BOARD CERTIFICATIONS:

Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education (certified in 1990) (re-certified in 1995; 2000)

 PROFESSIONAL STATUS:  

• Law Offices of Carl Scott Schuler, P.A. (December 2000 to present)

• Saalfield, Coulson, Shad & Jay (May 1999 to December 2000)

• Tygart & Schuler, P.A. (March 1987 to April 1999)

• S. Thompson Tygart, Jr., P.A. (January 1981 to March 1987)

• A.V. Rated by Martindale Hubbell

  PERSONAL DATA:  

• Born in Summit, New Jersey, June 27, 1956.

• Married (Karen Schuler) (January 1, 1985) two (2) children, Eric (18) and Melanie (16)

• University of South Florida, Tampa (A.A. 1975).

• University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida (B.A., with High Honors, in Speech Communication/English 1977) (J.D. with Honors, 1980).

• Board Member - University of Florida Law Review

• NITA Advanced Trial Advocacy Skills Program, Holland Law Center, Gainesville, Florida 1988

 ORGANIZATIONS:

• National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA), Member, Advocacy/Litigation Specialty    Interest Group

• Jacksonville Trial Lawyer’s Association

• Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers

• Association of Trial Lawyers of America

• Jacksonville Bar Association

• The Florida Bar (admitted October 1980), Member Elder Law Section

• Admitted to State and Federal Courts, including United Sates Courts of Appeal for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits and the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

COMMUNITY SERVICE:

• Volunteer Leader - Jacksonville Young Life - 1980-1987

• Volunteer Youth Leader - Arlington United Methodist Church - 1994 to present

• Member - East Arlington Rotary Club - 1992 to present

• Executive Board Member - East Arlington Rotary Club (1992-1994)

• Jacksonville Young Life Executive Committee (1987-1994)

• Volunteer Attorney - Greater Arlington Soccer Club  - 1995 to present

• Layperson Of The Year - Arlington United Methodist Church - 1994

• Volunteer Soccer Coach - Greater Arlington Soccer Club - 1996, 1997

• Jacksonville Bar Association - 100 Hours Community Service Award - 1991

• Paul Harris Fellow - Rotary International

• Counsel for United Tang Soo Do Federation

• Counsel for Judo Ryu Jacksonville

• "Adventures in Video Surveillance,” presented to East Arlington Rotary Club, March 2000

• “From Vision to Victory,” a celebration of the history, traditions and vision of Arlington United Methodist Church for over 100 years.  Producer/Video Screenplay Author

• “Use of Surveillance to Combat Fraudulent or Overstated Claims,” educational videotape, produced October 2000

• "Making Best Use of Surveillance and Other Video Techniques,” live presentation to Jacksonville Chapter of International Association of Special Investigation Units (IASIU), presented November 1, 2000

• “The Abrogation of the Collateral Source Rule” 1983, presented to the Jacksonville Bar Association at their Amelia Island Seminar

• Ethics for Trial Lawyers” 1992 presentation given to the Jacksonville Bar Association

• Elder Law and Elder Law Litigation Seminars at Shepard’s Center (3/9/01 thru 4/27/01)

• "Creative Use of Surveillance and Other Video Techniques,” presented to Florida Liability Claims Institute, Orlando, FL 2001

• Columnist/Golden Times Newspaper - February 2001 to present

PLAINTIFF CASES HANDLED SUCCESSFULLY BY CARL SCOTT SCHULER:
(2000 To Present)

Mr. Schuler got his early training as a defense lawyer.  A summary of his most recent defense trials is found below.  In 2000, Mr. Schuler started his own firm, and decided at that time to begin focusing his practice on the representation of injured people.  A big reason for this change was Mr. Schuler’s feeling that big corporations and insurance companies would often fight about things just because they had more power and more money, and justice was not always done.  A summary of Mr. Schuler’s successful cases since 2000 is presently being prepared and should be ready for publication by Jan. 1, 2006.  Highlights from this summary will appear on Mr. Schuler’s home page.

DEFENSE TRIAL SUMMARY:

• 17 of 17 cases resulted in favorable verdicts (jury found either no liability or no permanent injury. 

•  Liability admitted in 6 cases.  Of 11 cases where liability was contested, 1 case was dismissed by Plaintiff after jury selection (liability evaluated in this case by carrier at 50/50).  Of the 10 cases that went to the jury on liability, all 10 had been evaluated by carrier as cases of 100% fault on Defendant.  Of these, in 2 cases, the jury found no liability whatsoever on the part of Defendant and in 7 cases found at least some comparative negligence on Plaintiff. 

• 14 out of 14 cases where permanent injury issue went to the jury resulted in jury verdict of no permanent injury.

• In only 4 out of 17 cases did Defendant pay any money to Plaintiff at all (mostly for small amounts of unreimbursed medical expenses/lost wages – always less than Plaintiff’s final settlement demand).

• In 10 of 17 cases, substantial judgments in excess of $10,000 were awarded against Plaintiff and in favor of Defendant.

• In 4 cases, Plaintiffs actually paid and/or are paying substantial amounts to carrier following cost/fees judgments in favor of Defendant.

