All About Slip and Fall Accidents: Can You Sue, What to Prove, and the Injury Claim Process

There are often times when you get into an accident on someone else’s property. Sometimes, it happens because of an action (or lack thereof) of the owner of that property, and if this accident results in any sort of injury to you, you may file and slip and fall lawsuit against the owner of that place. It is a legal right, and you should make sure you get justice. However, it’s not as easy as it sounds to prove in court that the property owner was, in fact, responsible for your injury. Here are some things you can do to prove that you were actually innocent. A Los Angeles slip and fall lawyer might be able to help you out with your case.

What you need to prove

In order to hold the other party responsible, here are some things that you will need to provide proof for:

• If a person that had any sort of authority on the property (the owner or his employees) saw the danger but purposefully did not do anything about it. If, on recognizing the situation as potentially harmful, they failed to provide safety, then they can be held liable. However, it is a question of whether or not this person saw the situation as hazardous.

• If the accident was sabotage. If you believe that that hazard was purposefully created by the owner or anyone else on the property that worked there, or maybe it was even due to negligent behavior, i.e. leaving something dangerous on a walking path, making it very easy for someone to fall and hurt themselves, then you need to prove how that could have been possible.

Proving negligence and liability

The one word that you will most likely hear a lot during these proceedings is “reasonable”. This is due to the fact that in order for anyone to be held responsible, they must have failed to act “reasonably” sensible in a dangerous situation. The judge decides what’s reasonable, so there isn’t much you can do there except emphasize the intensity of the situation. 

• The dangerous situation might have existed for a really long time without anyone tending to it.

• If there was a reasonable excuse for the hazardous situation to have been created, they cannot be held liable.

Proving yourself innocent

This may be difficult to prove because you will have the most to lose. The defense might accuse you of causing the accident yourself, and if you are proven to share the blame, you will not receive compensation for the damage that has been caused to you. Answer these questions to yourself first.

• Did the defense engage in any activity that may have prevented them from noticing the hazard?

• Why were they in the dangerous area to begin with? Was it legal?

Were there any warning signs posted at the scene of the fall? And did you choose to ignore these warnings and go there anyway?

You can also take help from South Florida Injury law firm for legal advice.