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Whenever one person visits another person’s property, whether it is a home or business, they expect to be safe from harm. Unfortunately, people who poorly maintain their property can be responsible for any injuries that happen as a result. However, there is a very specific framework for subsequent personal injury claims.
A California slip and fall lawyer can represent individuals who have been injured while on another person’s property due to spills, poorly maintained stairs, and structural defects. An experienced injury attorney understands how California laws work in these cases and can pursue the compensation that injured individuals deserve.
California Laws Regarding Slip and Fall Cases
Personal injuries that result from a slip and fall are pursued under the tort known as premises liability. Premises liability allows people who are injured due to the negligence of property owners to recover compensation for their injuries.
Specifically, there are four parts, or elements, of a premises liability claim that a plaintiff must prove under California Civil Jury Instruction 1000. These are:
- That the defendant owned, leased, or controlled the property
- That the defendant was negligent in their use or care for the property
- That the plaintiff was injured
- That the defendant’s negligence was a significant factor in causing the plaintiff’s injury
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Establishing Negligence
The question of whether the defendant was negligent in their care or in their use of the property is usually the central question of a California slip and fall claim. According to California Civil Jury Instruction 1003, this is defined as when a condition created an unreasonable risk of harm that the defendant knew or should have known about, and the defendant failed to repair or warn of the condition.
Using an example of a milk spill in a grocery store, the store owner clearly is the owner of the property. A spill certainly creates an unreasonable risk of harm, as one does not expect wet spots while shopping.
Lastly, the store employs many people and also has security cameras. One would expect that the spill would be detected quickly and cleaned. All of this adds up to a strong premises liability case for the plaintiff.
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Over the years, we have witnessed just how difficult the insurance companies make it for honest people to recover compensation for their injuries. Injured people too often accept low settlements or give up on pursuing compensation because insurance companies deny their claim or make it difficult to recover damages.
We started The Sargent Firm Injury Lawyers to provide legal guidance and personal care to people struggling with the sudden and unwelcomed disruption that a serious accident brings to their life. We make it our purpose to ensure that anyone who suffers substantial damages in an accident in California has the resources they need to fight for fair compensation.
