Long Beach Slip & Fall Accidents Lawyer

Long Beach, California Slip & Fall Accidents Attorney

Whether you or a loved one has ever been involved in a slip and fall accident, you’re likely somewhat familiar with how severe these incidents can be. Injuries from slip and falls at work, during school, or in other areas are extremely common, but few people understand that they have legal options after an injury.

Unfortunately, when individuals are involved in slip and fall situations, catastrophic injuries could be the outcome. Sometimes, however, a slip and fall accident could be the immediate result of another party’s negligent behavior—just because an individual slips and falls, that doesn’t mean that they are the one responsible for their incident. Much of the time, that person probably wasn’t behaving clumsily. Instead, many slip and fall accidents are highly preventable and occur because someone failed to provide adequate protections to other individuals on the property.

These types of slip and fall accidents fall under the category of personal injury law. And, when it comes to instances of personal injury, it’s almost always in your best interest to hire an attorney as soon as possible.

If you’re headed off to personal injury court following an accident, then chances are, you weren’t the party who was responsible for the injuries you’ve sustained. Consequently, it isn’t your responsibility to cover the costs of treatment or other expenses—or, more accurately, it shouldn’t be your responsibility. Nonetheless, if you fail to take the appropriate legal action, then you will be held responsible for medical bills, lost wages, and more.

Have you or a loved one been injured in a slip and fall accident resulting from another party’s negligence? If you’re in the Long Beach, CA, area, it is essential to contact McLachlan Law as soon as possible. That way, you can swiftly begin working toward a fair settlement.

How Are Slip and Fall Injuries Typically Defined?

Compared to many other legal scenarios, instances of slip and fall are relatively simple to understand. In essence, the title itself is quite an accurate descriptor.

More precisely, a slip and fall injury results when someone trips, slips, or otherwise falls, often due to a particular property’s unsafe conditions. For instance, if the property features uneven or wet surfaces, this will pose an obvious risk to visitors—as such, if the property owner fails to correct the issue, they could be held liable for any injuries that occur on the premises.

Defective sidewalks, stairs, or seating could also cause slip and fall accidents, as well as potholes in the driveway. Essentially, if it is a clear safety risk and the property owner has failed to mitigate or correct it, they are setting the stage for someone to sustain a slip and fall injury.

Ultimately, however, slip and fall accidents can occur at any location under any sort of hazardous circumstances. Therefore, regardless of the specific conditions, if the individual fell and injured themselves (often due to another party’s negligence), it could be time to open a premise liability claim.

Can I Sue for a Slip and Fall Accident?

Simply put, yes, you can sue following a slip and fall accident. However, the cause of the accident is an essential variable to account for before opening a personal injury claim.

Slip and fall scenarios can occur for several reasons, and not all those reasons relate to the negligence of one or more parties. Sometimes, these incidents are precisely that: lamentable accidents, which can potentially lead to serious injuries.

That being said, a good deal of the time, slip and fall instances aren’t simply accidents. Sometimes, they are the direct result of someone else’s failure to uphold their duty of care. So, of course, premises liability is an important variable to take into account as you work to determine the party responsible for the slip and fall and the injuries that it caused.

So, if you suspect that the slip and fall was the product of someone’s negligence or could be connected back to premise liability, then yes, you can sue for compensation. Suing is probably the wisest decision in many instances.

No matter the severity of your injuries, you’ve likely accumulated medical bills as a result of the slip and fall. You might also be faced with lost wages or earning capacity, or even projected medical expenses that you could face in the future. If you weren’t responsible for the injuries you sustained, then it isn’t fair for you to handle the array of expenses you’re now facing.

Should I Get a Lawyer for a Slip and Fall?

Maybe you suspect that the slip and fall accident (whether yours or that of a loved one) was the product of another party’s negligent behavior and the risk it caused to the safety of others. If this is what you suspect, you are probably ready to take the issue to court to be appropriately compensated. However, while jumping headfirst into a legal battle can be tempting, this is rarely a smart move.

Before you begin fighting for a settlement, make sure that you’ve hired a qualified slip and fall attorney first. If you’re eager to get the case over with and to move on with your life, it can be incredibly tempting not to bother with hiring an attorney altogether. After all, if you’ve already looked into personal injury court, you may have discovered that it’s technically possible to represent yourself.

While it’s possible to represent yourself in personal injury court, this certainly doesn’t mean that it’s a wise idea. This is easily one of the quickest ways to sabotage your entire case from the onset. If you lack personal injury or general legal experience (which is the case for much of the general public, understandably), then you haven’t developed an understanding of how to navigate the system.

