THE UPS AND DOWNS OF SLIP AND FALL CASES

A Slip and fall injury claim or lawsuit is considered something of a peculiarity in personal injury cases. Many people perceive this to be a case where a plaintiff tries to sue a defendant for injuries sustained because of the plaintiff’s own carelessness or awkwardness.

Common Sense Response

Property owners who are normally the defendants in slip and fall actions, have a number of cogent precedent defenses to rely upon. For instance they might contend that a situation was “open and obvious” implying that had the plaintiff exercised a reasonable degree of care he/she would have observed the hazard that caused the slip and fall, and avoided it.

Legitimate Ignorance

Another defense argument could be “lack of notice” suggesting that the premises owner is not liable because he/she had no prior knowledge of the hazard till the plaintiff was injured. Furthermore, even though it proved to be a hazard on the premises, it gave no indication of being one or else the plaintiff would, in all conscientiousness, have taken steps to remove or remedy the hazard.

Mother Nature is the Culprit

While the onus is on a premises owner to clear public sidewalks in front of his/her premises and to maintain the sidewalk in a manner which poses no danger to members of the public who use it, many courts permit a defense against injuries resulting from claimed defects of snow or ice. The contention in this case is that the hazard was “open and obvious” in the first instance, and that it was the result of natural runoff and accumulation rather than neglect or something created by the premises owner.

Premises liability situations which weigh heavily against the premises owner involve hazards created by him/her. For example, the owner might have removed fence posts leaving deep holes that have become obscured by an overgrowth of grass. The owner fails to warn visitors that the premises have deep and dangerous holes that might not be visible. This is a clear case for an injury claim. Liability is unclear in cases of similar holes being made by burrowing animals.

Someone to Notify

If you are the victim of a slip and fall injury, a personal injury lawyer will assess your case toward raising a claim for compensation.