How To Prove Your Slip And Fall Case
Michael Babboni
Personal Injury
In the state of Florida, anyone who has experienced a slip and fall injury has four years from the time of their accident to file a lawsuit. In Florida slip and fall injury cases, comparative negligence will be considered in your case which will affect the overall value of your lawsuit. With comparative negligence, the property owner of the slip and fall scene may present their own evidence that the slip and fall accident was at least in part the fault of the injured person, lowering your settlement amount as you assume partial responsibility for your injuries.Some common slip and fall comparative negligence points that the property owner may bring up are:
• You were in an unexpected part of the property – If your slip and fall occurred on a part of the property where visitors aren’t allowed, where people normally don’t go, or that was away from the main portion of the property, a property owner may use this to claim that your presence there in general was reasonably unexpected.
• You weren’t paying attention at the time of the fall – If you were engaged in active conversation or using your phone at the time of the fall, the property owner may claim that your lack of attention contributed to your slip and fall accident.
• The conditions should have been obvious – If you were walking along under a tree and a seed or branch from that tree caused your slip and fall, the property owner may claim that the conditions should have been obvious and particular care should’ve been paid.
• Your footwear was inappropriate – If you were walking along a wooded or uneven area in a pair of sandals, rather than boots or athletic shoes, the property owner may claim that your footwear was a point of negligence that lead to your slip and fall accident.
If the property owner successfully presents any proof of your own responsibility in your case, your slip and fall lawsuit may be thrown out or you may be considered at least partially responsible for your accident. For this reason it’s crucial that you have a skilled Florida personal injury attorney guiding your case and representing you in a lawsuit.
Proving Your Own Case
How strongly you are able to prove your own case matters in comparative negligence and proving that you’re entitled to the compensation you’re asking for. In your own case, you and your Florida personal injury attorney will seek to prove:
• The property owner’s duty of care – The first thing you’ll prove in your case is that the duty of care fell upon the property owner in keeping visitors to the property safe.
• The property owner was negligent – After proving a certain duty of care is to be expected, you’ll then prove that the property owner was negligent in providing this level of care. Either by leaving debris in an area, failing to have signage alerting to hazards, or poor upkeep, you and your personal injury attorney will prove that it was this negligence that was responsible for your accident.
• It was the property owner’s responsibility – Lastly, you’ll prove that the negligence was the direct responsibility of the property owner to counter any responsibility the property owner maybe believe is your own.
Proving a slip and fall case in the St. Petersburg region can be complicated, which is why it’s important to trust your case with only a skilled Florida personal injury attorney.