If you or a family member received burn treatment at UF Health Jacksonville, your medical records document the full clinical severity of your injuries in the rigorous standards of a University of Florida academic medical center. Those records are powerful legal evidence — and Florida's 4-year statute of limitations gives you time to act, but critical evidence begins disappearing within days of an accident.
The UF Health Jacksonville Burn Center is Northeast Florida's only ABA-verified burn treatment facility, operated by UF Health Jacksonville — the University of Florida's academic medical center in Jacksonville. As the region's highest-level trauma and burn care provider, UF Health Jacksonville serves a catchment area that extends well beyond Florida's borders into coastal Southeast Georgia, drawing referrals from community hospitals and trauma centers throughout the First Coast region and the Georgia coastal counties that lack a comparable burn treatment facility.
UF Health Jacksonville is a Level I Trauma Center, reflecting its capacity to manage the most critically injured patients on a 24/7 basis with a full complement of surgical subspecialties immediately available. The burn center provides acute burn care including wound management, skin grafting, escharotomy, and inhalation injury treatment, as well as reconstructive surgery and long-term rehabilitation for patients with complex burn injuries. Its designation as part of the UF Health system connects it to one of the nation's leading state university health networks, ensuring access to cutting-edge clinical protocols and thorough academic-standard documentation.
Jacksonville is one of Florida's most industrially significant cities — home to major naval and commercial shipbuilding, a large military presence at Naval Station Mayport and NAS Jacksonville, an active deepwater port, and one of the Southeast's most rapidly growing construction and logistics markets. The industrial profile of the region generates a significant volume of occupational burn injuries, many of which involve third-party defendants whose negligence provides the basis for substantial personal injury claims.
Jacksonville's economy is anchored by industries that carry substantial burn risk. The city is home to one of the U.S. Navy's most significant shore installations on the East Coast, and both Naval Station Mayport and NAS Jacksonville support extensive ship repair and maintenance operations that involve welding, hot work, and the handling of flammable propellants and aviation fuels. Civilian defense contractors and shipyard workers at these facilities and at Jacksonville's commercial shipyards face burn risks that are distinct in both their technical causes and their legal framework from typical industrial workplace burns.
The Port of Jacksonville (JAXPORT) handles a diverse cargo mix including automobiles, bulk petroleum products, roll-on/roll-off heavy equipment, and containerized freight. Port workers — including longshore workers covered by the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) — face burn exposure from bulk cargo fires, tanker operations, ship repair hot work, and the handling of hazardous materials. Federal maritime law provides specific protections for longshore and harbor workers that operate parallel to — and in some cases more favorably than — Florida's workers' compensation system.
Jacksonville's construction market has been one of the fastest-growing in the Southeast, with significant residential, commercial, and infrastructure development across Duval County and surrounding St. Johns, Clay, and Nassau Counties. The construction trades — particularly electrical workers, welders, and ironworkers — face persistent arc flash, torch burn, and gas line strike hazards on Jacksonville job sites.
Florida requires employers with four or more employees to maintain workers' compensation insurance under Florida Statutes § 440.02, and Florida workers' comp provides your employer with broad immunity from direct tort suits for covered injuries. However, Florida Statutes § 440.39 expressly preserves your right to pursue a third-party personal injury claim against any party other than your direct employer whose negligence contributed to your burn injury. In Jacksonville's industrial, maritime, and construction economy, these third-party defendants often include general contractors, equipment manufacturers, vessel owners, maritime facility operators, and chemical suppliers.
For maritime workers at JAXPORT or Jacksonville's naval facilities, federal law may apply instead of or alongside Florida state law:
Florida's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is 4 years from the date of injury under Florida Statutes § 95.11(3)(a). For claims against public entities including the City of Jacksonville (a consolidated city-county government), JEA (the city-owned utility), or state agencies, a pre-suit notice must be filed within 3 years under the Florida Tort Claims Act, § 768.28(6)(a). Federal maritime law claims under the Jones Act carry a 3-year statute of limitations. LHWCA claims have specific filing requirements with the U.S. Department of Labor.
Because Jacksonville burn cases frequently involve maritime law, federal contractor law, and Florida state tort law simultaneously, retaining an attorney with experience across all three legal frameworks is essential. Call us for a free consultation to understand which legal system applies to your specific situation and what your claim may be worth.
UF Health Jacksonville's academic medical center documentation standards ensure that your medical records capture the full clinical reality of your burn injury in a format that translates directly into persuasive legal evidence. Records produced during your acute care and follow-up treatment at UF Health Jacksonville will include burn depth and TBSA assessments performed by certified burn care specialists, operative reports for all surgical interventions including skin grafting and reconstructive procedures, inhalation injury assessments documenting both immediate airway damage and long-term pulmonary impact, and comprehensive rehabilitation records tracking your functional recovery.
If your burn was caused by a third party's negligence — a general contractor's unsafe worksite, a ship owner's failure to maintain safe hot work conditions, defective equipment, or a chemical supplier's failure to warn — you likely have a viable claim under Florida or federal law. Jacksonville's maritime and defense contractor workforce often has claims under the LHWCA, Jones Act, or Defense Base Act in addition to or instead of Florida workers' comp. The combination of an ABA-verified burn center treatment record and a strong third-party liability theory can support a very significant claim. Call us or submit the form above for a free review — no fee unless you win.
Florida's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is 4 years from the date of injury under Florida Statutes § 95.11(3)(a). However, several important exceptions apply in the Jacksonville area: claims against public entities including the City of Jacksonville, JEA, or state agencies require a 3-year pre-suit notice under the Florida Tort Claims Act (§ 768.28(6)(a)); Jones Act claims have a 3-year statute of limitations; and LHWCA claims must be filed with the U.S. Department of Labor within specific deadlines. If your burn occurred in a maritime context, the applicable statute of limitations may be shorter than 4 years. Contact an attorney immediately to ensure you do not miss any deadline.
Yes. Under HIPAA and Florida law, you have the right to request your complete medical records from UF Health Jacksonville's Health Information Management department. You can submit a records request through UF Health's MyUFHealth patient portal, or by submitting a written authorization to the medical records office. Your attorney can also send a HIPAA-compliant records authorization directly to UF Health Jacksonville on your behalf, which is typically the most efficient approach to obtaining the complete operative reports, burn mapping documentation, and rehabilitation records needed for litigation.
Get a free case review from a burn injury attorney familiar with the Jacksonville and First Coast area.
Florida's 4-year statute of limitations is generous — but maritime claims may have shorter windows, and evidence disappears fast. Get your free review today and protect your rights under Florida and federal law.
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