Accidents and injuries happen, but victims wonder if they have legal recourse when an accident is caused by another person’s behavior. Whether a victim pursues an insurance claim or a personal injury suit, Slip and Fall lawyers in Pennsylvania may be able to prove that someone else is responsible. This guide discusses liability, which is a key component in slip and fall cases.
Slip and Fall Liability Theories
To hold another entity responsible for a slip and fall injury, victims must prove one or more of the following factors.
- A facility owner or employee should have seen the dangerous condition and taken steps to fix it, but they failed to do so. The question here is if the condition would have been considered hazardous by a reasonable person, and if the defendant had a chance to fix the issue before the incident.
- An owner or worker caused the danger that led to the accident by leaving an obstacle in a walkway. For this assertion to be successful, a reasonable person must be able to foresee an accident resulting from the dangerous condition.
Proving Liability and Negligence
The reasonableness criterium frequently comes up in settlement talks and at other points in a slip and fall case. To be considered negligent and to be held liable, an owner or an agent must have failed to act according to the “reasonable person” standard. In determining the reasonableness of the defendant’s actions, the plaintiff should consider:
- Whether the condition existed long enough for a reasonable person to take action to eliminate it
- Whether the owner routinely checked for potential dangers
- Whether the creation of the hazard was justifiable
- Whether preventive measures could have lessened the severity of the danger
- Whether limited visibility or poor lighting was a factor
Proving the Absence of Contributory Negligence
In a slip and fall case, the facility owner or their insurer might argue that the plaintiff shares responsibility for the incident. This is known as comparative fault, and most jurisdictions codify the concept in contributory negligence law. State law affects the ability of Slip and Fall lawyers in Pennsylvania with Website Domain to make a recovery for a client who is found to share some of the blame for his or her injuries.
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