Delray Beach Slip and Fall Lawyer
Slipping and falling because of a foreign substance on the floor of a business, public place, or a residence can cause injuries ranging from a twisted ankle to brain damage. If a serious injury happens, a legal avenue may be available to pay for the resulting monetary damages.
To find out, contact an experienced Delray Beach slip and fall lawyer for a free, no obligation consultation to evaluate if a legal cause of action is warranted. With the help of a qualified injury attorney, you can see what you are potentially owed.
The attorney will work on contingency, which means the attorney’s fees are paid by a small percentage of the money awarded for damages, but if the case is not successful the fee is not charged.
Types of Falls
Slipping and falling is caused by something slippery which can be a liquid or an object. Stepping and falling involves stepping into a hole or over a rough surface. Tripping and falling happens when there is a protruding object such as a raised edge of a sidewalk or walkway.
Florida Slip and Fall Laws
Florida has a specific section of law (Statute § 768.0755) for slip and fall cases that reaches into premises liability and personal injury laws.
Premises Liability
The person who slips and falls has the burden of proof to show that the owners or controllers of the place where it happened knew that the hazard was there but did nothing about it. For example, a wet grocery store aisle is a hazard, and if the manager was told about it but did not assign an employee to quickly clean the area the manager had “constructive knowledge” of the hazard.
Constructive knowledge is provable by circumstantial evidence that shows the dangerous condition existed for long enough that a person at the establishment should have used ordinary care for corrective action and the dangerous condition happened often so the danger was foreseeable.
Personal Injury
Personal injury is harm caused by the negligence of another person or entity. This area of law falls under Florida’s comparative negligence standard, which reduces the amount a person who causes an accident can claim in damages. Negligence has elements that the injured person must prove:
- Duty of care: A person or entity has a legal obligation not to cause harm to another person
- Breach: An action or not acting violated duty of care
- Causation: But for the breach the fall would not have happened
- Proximate cause: A particular and foreseeable event occurred
- Damages: A monetary loss resulted
A Delray Beach slip and fall attorney can speak more towards what goes into proving negligence.
Potential Damages in Slip and Fall Cases
Taking legal action is to achieve a monetary award that will pay for the various losses that occurred, including:
- The costs of medical care and therapeutic treatments
- Present and future lost earnings
- Cost associated with any disability that happened
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
In situations that exacerbate a previous injury, it may also be listed as damage under the “eggshell plaintiff” rule.
Statute of Limitations
In Florida, someone who is injured in a slip and fall incident has four years to sue for damages.
How a Delray Beach Slip and Fall Attorney Can Help
A Delray Beach slip and fall lawyer will try to protect a person’s legal rights and stand up to companies and governments that will try to contest the fault of the slip and fall or limit damages. The first step is sending the offending party a letter demanding damages. If that is rejected, the attorney will file a lawsuit.
As many slip and fall cases are settled rather than going to trial, the Delray Beach slip and fall lawyer will try to negotiate a fair settlement that covers the injured party’s related bills and distresses.