Fault and Liability in California Slip and Fall Accidents

Countless people sustain injuries each year while on the property of another person or business. Some of these injuries could have been prevented if the owner, manager or occupier of the property had taken basic safety precautions or behaved as a reasonable person would have in the same situation.

Every slip and fall or trip and fall accident does not automatically result in a personal injury claim, but some of them do. It takes a skilled personal injury attorney to know the difference between a frivolous case and one that is likely to succeed. Slip and fall, trip and fall or other premises liability cases must involve three distinct elements in order to be successful:

• The presence of a defective or dangerous condition on the property at the time of the injury
• The owner/manager/occupier of the premises either knew about the dangerous condition or should have known about it (the “reasonable person” standard – the owner is imbued with the same knowledge that a reasonable person would have had in the same situation)
• The defective or dangerous condition was present long enough for the owner/manager/occupier of the property to have undertaken repairs or taken action to prevent future injuries

In the simplest terms, a property owner, manager or occupier has a duty to keep their premises safe for visitors and free of dangerous conditions that present an unreasonable risk to people coming on to the property. It is important, though, that the property owner, manager or occupier realize that his or her negligence could create a dangerous situation that could, in turn, cause injury.

Slip and fall cases are surprisingly complex, so if you or a loved one has been injured in a slip and fall or slip and fall case, consult an experienced personal injury attorney in your area to learn more about your legal rights and options.