Slip and Fall Attorney

Slip and fall accidents occur when a person, invited to be on someone else's property, slips or trips on that property and sustains a bodily injury. These types of injuries can occur in a home (other than your own) or at a business or a location open to the public, like a wedding venue or an amusement park, for instance. Besides getting immediate and consistent treatment for your injuries, caused by the slip and fall accident, the most important actions to take, when you are involved in a slip and fall accident are to report the accident to the property owner, immediately, or as soon as possible, and to gather all slip and fall evidence.

Important evidence-gathering steps to take after a slip and fall accident injury are as follows:

If you are on commercial property, make a report to the manager and get a copy of the report. Most commercial properties should have their own form that you will need to complete.
If you are on private property, make a report to the property owner, in writing, and make sure to get a copy of the report. You will most likely need to write essential facts, like address, date, time, a brief description of how the injury occurred, injuries, etc., then sign the paper and if possible, have the property owner sign it as well.
Take photographs of the dangerous condition that caused your slip and fall accident.
If there is a video recording of the slip and fall accident - Request that the video evidence not be destroyed, and Request a copy of the video.
Get written and/or digitally recorded statements, with contact information, from every witness to the slip and fall accident and to the dangerous condition.
Take photographs of your injuries, from the very beginning, until they have completely healed or if there is scarring until the scarring has stopped changing.

A broader category that slip and fall accidents fall under is called premises liability. The broader term, premises liability, covers injuries on property, like slip and fall accidents, but it also covers other accidents on property, like falling objects, swimming pool accidents, and dog bites.

One interesting note, in order to be protected by premises liability laws, in most states, the injured party must not be a trespasser (on the property illegally). The injured party must have been invited, individually, or through public invitations (advertising, being open for business to the public, etc.), to be on to the property where the slip and fall accident occurred.

Slip and fall accidents can be the result of many different types of property owner negligence. Examples of issues that cause slip and fall accidents are OSHA and building code violations, greasy/slippery floors, inadequate lighting, poorly maintained buildings, inadequate security, unmaintained grounds, unidentified or hidden changes in land elevation, among many other dangerous conditions.

Some common locations where slip and fall accidents occur include:

Grocery store
Movie theater
Amusement park
Sporting event
Home of another
Office
Job site
Car wash.

Common injuries from slip and fall accident

Injuries from slip and fall accidents vary greatly, in severity and location, as far as what part of the body, but some of the more common slip and fall injuries include:

Traumatic brain injury or lesser included head injury, like a concussion

A traumatic brain injury occurs when, upon impact in the car accident, your brain slams into your skull. There are varying degrees of traumatic brain injuries, from a concussion (which is a bruise on your brain) all the way to total brain death.

Broken hip

A slip and fall victim will most likely experience pain from her fall. However, a hip fracture will create a much more intense pain that will be felt mainly in the hip or groin. No tolerance for weight. A sign of a hip fracture will be an inability to put any weight on the leg on the side of the injured hip.

Spinal cord injuries

A fall or slip that twists the spine can cause a disc to rupture, causing the softer inner portion of the disk to herniate. This creates pressure on the surrounding nerves, which can result in moderate to intense pain, tingling and numbness, and muscle weakness.

Shoulder injuries

One of the most common types of injury that may occur after a fall is a dislocated shoulder. As the person attempts to stop the fall, the force of impact can easily dislocate the shoulder. A shoulder dislocation can be very painful, and if it is not quickly treated, it can lead to long-term complications.

Sprained ankles or wrists

The symptoms of a sprained wrist are similar to a sprained ankle — swelling, bruising, and tenderness. You may feel popping or tearing inside the joint, which likely means the tendon has torn.

Knee injuries

Bones like the kneecap may directly break and softer tissue, such as ligaments, cartilage, and tendons, can be torn, sprained, or inflamed after slipping. These are some of the most frequent knee injuries suffered from a slip or fall incident.

Fractures

A broken bone or fracture is the injury a fall victim is most likely to suffer. Falls often cause shoulder and forearm fractures, spine fractures, pelvic fractures and hip fractures.

Cuts

This includes severe cuts, broken teeth and jaw fractures, nose fractures, and eye injuries. In many cases, slip and fall accident victims will suffer facial injuries in addition to suffering a concussion or other form of TBI.

Bruises

The bruises and cuts you suffered when you slip and fall can appear severe but may be less serious than other injuries listed below. It's not unusual to suffer bruises on your arms, legs, head or hips. However, these bruises aren't always minor. Frequently, bruising and cuts hide more serious injuries below the skin.

In a slip and fall accident case, once liability has been accepted, the property owner is responsible for dangerous property conditions and if those dangerous conditions cause injuries, in a slip and fall accident, the property owner may also be responsible for those injuries.

In Texas, the injured party must prove both that the owner of the property was in some way negligent and that the negligence caused the slip and fall accident. This is a higher standard than other states. When the injured party is able to provide evidence that the dangerous condition, on the property, was not obvious or openly visible, he or she may have a better chance of successful claim resolution.

To make a successful claim, when injured by a hidden danger, the injured party must typically prove

the knowledge of the property owner and
at least 48 hours to rid the property of the dangerous condition.

The injured party needs to be prepared for the property owner to claim that the injured party holds some portion of responsibility for the slip and fall accident.

Some potential proportionate responsibility arguments include:

the injured party was on a part of the property that people do not normally go to,
the injured party was not paying attention (using a cell phone or some other distraction),
the injured party was not wearing appropriate or safe shoes or foot coverings, for the property where the slip and fall accident occurred;
the dangerous condition was made obvious by warning signs, cones, or some other obvious notification, but the injured party chose to ignore those warnings, and
the dangerous condition was so obvious, that the injured party should have been aware of and avoided it.

This is not a complete list of proportionate responsibility claims, but it gives the injured party a good idea of what attacks to be prepared to disprove.

Don't fight this battle alone!

Establishing fault and proving liability, on a slip and fall accident claim or a premises liability claim can be VERY difficult. It is very important to hire a slip and fall accident attorney as soon as possible. There are many elements of a slip and fall accident claim and it is best to have someone on your side, dealing with and gathering evidence, not only of fault, but also of damages. I have been fighting for the rights of the injured for over 20 years now and have dealt with many premises liability/slip and fall accident cases. Give me a call and let's fight this battle and win this war together!

Contact me today!