For instance, a slip and fall attorney will know exactly what a judge is looking to see or hear, to successfully prove the other party’s liability.

Without the relevant experience, it won’t take long for your entire claim to crumble beneath your feet. However, if you hire a personal injury attorney, you’ll have a sturdy support system to hang onto throughout the entirety of your slip and fall claim.

Who Is Responsible for a Slip and Fall Accident?

Determining who is responsible for a slip and fall accident isn’t always straightforward. However, for your personal injury claim to succeed in court, it’s a necessity that you prove responsibility on the other party’s behalf. Otherwise, the judge will have no incentive to compensate you for your injuries.

Proving who was responsible for the slip and fall accident will be the crux of your claim. So, in these instances, the most effective route to proving liability involves showing that the property owner was negligent and failed to employ the necessary safety precautions. Thus, the owner of this property was actively putting visitors at risk, which led to the accident and its resulting injury.

But, how should you and your attorney build a case against the property owner? What information will you need to gather to convince a judge that the other party was indeed at fault for your injuries?

To begin, you’ll need to prove to the court that the property was dangerous. If the property can’t be proven to have dangerous conditions, it is unlikely that your case will proceed. On the other hand, if the property appears to have been safe, you won’t prove the owner’s fault.

Nonetheless, that’s not where it ends. Not only will you need to prove that conditions on the property were dangerous, but additionally, you’ll need to show that the property owner was aware of this fact. Alternatively, you’ll need to prove that the owner should have known about the danger if they adequately upheld their duty of care. If the owner had no reason to know that their property was dangerous, this could genuinely throw a wrench in your claim.

Finally, you’ll need to demonstrate to the court that the property owner had sufficient time to handle the unsafe conditions. If the owner were aware of the danger and had a significant amount of time to remedy the issue, they would be highly negligent if they ignored the situation. If you can succeed at proving this fact to a personal injury court, then you’re well on your way to receiving a hearty settlement.

What Is the Average Settlement for a Slip and Fall Accident?

Naturally, depending on the nature and severity of your slip and fall accident, the amount you could be compensated will vary. As a consequence, the range of typical slip and fall settlements is quite broad: If you were injured in a slip and fall accident and choose to take the issue to court, you’re likely to receive a settlement between $15,000 and $45,000, roughly.

Again, we realize that this is a wide range—before you’ve consulted with an attorney, one-on-one, it won’t be possible to make a more accurate prediction of what you could receive.

For instance, if the injuries you sustain are on the minor side, then there’s a chance that your settlement could fall below that $15,000 lower range. This could also be the case if your claim lacks strength, and you might not be able to prove that the opposing party was entirely responsible for the accident.

On a completely different hand, it’s possible to receive a settlement greater than $45,000, depending upon the context of the slip and fall accident. This is likely to be the situation if you sustained severe or catastrophic injuries in the accident and have a solid case to back up your negligence claims. With a legally strong case comes a higher settlement, more often than not. Again, this is why it is essential to hire a reputable personal injury attorney—they will be able to aid you in creating the most robust possible case and earn you the largest possible settlement.

How Long Does It Usually Take to Complete a Slip and Fall Claim?

Although you’re eager to return to your day-to-day life, it’s crucial to remember that slip and fall claims rarely wrap up overnight. The total length of the case can certainly vary, and more complex cases (often with more variables to account for) are going to last for more extended periods.

Although it isn’t the most precise answer, slip and fall claims can last anywhere from a few months to a few years, on average. But, of course, some cases are going to take longer to settle than others—if you’re concerned about how long your slip and fall claim could take, you must discuss this with your attorney as soon as possible. They will be able to provide you with a more specific time frame based on the details of your case.

McLachlan Law: The Slip and Fall Experts of Long Beach, California

As we’ve established, whenever you or a loved one is injured in a negligence-based slip and fall accident, you have every right to demand adequate compensation. However, receiving a fair settlement isn’t as simple as heading down to the courthouse and laying out your case to a judge. Instead, you’ll need to sufficiently prove that the other party was acting negligently, and this is what led directly to the slip and fall injury. Unfortunately, without an experienced personal injury lawyer, this can be difficult to impossible to prove.

Instead, make sure to hire someone who understands the intricacies of personal injury court, including the specifics of working a slip and fall case. In the Long Beach, CA, area, McLachlan Law is your go-to resource for legal aid after you’ve suffered a slip and fall injury. We put all our efforts and energy into winning you the settlement you rightfully deserve.

If you or someone you love has suffered from a slip and fall injury, you need experienced legal help. Get in contact with McLachlan Law for optimal outcomes in your personal injury case. Simply schedule a consultation by filling out the contact form on our website today.