Catastrophic Injury & Loss Defense
National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department
Jeremy W. Harris and Lee Patten are the Co-Chair’s of the Firm’s National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department. Our National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department represents clients facing high-stakes litigation involving severe and life-altering injuries, such as wrongful death, paralysis, amputations, sexual assault, and other serious injuries. These claims can result from a multitude of alleged causes, including construction site accidents and collapses, road construction accidents, commercial trucking and car accidents, premises liability, negligent security, and products liability, to name a few. Our experienced attorneys possess a deep understanding of the complex medical, legal, and financial issues associated with catastrophic injury cases and the industries from which these claims arise.
Expertise and Approach: Our team is adept at handling cases involving a wide range of catastrophic injuries, including but not limited to wrongful death, paralysis, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, severe burns, amputations, and other debilitating conditions. We understand that these cases require a meticulous approach, combining legal acumen with medical knowledge to effectively challenge the claims and protect our clients’ interests. Our attorneys vigorously defend the main claim, while always fully exploring the possibility of risk transfer. This is especially important due to the possible verdict ranges of these matters.
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Catastrophic Injury & Loss Defense Team
John P. Daly is based in Lydecker’s Orlando office where he serves as Of Counsel. He is a skilled litigation attorney with over 30 years of experience handling complex litigation in State and Federal Courts throughout Florida. He has tried multiple civil jury trials as lead counsel to verdict and handled scores of appellate matters, including oral arguments in the 1st and 2d District Courts of Appeal.
Mr. Daly’s practice areas include automobile negligence, premises liability, professional liability, and first- and third-party insurance claims.
Of Counsel
Ms. Franks is a partner in the firm’s Miami office, where she defends local, national, and international organizations, as well as individuals, and tries catastrophic personal injury actions, premises liability matters, professional liability claims, construction defect matters, and medical/substance abuse treatment malpractice claims throughout the State of Florida.
Ms. Franks is originally from Pennsylvania and moved to South Florida in 2002 to study journalism and political science. Prior to pursuing her law degree, Ms. Franks taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Miami in the Department of Political Science for five years. Her classes included Intro to American National Government, the Legislative Process, and Congressional Representation. Ms. Franks earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in 2011.
Ms. Franks has considerable experience dealing with automobile negligence, professional malpractice, medical malpractice, and premises liability matters involving catastrophic injuries, wrongful death, and extra contractual exposure, including a focus on evidentiary issues, dispositive motion practice, complex liability claims, and damages mitigation.
Ms. Franks earned a Bachelor of Science in Communication from the University of Miami in 2004. She graduated cum laude with a double-major in journalism and political science. Ms. Franks went on to complete a Master’s degree in Communication at the University of Miami in 2005, also graduating cum laude.
Ms. Franks earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in 2011. At the University of Miami School of Law, Ms. Franks was the recipient of the Hugh L. Wood Scholarship, Outstanding Merit Scholarship, and the Ehrich Scholarship. Ms. Franks served as a research assistant to multiple highly regarded University of Miami School of Law professors in the areas of environmental litigation and legislation, the first amendment, and communication regulation.
Partner
Jeremy W. Harris is the Co-Chair of the Firm’s National Catastrophic Injury and Loss Defense Department. Mr. Harris has extensive trial and appellate court experience in complex litigation, with a special focus on the defense of claims involving wrongful death, paralysis, amputations, traumatic brain injury, sexual assault, and other serious injuries. These claims can result from a multitude of alleged causes, including construction site accidents and collapses, road construction accidents, commercial trucking and car accidents, premises liability, negligent security, and products liability, to name a few. Mr. Harris has specialized knowledge of each of the industries involved in these claims-knowledge that he uses to represent his clients to the best of his abilities.
Mr. Harris’s judicial philosophy involves every action being taken only if it is a purposeful step towards a favorable end result for his clients, whether that involves litigating a matter to conclusion or providing the best possible platform for settlement. He believes attention to the plaintiff’s claim is paramount, but opportunities for risk transfer must always be fully explored. This is especially true in cases involving catastrophic injury, as these claims often have millions or tens of millions of dollars at stake.
Mr. Harris also maintains a healthy construction law practice and represents architects, engineers, general contractors/subcontractors, and developers in all manner of construction/design defect litigation.
He has taken hundreds (if not thousands) of depositions and has attended hundreds (if not thousands) of hearings. Mr. Harris has tried cases before many trial courts throughout the state of Florida and has engaged in oral arguments in front of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Districts of the State of Florida. He obtained favorable results in the vast majority of these trials and appeals.
Mr. Harris serves as defense counsel from accident investigation to trial (and beyond if necessary) and also serves as monitor counsel/trial counsel for large claims that need a second look or additional help due to the complexity of the claims. When asked to join ongoing litigation, his approach is to immediately and forcefully take all action necessary to ready a case for trial.
Before joining the firm, Mr. Harris was a shareholder and managing attorney of a national firm’s Florida office, leading a large team of attorneys in complex litigation. Prior to going to law school, Mr. Harris was part of his collegiate and high school debate teams-qualifying in college for the prestigious National Debate Tournament. He is a proud husband and father of four boys and enjoys weightlifting in his free time.
Partner
Mr. Hendricks is the Managing Partner for Lydecker LLP. He practices out of the firm’s Miami and Boca Raton offices where he maintains an active trial and civil litigation practice in the Federal, State, and Appellate Courts throughout the State of Florida. Mr. Hendricks’ areas of practice include general civil litigation and trial practice, commercial litigation, professional liability/malpractice defense, insurance/tort liability defense, and labor and employment. He also serves as lead trial counsel for the firm’s clients and carriers and oversees the firm’s trial teams. He has over 25 years of experience representing clients and has successfully defended clients against multi-million dollar cases as lead trial counsel. He is often called upon to assist clients and carriers on high exposure and large loss claims in his capacity as monitoring counsel or co-counsel.
Upon graduating with Honors from the University of Miami School of Law, Mr. Hendricks began practicing as an associate Greenberg, Traurig, in the environmental litigation and land use department. Looking to further his litigation experience he accepted a position as a practiced commercial litigation associate with Kimbrell & Hamann. In 1990, Mr. Hendricks relocated to Palm Beach County where he spent several years practicing insurance defense and commercial litigation at Walton Lantoff. He subsequently joined the firm of Carman, Beauchamp and Sang as a senior associate and trial attorney. From 1999 thru 2007, Mr. Hendricks was employed as a partner at Panza, Maurer, Maynard & Noel where he served as a senior litigation partner and lead trial attorney for many of the firm’s corporate, institutional and governmental clients.
In law school, Mr. Hendricks was the winner of the University of Miami Law School’s Mock Trial Competition and member of the National Trial Competition Team. He also served as a member of the Inter-American Law Review, member of the Society of Bar & Gavel, Society of Wig and Robe, and was inducted into the school’s Moot Court Board.
Mr. Hendricks’ representative clients include private and public educational institutions, environmental, pollution and toxic tort defense, prison liability, prison healthcare and liability, public and private corporations, municipal governments, state agencies and political subdivisions, insurance companies and self-insured entities. Mr. Hendricks’ trial experience includes Federal, state and appellate proceedings including public procurements and bid protests.
Managing Partner
