Why would a Miami-Dade court handle my case instead of a Miami Beach court?

The courts listed for this area are the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County and the Miami-Dade County Court. In practice, injury lawsuits are handled through the county court system rather than a separate city court.

I live in Miami Beach but was hurt on I-95 in Miami. Which page matters more?

Usually the place where the crash happened is more important than where you live. If the collision was on I-95 through Miami, the Miami location and county-level information will usually be more relevant than Miami Beach alone.

What if my crash happened somewhere else in Miami-Dade County during my commute?

Your claim usually follows the crash location, the responding agency, and the court with authority over that area. That is common for Miami Beach residents who commute on corridors like US-1 / South Dixie Highway, the Palmetto Expressway (SR 826), or Biscayne Boulevard.

How do I get the crash report?

This page's report link goes through FLHSMV at https://www.flhsmv.gov/traffic-crash-reports/. The local claims record also notes that Florida crash reports are confidential for 60 days after filing, with limited release during that period.

Miami-Dade County

Miami Beach car accident claims

If you were hurt in Miami Beach, much of the process runs through Miami-Dade County and state systems rather than the city alone. That matters for who investigated the crash, which court handles a lawsuit, and what page is most useful if your collision happened somewhere else in the county.

Estimate my case All Florida rules

60,000

Miami-Dade County crashes, 2024

29,354

People reported injured

282

People killed, 2024

50%

Fault bars recovery above

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Florida is already selected. Your answers, your documented losses, and Florida's fault and insurance rules produce the range.

Local data

Miami-Dade County crash snapshot

Reported by Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles for 2024. Miami Beach sits in Miami-Dade County, and most local crash data is published at the county level rather than by city.

60,000

Reported crashes in 2024

29,354

People reported injured

164

Crashes per day, on average

Source: Florida Health CHARTS — Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes, Ten Years Data by County (Florida Department of Health, from FLHSMV records). Miami-Dade is published as a rounded figure of 60,000 for 2024.. Reviewed 2026-07-29.

Who responded

Agencies that respond to crashes in Miami Beach

Which agency attended determines who to contact about an incomplete or incorrect report.

Miami Beach Police Department -

City police

Miami-dade County Police Department - Sheriff and Port Services Bureau

County sheriff

Florida Highway Patrol

State patrol

Your crash report

How to get your Miami Beach crash report

Where to request it: https://www.flhsmv.gov/traffic-crash-reports/

Venue

Courts that hear Miami-Dade County civil cases

Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County

General civil claims

Miami-Dade County Court

Smaller civil claims

Local factors

County systems matter more than city limits

In Miami Beach, the responding agency may be the Miami Beach Police Department, the Miami-dade County Police Department - Sheriff and Port Services Bureau, or the Florida Highway Patrol, depending on where and how the crash happened. If a claim turns into a lawsuit, the courts listed for this area are the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County and the Miami-Dade County Court, which is why city boundaries usually matter less than the exact crash location.

A lot of Miami Beach residents are injured off the island while commuting. If your crash happened elsewhere in Miami-Dade County, the practical details usually follow that place of collision, not your home address in Miami Beach. That is especially important on county corridors identified in 2024 crash data, including I-95 through Miami, US-1 / South Dixie Highway, the Palmetto Expressway (SR 826), and Biscayne Boulevard, all named in Miami-Dade County crash materials.

County scale also explains why the surrounding systems are busy. In Miami-Dade County, there were 268 fatal crashes and 282 fatalities in 2024 according to the FLHSMV Crash Dashboard, while Florida Health CHARTS reports 60,000 total crashes and 29,354 injury crashes in the county for 2024 from FLHSMV records. The state-law sections below cover Florida's deadlines and fault rules, and the report request link on this page goes through FLHSMV.

Florida law

How fault is allocated in Florida

Florida follows modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar. Below that line your recovery is reduced in proportion to your fault. Above it, you recover nothing at all, which makes the fault allocation the central dispute in most contested claims.

As an example, a $100,000 claim in which you are found 20% responsible would yield $80,000. The same claim with 51% responsibility attributed to you would yield nothing, because Florida bars recovery above 50%.

Deadlines

Florida filing deadlines

Missing a deadline generally ends a claim regardless of how strong it is. Government claims are on a much shorter clock than ordinary claims.

2 years

Personal injury

2 years

Wrongful death

3 years

Claim against a government agency

Reviewed 2026-07-29. Not yet reviewed by a licensed attorney. This is general information, not legal advice.

Case types

Claims we can estimate in Miami Beach

Auto accident Personal injury Medical malpractice Workplace injury Product liability Wrongful death

Local questions

Miami Beach questions

It depends on where and how the collision happened. The agencies listed for this area are the Miami Beach Police Department, the Miami-dade County Police Department - Sheriff and Port Services Bureau, and the Florida Highway Patrol.

Transparency

Sources and review dates

Every figure on this page traces to one of the sources below. Geography and population come from the U.S. Census Bureau.

U.S. Census Bureau — Miami Beach place GEOID 1245025, population 83,251 (2024 Population Estimates), land area 7.693 sq mi (2023 Gazetteer).
Florida Health CHARTS — Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes, Ten Years Data by County (Florida Department of Health, from FLHSMV records). Miami-Dade is published as a rounded figure of 60,000 for 2024. · reviewed 2026-07-29
FLHSMV Crash Dashboard · reviewed 2026-07-29
HIFLD Local Law Enforcement Locations, derived from the BJS Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies (2008), imagery-validated to 2018 · reviewed 2026-07-30
Florida Constitution Article V, and the Florida State Courts System trial court structure · reviewed 2026-07-30
Fla. Stat. § 95.11 — Limitations other than for the recovery of real property · reviewed 2026-07-29
Fla. Stat. § 768.81 — Comparative fault · reviewed 2026-07-29
Fla. Stat. § 627.736 — Required personal injury protection benefits · reviewed 2026-07-29
Fla. Stat. § 768.28 — Waiver of sovereign immunity in tort actions · reviewed 2026-07-29
Florida DHSMV — Insurance requirements · reviewed 2026-07-29
North Broward Hospital District v. Kalitan, 219 So. 3d 49 (Fla. 2017) · reviewed 2026-07-29
Fla. Stat. § 768.73 — Punitive damages; limitation · reviewed 2026-07-29

About this page

State law on this page was last reviewed 2026-07-29 and has not been reviewed by a licensed attorney. It is general information, not legal advice for your situation.

Local commentary on this page was prepared 2026-07-31 and checked automatically against the sources cited on this page. It has not been individually reviewed by a person.

We do not publish attorney profiles or rankings, and nothing on this page recommends or endorses any attorney. CaseValuation.com is operated by LuxeLaw LLC, which is not a law firm.

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