Florida Injury Attorneys Blog
This firm wants to take the time to answer your questions where your relative was injured by terrorism.The question we get most is “Can you collect money for me if my relative was injured in a terrorist attack?”
The answer is yes if:
1.Your relative was injured in a terrorist attack where a person was killed other than the terrorist.
2. A claim is being made by your relative for damages he suffered in the terrorist attack.
3.You are an immediate family member of the relative. This would include a spouse, children, brothers and sisters, and parents of the injured victim.
4.You must have suffered an immediate emotional impact as a result of your relative being injured and be able to express how the impact has lasted.
5.Examples of emotional impact: When my brother returned from this attack, I observed him to be isolated and very jumpy anytime there was a loud noise. I would call him two or three times a week and try to get him to become more integrated into his family life. I would go visit him weekly. I offered to meet him and take him out to breakfast or to see his child play softball, but he became more and more isolated. This made me feel like a failure at helping him. He seemed to pull back and isolate more. Before the attack my family and his family were very close and we would do lots of things together. After the attack I worked for 6 months to help him integrate but instead he would isolate. I was a failure and eventually had to accept that I had lost my brother. So I am sad, disappointed and fearful things will never change. It is continuing and his loss is permanent as it has been 3 years now.
6.Another example: When I was a child I understood that my father went to fight with the USA forces in the war effort. We had to accept he was earning money he sent home to support my mother and sister. Before he left he used to be home every day. He would teach me to read, help with my homework and help my mom around the house. He would fix lots of things in the house. I would have loved for him to see me grow up and be there to answer all my questions and guide me. Instead he died in the war effort when a bomb went off.
7.I am not an American can I still make a claim? Yes you can. That does not matter.
8.How will you collect damages for me? After you retain us, the firm will file a lawsuit for damages suffered by the direct victim and immediate family member.
9. Where is the venue for the case? The lawsuit will be filed in Federal court in Washington DC.
10.How long will my case take? At least two years to get a damage award.
11.When will I collect my award? After the award is given in Federal Court and money is paid into the government funds which will be available through the www.usvsst.com, you will receive some of your award pro-rata with other individuals who have claims pending for payment from the government but only when they have funds. There are claimants ahead of you so you must be patient.
12.Are there other sources where I might recover money for my suffering? Yes this firm can look for money in banks that have funds that directly supported terrorists that caused the attack or made the bombs that injured your relative.
13.How is the law firm paid for collecting my damages? The law firm takes as its fee 25% of the usvsst.com money recovered. Since the usvsst fund has not been able to pay the full amount of damage awards in the past, the firm will take a 30% fee when it collects non-usvsst funds.
14.Can you give me an example? Yes, say your damage award given by the court is $3,000,000 and the usvsst funds pay you $1,000,000. You will receive $750,000 after our 25% fee.
15.Under the example you still have $2,000,000 you have not collected because there are no available usvsst funds. When this firm collects the remaining $2,000,000 from non usvsst funds, for instance by freezing a bank account and having a court award you your share of those bank funds, you will collect $1,400,000 after our 30% fee. You will have deducted from your money, your prorata costs of collection. This means the costs of collection are shared by the plaintiffs and each party pays their pro rata share. For example, the costs of depositions, filing, hiring experts was $20,000 and there were 20 plaintiffs, each plaintiff has deducted $1,000 in costs from their funds.
16.What are some collection costs? They are filing fees, expert fees, process of service of the lawsuit, court reporter charges. These costs will be apportioned over all the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
17. How do I get started? You should have the direct victim, i.e. your relative provide us with your email. We will send you a retainer and then a form for you to complete so we can assess your damages to determine if you qualify for an award.
18. Will I be eligible for the next usvsst fund payment to be made on January 1, 2025? No, registrants must have their Judgment awarded by a court and submit their applicable by July 1, 2024. You will not be registered by then because your damage award has not been given by a Federal Court.
19. If I am eligible how will the court determine how much my case is worth? The more emotionally damaged you are the greater the award. If the direct victim died you would be expected to recover more than if he lived. The more injured your relative is and the more you were involved in his life causing you suffering, the greater the award.
Our email is terrorism@joannhoffman.com Feel free to reach out to us. Helping the injured in our passion.