  PUBLISHED APPEALS:

Caldwell v. Allstate Ins. Co., 417 So.2d 1040 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982).  The Caldwell case involved the definition of a “replacement” vehicle within the meaning of a “plain English” automobile liability insurance policy.  The decision in Caldwell has been cited by appeals courts in Kansas and New York, as well as by ALR 4th, Couch on Insurance, and Fla.Jur.2d.

Hardin v. Montgomery Elevator Co., 435 So.2d 331 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983).  This case, in which I represented a plaintiff who was injured in an elevator, was a significant contribution to the strict product liability law in the state of Florida.  This case has been cited several times by the appellate courts in the state of Florida, by ALR 4th, by the Product Liability Reporter, by Fla.Jur.2d, by ALR 3rd, and by the University of Miami Law Review.

Empire Fire & Marine Insurance Co. v. Truck Insurance Exchange, 462 So.2d 76 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985).  This case dealt with the effect of ICC Regulations on motor carrier liability.  This case has been cited by the appellate courts in Florida, Alabama, Ohio and Michigan, as well as by the Federal Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta. 

Crawford v. Shivashankar, 474 So.2d 873 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985).  Held that liquid crystal thermography has not yet reached a degree of acceptability required for admissibility into evidence.  Involved Frye-type issues.  Has been cited numerous times by the appellate courts in Florida, as well as appeal courts in Colorado, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Washington.  Has also been cited numerous times by Fla.Jur.2d, as well as by Am. Jur. 2d, ALR 2nd, ALR 4th, American University Law Review, Mississippi College Law Review and University of Missouri at Kansas City Law Review.

Douglas v. Wilson, 472 So.2d 876 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985).  Taxation of costs issue.

Stephens v. Rohde, 478 So.2d 862 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985), rev. den., 488 So.2d 832 (Fla. 1986).  Held that a claim for punitive damages could be maintained against the estate of a deceased tortfeasor.  Unfortunately, I was on the losing side of this appeal, which has been cited several times by the appellate courts in Florida, as well as by Dickinson Law Review, Duquesne Law Review, and University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Journal.  The case was also cited by the Alaska Supreme Court, which agreed with our position.

Kirkland v. Thurmond, 519 So.2d 717 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988).  Dealt with taxation of costs issues.

Morey v. Harper, 541 So.2d 1285 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989), rev. den. 551 So.2d 461 (Fla. 1989).  Unfortunately, I was on the losing side of this case, which held that allegedly “uncontroverted” medical testimony could not be rejected by a jury, and that therefore it was inappropriate for a jury to reject such testimony in rendering a “no permanency” verdict.  Although the Florida Supreme Court denied review in this case, five years later in Weygant v. Ft. Myers Lincoln Mercury, Inc., 640 So.2d 1092 (Fla. 1994), the Florida Supreme Court agreed with the defense position in Morey and disapproved of the holding of the First DCA in Morey.  The law in the State of Florida now virtually mirrors the position I asserted as appellee in Morey v. Harper.

Strachan Shipping Co. v. Spigner, 573 So.2d 926 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991), rev. den., 583 So.2d 1034 (Fla. 1991).  Declaratory judgment action involving worker’s compensation immunity.  This was an interesting case involving fourteen longshoremen who were injured on a transport trailer inside the hold of a cargo vessel.  The First DCA upheld our position that the existence of immunity from liability pursuant to worker’s compensation law was an appropriate subject for declaratory relief.  The trial involved complicated issues of metallurgy and welding science, and resulted in a victory for the defense.  This case has been cited many times by the appeals courts in the State of Florida, and by Fla. Jur. 2d., and also has been cited by Am. Jur. 2d.

Lucas v. Tyson, 644 So.2d 616 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994).  This appeal affirmed the trial court result, which was a defense verdict resulting in a judgment against plaintiff Lucas.  Plaintiff Lucas was a passenger in a vehicle being driven by our insured, who allegedly was intoxicated and who allegedly fled the scene of the accident, after he ran into a concrete light pole at a high rate of speed.  The plaintiff suffered, among other injuries, from a complete tear of the left pectoral muscle.  However, the jury found that the plaintiff was significantly comparatively negligent by voluntarily getting into a vehicle with an intoxicated driver, and the jury ruled that the plaintiff also should have his damages reduced by a significant percentage because of the Plaintiff’s failure to mitigate damages by obtaining medical care and following doctor’s advice.

Bauer v. Hardy, 651 So.2d 748 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995).  Interesting case involving the collectability of mediator’s fees directly from plaintiff’s lawyers.  This case has been cited by Fla. Jur. 2d and also by the Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution.

Sova Drugs v. Barnes, 661 So.2d 393 (Fla. 5th DCA 1995).  In this case, involving the alleged negligent mis-filling of a prescription, the Fifth DCA held that a pharmacist was not a “health care provider” pursuant to the provisions of the Florida Medical Malpractice Reform Act.  This case has been cited numerous times by the appeals courts in the state of Florida, and also by the Federal Court for the Northern District of Florida, as well as the state court of Alabama, and by ALR 5th, Am. Jur. 2d., Fla. Jur. 2d., Nova Law Review, University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform, and also by University of Missouri at Kansas City Law Review.