Going through something as serious as a slip and fall incident in California, means you, the victim, are entitled to seek out compensation for your injuries and emotional turmoil. However, there is a time limit on when you can file for this type of suit, and if you miss it, your case will be dismissed immediately. Therefore, it is in your best interest to know exactly when to take action in order to not miss out on what you are owed.
What Is the Statute of Limitations?
The Statute of Limitations is simply a legal term used to denote when a plaintiff can make a claim. This timeline varies from state to state and case to case. After a slip and fall takes place, there are two common paths to tread. Firstly, the victim will file an insurance claim against the liable party. Secondly, the victim may go straight to a slip and fall injury lawsuit instead. When it comes to this type of incident in California, victims have two years to file a formal complaint in court. After this, your case will possibly be invalid and you will be entitled to nothing at all. The slip and fall accident lawyer team at Karns & Karns Personal Injury and Accident Attorney firm can talk this through with you.
How is a Slip and Fall Accident Defined?
If you are involved in a slip and fall accident, you will have tripped or fallen. To file a suit you should believe that someone neglected a duty of care, or that the accident could have been avoided if certain steps had been taken in the run up to the event. People fall all of the time, after all, so to create a lawsuit or insurance claim, there has to be a real injury and a just cause for pursuing this path.
Premise Liability
This is where the topic of Premise Liability comes into play. For a property owner to be liable, there has to be a reason. It is not just as simple as falling on someone’s property and saying it was their fault. The insurance adjuster or attorney will be looking for a justifiable reason behind the filing, and you will have to prove it. The key will be in the details, and this should always be discussed with your trip and fall accident attorney.
Determining Culpability
Top slip and fall lawyers like Karns & Karns Personal Injury and Accident Attorneys understand what is needed to determine culpability in this kind of filing. Facts are essential, and we will talk to you about collecting evidence and the reasons behind you beginning the claims process in the first place. There are two main preliminary things you should know about to determine if you have a viable premises liability case.
Dangerous Condition and Notice
An owner of a property is required to maintain their property in a reasonably safe condition. If there is a dangerous condition on the property that causes an injury, then the pprperty owner is liable if they knew or should have known about the dangerous condition and didn’t do anything about it.
Are There Times When A Property Owner Is Not Liable?
There is always a chance that a property owner will deny liability. They may prove that there were sufficient warnings in place, or that they made the correct provisions to avoid a slip and fall from taking place. It is up to your attorney to explore this.
The Most Common Causes of Slip and Fall Incidents
What kind of things can cause a slip to happen? This answer entirely depends on the environment at the time of the incident. There are a number of factors that can lead to accidents of this nature, and for a case to be viable, there has to be a provable amount of liability through some form of duty of care not being upheld. Typically, a slip and fall might take place if:
- Certain hazards have been left out, such as cleaning materials.
- Improper signage to mark a wet floor or construction zone.
- Lack of care in the environment.
- Insufficient lighting.
- Uneven floors or the wrong type of flooring.
The Most Common Consequences of Slip and Fall Accidents
These injuries can be quite serious. Each victim is different, of course, but there are some common outcomes that are associated with this type of accident. Here’s a list:
- Broken bones
- Lacerations
- Traumatic Brain Injuries
- Neck Injuries
- Back Injuries
- Fractures
Do not miss your chance to file if you are a victim of a slip and fall incident. You generally have two years from when the event happened to seek legal advice and take action. Missing this would mean you could be left with costly medical expenses and ongoing emotional burdens with no chance of financial support for what you have suffered through.
Talk to Karns & Karns Personal Injury and Accident Attorneys today and make an appointment to discuss the case more thoroughly with our team. You can come into the office or give us a call, just don’t delay.