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Premise Liability Slip and Fall

Premises liability in New York deals with unsafe property conditions due to the owner’s lack of maintenance or care, resulting in injury to someone who enters the property. In a premises liability case, such as slip-and-fall, the injured party may need to supply proof that the property owner is liable. The first step involves the injured party proving he or she was legally on the property. The second step in a premises liability claim is proving that the owner failed to fix or block off danger on the property that a reasonable person would recognize.

If someone is injured while legally on someone’s property and the property is dangerous in some way in which the owner is aware but did not warn the guest or fix the problem, the owner is liable. Generally, this is if the owner permitted access to the property. For instance, if an object goes into someone’s yard, which is locked with warnings to stay out, and the owner allows the object’s owner to retrieve it, the property owner is granted entrance. If a dog waits inside the fence and the object’s owner is bitten, the property owner is liable.

If a worker is injured due to dangers on a property known to the owner, the property owner is responsible. If someone trespasses and is unknown to the owner, the owner may not be liable for injuries that the trespasser suffered. The exception to this is if there is a danger on the property that the property owner knows would attract children, such as an unfenced pool.

An attorney could help someone prove that their injury was due to an owner’s negligence by reviewing the circumstances surrounding the incident. The attorney may file a personal injury claim to help the individual recover financial damages from medical care and time lost at work.

What you should know about slip-and-falls

Most people fall at least once in a while. At times, falls happen when a person isn’t paying attention to the environment around them and as a result, they lose their footing. Some falls happen to people who have a medical condition that affects their concentration or balance. Most of the time falls that happen for these reasons do not qualify for slip and fall personal injury insurance claims. However, if the reason for your fall can be directly connected to some mismanagement of property by the property owner, it is possible that you will be able to gain compensation for your injuries.

Deciding Whether Your Fall Is Your Fault

Before you file a personal injury case against a property owner, it is important to go through the details of your accident in order to determine whether you should have reasonably been able to avoid the fall. Slip-and-fall accidents aren’t limited to people who slip on some surface, such as an icy sidewalk or wet floor in a shopping mall. Other causes may include broken floor tiles, uneven sidewalks, potholes, objects on stairs, lighting lower than expected, and more.

Reasonable Expectations

If the accident happened at least partly because of your own carelessness or clumsiness, there is a good chance that the court and/or insurance company will base compensation on a certain level of comparative negligence. People are generally expected to conduct themselves in a way that will mostly keep them safe. If you tripped on an uneven sidewalk and sustained injuries from the fall in part because you were reading text messages on your phone, fault will likely be determined based partly on your own inattention and the property owner responsible for that particular patch of sidewalk. As a person walking, you should reasonably be able to expect the sidewalk to be relatively smooth, but you should also be expected to watch where you are walking.

Rules Of Negligence

Whether a person is eligible to make a claim, basic rules of negligence need to be looked at and the claimant needs to show that the property owner had the power to prevent the accident by being more attentive to the condition of their property. Some things you need to prove are:

  • The property owner or manager either knew about a hazard, or should have known, and did not take steps to correct the issue
  • The property owner or manager could have prevented the accident, but did not
  • Someone else put in a similar situation would likely suffer injuries as well

Framing A Claim Or Lawsuit

If it is determined that a slip-and-fall lawsuit is plausible, the claimant (person who fell) and their attorney need to identify who should be held responsible and prepare their case as to why. While this may be the property owner, it may also be a landlord or business order or an employee or tenant. If you’ve been injured in a slip and fall accident in the New York City area, an experienced Accident Attorney can discuss the circumstances of that accident and help you determine whether pursuing a lawsuit is the best course of action for your situation.

About Daniella Levi & Associates P.C.

After a serious accident, many people are in desperate need of the financial support that comes from a successful result of their personal injury claim. To ensure that you have the best chance at obtaining the compensation you deserve, your lawyer should be just as invested in your case as you are.

At Daniella Levi & Associates, P.C., headquartered in New York City, we believe strongly in upholding the rights of accident victims. We are dedicated advocates for our clients, fighting, and using every available resource, to obtain the compensation they deserve.

Daniella Levi & Associates P.C. has 3 Locations in NYC: Levi Law Queens | Levi Law The Bronx | Levi Law Mineola

For all correspondence, please use the Queens office address.

The information on this website provided by Daniella Levi & Associates, P.C. is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice or a substitute for competent legal counsel. Privacy Policy | Terms of Use


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