Criminal Law

• Wrongful Death
  Product liability became a main news focus in early 2015 involving General Motors, which has settled more than 300 claims of wrongful death or personal injury following 32 accidents tied to a defective ignition switch. The defect, which can shut off the power while the car is in motion, disabling its airbags and impeding the steering and brake systems, has forced the company to recall more than 2.6 million of its small cars. There are currently 53 claims of wrongful death and 273 personal injury claims involving the recalled vehicles. While it is unclear if the underlying problem is a manufacturing defect or a design defect, GM has claimed responsibility and said it plans to compensate victims in the class action suit.
• Traffic Violations
  If you are interested in receiving help on your potential claim, please provide us with information by clicking the appropriate button at the top of this page, which will direct you to the relevant detailed Evaluation Form. This detailed form will allow our Florida lawyers to review pertinent facts and circumstances regarding your case before speaking with you, speeding the process along. We encourage you to fill out the form as fully as possible, inasmuch as it directs your responses to areas that are important to our evaluation process. If you have a time constraint, however, and would prefer using a shorter form, please feel free to fill out the “Quick Form” located in the appropriate “Areas of Practice” pages linked on the left margin of this page.

Business and Corporate Law

• Unfair Competition
  Unfair competition laws prohibit corporate espionage, bribery, and theft of information, as well as lying about a competitor’s products or illegally interfering with their established business relationships. If your competitors are using unfair competition tactics, let us help you as you seek justice and restitution.

Property Law

• Premises Liability
  Because you are an invited guest of the amusement park, the doctrine of premises liability dictates that the park is responsible to ensure that any ride you ride and any path you walk on is safe and unlikely to injure you. Though amusement parks might not be held liable for injuries you sustain while you are breaking their rules (such as not keeping your hands and arms inside the car at all times during the ride), any time you are injured due to operator negligence or other negligence by park employees, you are entitled to compensation.
• Property Damage
  Individuals injured in Florida frequently have access to “uninsured motorist coverage†or “underinsured motorist coverage.†Such coverage may be provided by the injured person’s own policy, holiday travel policy, or a policy of insurance for the automobile in which they are passengers. The coverage is contractual, but its details are in many respects dictated by legislation. Actions for recovery of uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits are brought by suing the insurance company itself. Such uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is extremely important because of the high incidence of vehicles being operated without any insurance at all (which is unlawful), with property damage liability insurance only (which is lawful), or with low-limits insurance coverage (likewise lawful).

Health Law

• Personal Injury
  Wagner, McLaughlin & Whittemore has been “speaking up for the injured†— with commanding volume and authority — since opening its first office in Tampa in 1967. Today, the firm is among the most respected plaintiffs’ personal injury law firms in the state of Florida and the nation, with partners who have shown extraordinary leadership in both the courtroom and the broader legal profession.
• Medical Malpractice
  Have you or someone you love been harmed through the negligence of a doctor or other medical professional? The Tampa medical malpractice attorneys at Wagner, McLaughlin & Whittemore have been suing negligent doctors and other healthcare practitioners, with great success, for nearly fifty years and can help you in this difficult time. We understand the stress and challenges of navigating a Tampa Florida medical malpractice suit and know how to help best represent you in your time of need.
• Auto Accidents
• Dog Bites
  According to the Florida Department of Health, very young children are, tragically, at the highest risk for dog attack, and children under the age of ten are more likely to be bitten on the head or neck than is any other group.  Two Floridians die from dog bite injuries each year, and more than 600 are hospitalized. All Floridians should be aware that, while a pet dog can be a danger to children in the family, a significant number of dog bites occur away from the family home, while the dog is off leash and unknown to the dog bite victim.