San Diego-based attorney Mark C. Blane keeps a blog on his website with regularly posted messages on a wide range of issues related to his practice and focus areas: major traumas like brain and spinal cord damage, insurance companies' practices, case settlements, court decisions and legal news, pedestrian and cyclists accidents, premises owners' and occupiers' responsibilities, dog bites, and unsafe products, etc. Request a regular feed on subjects of interest to you or visit us frequently to stay up to date.
Simply choose a practice area from the drop-down menu below to read news and information about accidents, injuries, and cases similar to yours. You will be kept informed on important legal developments in a wide-variety of injury cases and the law.
However, workplace slip and fall accidents are rarely litigated because of California workers’ compensation protection laws under the California labor code...
Slip & falls at construction sites account for more than 68,000.00 injury claims each year and at least 100 of them are fatalities. These accidents may involve
Cluttered aisles in a California retail store can be a major problem for the owner. I have been to some retail stores and noticed that merchandise tend to get picked up by customers and placed on the floor. One such store is the Ross Dress for Less stores.
The law in California has clearly established the business owner's duty to inspect, maintain and make safe the business premises; especially if any hazard or defect is found on the premises. This is to protect the public, patrons, or customers from any potential slip and fall accidents.
Whenever you are dealing with a California slip and fall injury accident, you always have the same three ingredients: the victim's shoes, the floor, and the person (slip and fall victim). The injured person needs to be able to narrow down the causes or issues of the accident in concise terms.
The supermarket or retail store has a duty to maintain its premises in a such a manner that it does not create an unreasonable risk of harm to the patrons or customers. It must, under California law, exercise ordinary due care under the circumstances of the slip and fall to minimize the commonly occurring slipping hazards (which caused the fall in the first place!).
The Notice evidentiary element is by far the most critical element in a San Diego slip and fall injury case that needs to be established as soon as possible in a case. Without the crucial notice evidence, there is very little hope of success for a slip and fall victim.
On occasion, a California slip and fall accident and injury can occur when there is no obvious hazard; the floor is dry and clean, free of any dangerous debris. Usually, slip and fall victims of this type of injury fall allege the floor was so dangerous due to it being over polished and shiny.
Since duty in a slip and fall negligence case attaches to the management of the property where the slip and fall occurred, an issue will arise as to the control of the premises. A landlord may have control over the common areas of an apartment complex, but not over the interior of individual dwelling units. In the same context, the tenant of an apartment building will not have control over the common areas of the apartment building. Thus, in the analysis of a San Diego slip and fall case, it is necessary to decide whether the at fault party had or should have had control over that portion of the premises where the slip and fall accident happened. That is the question of the entire injury case.
Most jurisdictions require that the landowner use the level of care of an ordinarily prudent adult to prevent an unreasonable risk of harm. Under this legal rule, the custom and practice of industry is often used to establish ordinary care. As an example, abrasive admixtures added to exterior paint on walkway surfaces is ordinarily used in apartment complexes to reduce the risk of injury on wet walkway surfaces.
FREE books by San Diego Slip and Fall Law Firm: The basis of California slip and fall law stems from proving a property owner breached a duty owed to the injured slip and fall victim. Injured parties used to be faced with frightful burden of proving both breach of duty and notice. Over time, the courts have eased the injured parties' burden in regards to this burden (rightfully so too in my opinion). A 1954 California case called Hale v. Safeway Stores held that frequent inspection of the sales areas in markets was necessary and that 12-15 minutes between inspections would not be unreasonable.
San Diego Slip and Fall Victim: The plaintiff's attorney for a California slip and fall victim must effectively present the victim of the slip and fall accident, who is quite frequently the only witness to the incident. (Interestingly, with the advent of technology, more and more of my clients are able to use their cell phone camera modes to video tape what happens after a slip and fall including witnesses). Remember, only the victim can best describe the conditions of the walkway surface and those events occurring immediately before the slip and fall accident. To succeed at a slip and fall trial, the credibility of the victim is extremely important.
Identifying the Hazardous Condition: In most California slip and fall cases, some physical feature or condition is a major contributing factor in the injure party's fall. The hazard may be as simple as water on the floor of a supermarket or as complex as a subtle variation in the riser height of a step in a stairway. In each case, something caused the injured person to fall down.
California is a comparative fault state. This fancy word means that the citizens of California are held legally responsible in court only for their share, or their portion, of an injury to another. More specifically, a property owner may not be 100% at fault for a slip and fall; they can be apportioned a degree of fault, if facts exist to support it; for example instead of 100% fault, they can be say 75% at fault, and the injured party 25% at fault. Thus, if the value of an injury from a slip and fall were $100,000.00 then that value is deducted by 25% or $25,000.00, and the value award to the injured party would be $75,000.00.
