Slip and Fall Cases

If you or a family member have been injured or died as a result of injuries sustained from a slip and fall accident, you may be entitled to receive money damages, which include but are not limited to, damages for pain and suffering, past and future medical expenses and lost wages. Slip and fall cases are a very common type of premises liability claim. Quite simply, the claims arise when a substance or debris on a floor causes a person to slip and fall and injure himself. The substance may be placed or spilled on the floor by an employee of the owner or occupier of the premises, by another invitee to the premises or caused by a particular method of operation of the owner or occupier causing the substance to be placed on the floor. The majority of slip and fall cases involve a substance spilled on the floor, but some cases also involve debris left on a floor that could cause a person to fall and injure himself.

The law of Florida regarding slip and falls is quite clear and requires the owner or operator of the premises to use reasonable care to protect people invited on the premises from dangerous conditions of which they may have knowledge. It requires them to take reasonable care to eliminate known dangers by excluding visitors from the area or warning them of the danger. Florida Statute Section 768.0710 was enacted in 2002 to clarify the law in the area of slip and falls. The statute states "the person or entity in possession or control of the business premises owes a duty of reasonable care to maintain the premises in a reasonably safe condition for the safety of business invitee on the premises, which includes reasonable efforts to keep the premises free from transitory foreign objects or substances that might forseeably give rise to loss, injury or damage". The statute goes on to state that in any civil action for negligence involving an injury caused by a slip and fall incident on a business premises, the injured party shall have the burden of proving a number of facts including, but not limited to, proving that "the person or entity in possession or control of the business premises acted negligently by failing to exercise reasonable care and maintenance, inspection, repair, warning, or mode of operation of the business premises. Actual or constructive notice of the transitory foreign object or substance is not a required element of proof to this claim..." Therefore, it is not necessary to prove that the business owner had actual or constructive notice of the object or substance which caused a person to slip and fall.

Generally, if a person slips and falls on private property which is not used for business purposes, the person in possession or control of said property or private residence has a duty of due care towards others who come onto his premises. If a land owner or one in control of the premises or property fails to exercise reasonable care to prevent harm for a person legally upon said property, he may be liable for any injury sustained by that person due to a slip and fall which occurred as a result of his negligence. Such a land owner or person in control of said property or premises also owes a duty of due care to any individuals injured as a result of a dangerous condition existing on the premises. The standard of care owed to a person legally invited upon one's premises, includes the following duties owed by the landowner:

1. The duty to use reasonable care in keeping and maintaining the premises in a reasonably safe condition;
2. The duty to give the invitee warning of any concealed perils which are known or should be known to the landowner and which are unknown to the individual

In many instances, businesses and/or homeowners who may be liable for injuries to others sustained as a result of individuals falling

We suggest that you consult with a lawyer experienced in handling premises liability cases before speaking to any insurance company adjuster or representative. Premises liability cases involving slip and falls and trip and fall cases often involve individuals with serious injuries who may be entitled to significant monetary damages. For these reasons, we strongly recommend that anybody who has been injured through a slip and fall or trip and fall incident immediately retain an attorney experienced in handling premises liability cases. Lawyers at Abramowitz, Pomerantz & Coffey P.A. are experienced personal injury lawyers who have handled numerous premises liability actions. If you or anyone you know may have a slip and fall or trip and fall claim resulting in injuries or death, our firm is available to analyze the situation and discuss the issues and strategies involved in bringing the claim. These include identifying the parties who own or control the subject property, analyzing the potential liability of the at fault party, evaluating the amount of damages you may be entitled to and the potential for successfully collecting any damages awarded from the at fault party or its insurer.

We urge you to contact us regarding any questions you may have about a possible premises liability claim with the knowledge that you are dealing with an experienced AV Rated law firm specializing in personal injury law. Our firm handles cases on a contingency fee basis, which insures that you will pay a fee only if you recover damages. We will be more than happy to provide you with a free initial consultation to enable you to discuss the merits of your premises liability claim with one of our attorneys. Please feel free to contact us today by calling us at (954) 572-7200, by email at info@abrpom.com or by filling out our online claim form.