Q: Four years ago I fell at Fort Lauderdale airport on the walk bridge boarding a spirit airline flight.

A: I don’t know why your lawyer waited four years to resolve this case. He should’ve filed a lawsuit immediately, and done the correct discovery and within a year or two the case should’ve been already settled. That was his first mistake. Although that is not a malpractice mistake, I never let cases sit around for years and years. Secondly, you have to inquire as to what their insurance policy actually states. Some companies including Walt Disney World have what’s called a self insured reserve (SIR) policy meaning that they, Spirit air for instance, would have to pay the first $100,000 before the insurance company pays anything over and above that amount. So if that’s the case, then you may be out of luck. But I would speak with a bankruptcy lawyer too as well as get a copy of the insurance policy to see what the deductible there is, if any at all.

A: I agree with Mr. Black and add that, if no lawsuit was ever filed, you are up against the then-four-year limitations period for filing, if not already expired. If the 4-year anniversary is already gone, with no suit filed, game over as far as going after the tortfeasor (negligent party), but you may or may not have a legal malpractice issue to examine. If suit HAS been filed and is still pending, there's no limitations problem, but if your lawyer is withdrawing from representation, you'll be given a short amount of time to retain new counsel. Another issue is whether the entity in charge of the airport, rather than just Spirit, would have potential liability; there would be no bankruptcy issue for that party, though there would likely be a statutory cap of $200,000 in recoverable damages.