subject-matter experts.
Using your interpretation of the events and the evidence gathered during the investigation, an attorney will be able to build your case and may decide to negotiate with the at-fault party or their insurance company. They may also send a demand letter asking for payment or action to resolve a case before initiating court proceedings.
Filing a Complaint
If negotiations fail or the at-fault party (known as the defendant) fails to respond to a demand letter, the next step is to file a complaint with the appropriate court. The complaint will outline the incident and allegations against the defendant, as well as the desired resolution.
The defendant will have the opportunity to respond to the complaint by filing their own answer, which either admits or denies the allegations and provides any relevant defenses. They may also request that the case be dismissed.
Discovery
Leading up to the trial, both parties will exchange information and evidence related to the case to build their arguments for or against the requested resolution. This may be done through a combination of written questions, document requests, depositions, and expert testimonies.
Negotiations or Trial
Once discovery has concluded (or during the discovery process), the parties may decide on a settlement versus a trial. This can be done through mediation or arbitration, where both sides sit down to discuss the case with a neutral third party. If they are unable or unwilling to settle, the case will be brought to trial and presented to a judge or jury to decide the outcome.
Although it’s difficult to provide an exact percentage, most civil cases in the U.S. settle rather than go to trial. Often, both parties want to resolve a case rather than have it dragged through the court system, which can last months or years.
Judgment and Appeals
The court will issue a judgment in favor of either you or the defendant, which may include a modified resolution. The losing party may be able to appeal the decision to a higher court if they believe that there were legal errors during the trial. The time to disposition, which means how long it takes to resolve a case, varies depending on the specific circumstances, the type of court where a case ends up, and other factors.
Burden of Proof and Elements You Must Show
As the plaintiff in a civil lawsuit, the burden of proof is on you to show a ‘preponderance of evidence.’ This means that the evidence you provide must demonstrate that it is more likely than not that the defendant is responsible for the losses or impacts you have suffered.
The evidence necessary to win a civil lawsuit in Florida is far less than for a criminal case, which requires that a prosecutor prove ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ that the defendant is guilty.
More specifically, there are a few things that you must prove clearly:
Duty of Care
A duty of care is the legal responsibility of an individual or business to act reasonably in order to protect someone else from harm. This may be the duty of care to drive safely, provide adequate and prudent medical care, and so on.
You must prove that the defendant owed you a duty of care.
Failed Duty of Care
If you show that the defendant owed a duty of care and they failed to uphold this obligation, for example, by driving drunk or failing to administer the appropriate medical care — then you have further supporting evidence which can strengthen your case.
Causation
You must then prove that the defendant’s failed duty of care directly caused your harm or loss. For example, if a drunk driver caused you to crash your car, you need to prove that their behavior led to the incident.
Damages
Finally, you must present the courts with evidence of your damages and that you have suffered as a result of the defendant breaching his or her duty of care. As mentioned above, these damages may include current and future medical expenses, lost earnings, pain and suffering, and other related costs.
Gathering and Organizing Evidence for a Civil Lawsuit in Florida
Evidence in a civil case may take many forms, including surveillance footage, documents, emails, text messages, photographs, eyewitness accounts, and other relevant materials. Gathering evidence is a tedious process; however, it must be done correctly.
You will need to identify all possible evidence that might be relevant to your case and make sure that you preserve it all correctly after collection. This means making copies of physical documents and backing up digital files. It’s best to save all the evidence you can, as you never know when you may need it. That said, you won’t want to provide any superfluous or inadmissible evidence to the court, as this can harm your case.
You will also need to continuously review evidence as you formulate your case, making sure that you have all the necessary proof. Organization is important, as it ensures everything is easily accessible and clearly understandable during your trial. You may want to create a digital folder system for files, label physical documents, and place evidence in chronological order, which can make the trial preparation process a lot easier.
Even if your case doesn’t end up in the civil courts, evidence can be an essential tool for negotiations and settlement positioning. Having strong evidence may increase the total amount you receive from the at-fault party, resulting in a more successful outcome.
Timelines for Florida Civil Court Cases
Going to trial in a civil case is complicated and often lengthy, as it requires careful planning, legal research, and attention to detail. Winning a civil case is possible with the right preparations and the right lawyer. However, your attorney will need time to review the complaint and answers, gather evidence to support your position, conduct discovery, prepare witnesses, draft motions and briefs, and so on. This may take several months.
The good news is that an experienced attorney will be able to handle the administrative burden of a civil case on your behalf while you stay focused on your recovery and attend to your daily life. This can be particularly valuable if you have stress, trauma, or confusion.
Possible Outcomes in a Civil Court Case
There are several outcomes that can happen if your case reaches the civil court:
Compensatory Damages
As the name implies, these damages are intended to compensate a victim financially for their losses, encompassing a range of both economic and non-economic impacts. Economic damages apply to anything that has a dollar value, including medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, and other financial costs or losses. Non-economic damages apply to any impact without a dollar value, including things like a victim’s pain and suffering they endure as a result of their injuries.
Punitive Damages
In certain cases, the court may determine that the defendant acted in such an egregious manner that they must be punished for their actions. Punitive damages are financial payments to a plaintiff that have nothing to do with the impacts the victim has suffered. Instead, they are intended to serve as deterrents for future similar behavior on the part of the defendant.
Injunctions
An injunction is an order issued by the court that forces the defendant to stop a particular behavior or action. For example, if the defendant is engaging in predatory or otherwise harmful business practices, an injunction may block them from continuing those practices.
Specific Performance
The court may order that the defendant perform a specific action, such as completing a contract, returning property they wrongfully took, or something else that the court believes remedies the losses or impacts a plaintiff has suffered.
Deadlines, Evidence, and Next Steps
Filing deadlines for civil court cases in Florida depend on the type of claim. For example, as of 2025, claims involving negligence on behalf of the at-fault party must be filed within two years from the date of the incident. This is known as the statute of limitations.
As you won’t have long to initiate court proceedings, it’s important to consult with an experienced attorney who understands how civil lawsuits work in Florida. Long & Jean, P.A., will fight in your corner and increase your chances of getting maximum compensation without you having to pay out of pocket. We operate a contingency-based model, meaning you only owe us fees if you recover.
Contact us now for a free one-on-one consultation about a civil lawsuit in Florida.