The legal term "reasonableness" and your California premise liability case can often times be confusing to some injury clients. When you set about to show that a property owner is liable for the injuries you sustained in your California slip and fall accident, you will most likely have to show, at some point, the reasonableness of the property owner's actions that led to the injury in the first place. In order to help you with this situation, here are some questions that you should be able to answer before starting a case with a lawyer in California:
What person, or entity, can be held to be at fault in a slip and fall accident? There are very serious injuries that are associated with these types of accidents. It can happen on a defective flight of stairs; I have seen cases where the hand rail is defective and gives way causing a fall that causes a serious traumatic brain injury. In that particular case, the landlord had notice of the defective condition and failed to remedy it in a reasonable amount of time. Sometimes the owner of the property is at fault, and sometimes he or she is not at fault.
If you have been injured in a slip or trip and fall type accident, you must, in California, consider the following elements in your claim:
1. consider whether or not the hazard was “open and obvious;” i.e., was it easily seen? If not, then the liability tends to increase to the land owner, but you must navigate two more elements: 2. was the hazard within the “control and dominion” of the property owner? Did the property owner cause the dangerous condition, or the spill, or did a product within the control of the defendant fall on the floor causing the hazard or “hazardous condition?” then consider: 3. did the property owner have notice of the dangerous condition and fail to remedy it? Or, alternatively, if the owner did not know of the dangerous condition, should he or she have known about it? This final standard is known “as constructive notice” as opposed to “active notice.”
Many lawyers are afraid to represent an injured party in a slip and fall claim because liability can be very difficult to prove. At my law office, I am happy to meet with anyone who believes they may have a claim. I do a thorough consult and I navigate the legal standards to see if liability exists at all. Should you be injured in a slip and fall accident, or know someone who has, you may call me (Attorney Mark C. Blane) anytime at (888) 845-6269, or direct at (619) 813-7955.
VIDEO ON SAN DIEGO TRIP ACCIDENTS CAUSING MAJOR INJURIES:
I am a California lawyer in San Diego that represents many people with injuries sustained from a slip and fall; or a trip and fall, due to the negligence of another. I have posted this blog to help share video information for the public: Please go the following URL to see my youtube.com video by clicking here: San Diego Slip and Fall Lawyer, Trip and Fall Attorney, Win Your Slip and Fall case
VIDEO ON SAN DIEGO TRIP AND FALLS: THE LAW ON CALIFORNIA PREMISE LIABILITY:
My name is Attorney Mark C. Blane. I am a San Diego Attorney that handles are sorts of Slip and Fall, Trip and Fall injuries since 1999. Here is some information on what you need to know in order to prove your case in a court of law:
1. The hazard you slipped on must not be open or obvious (this is lawyer language for “not easily seen by you”); you must be able to show that the hazard was not seen by you in a reasonable way; for example, the color of the hazard blended in with the color of the floor;
2. The hazard was within the control and dominion of the at-fault party; for example, it was a product that fell off the shelf of a store that caused the floor to become slippery; that is what is meant when one says “control and dominion.”
3. The hazard was in place for a long time; something beyond a reasonable time frame and the at fault party either knowingly failed to do something about it, or negligently failed to do something about it.
VIDEO ON PREMISE LIABILITY: WHEN A SAN DIEGO SLIP AND FALL OCCURS, WHAT TYPE OF INJURIES HAPPEN, AND HOW DOES ONE PROVE THEIR SAN DIEGO TRIP AND FALL CASE VIDEO:
Insurance companies always scrutinize liability on a slip and fall case more so than they do with an automobile case. Why do they do this? The simple answer is they can because there are more elements to prove in a slip and fall case than in a rear-end car accident. Thus, liability in a slip and fall, or trip and fall case is always up for grabs. Protect yourself by hiring an experience Slip and Fall, or Trip and Fall injury lawyer.
Here at the Law Offices of Mark C. Blane, we strive to make sure liability is never a main issue or concern; we follow up this making your sure your injuries are properly documented and you are on a good path for full recovery. Your health is important and we do not move forward with any settlement discussions until you have been fully released from medical care. We can also help you with your medical care in terms of aiding you by making sure there are doctors who are willing to work with you if you have no health insurance. For information, log on to www.blanelaw.com.
VIDEO ON SLIP/TRIP & FALLS CAUSING SEVERE BODILY INJURY IN SAN DIEGO AND CALIFORNIA:
More of my slip and fall clients are able to document evidence with their cell phone cameras more than ever before. As technology increases with cell phones, so too the image quality on the camera used in cell phones. Thus, most clients understand the need to document what hazardous condition they slipped or tripped on. Everyone has heard the old saying “a picture says a thousand words.” Pictures can often times help show what the hazard was that became the dangerous condition before it is remedied. Since most people have cell phone cameras it is becoming more and more common. To check out more information on Slip and Falls, or Trip and Falls, check out my video at: San Diego Slip and Fall Lawyer, Trip and Fall Attorney, Win Your Slip and Fall case
Injuries in a Slip/Trip and Fall Case – Southern California Slip and Fall Attorney – Important Information on Slip/Trip and Falls
The types of injuries I see with Slip and Fall injuries are numerous. I usually see:
1. Spiral fractures; 2. Ankle breaks; 3. Wrist Sprains/fractures (since some clients are guarding their fall)
When a Slip and Fall Accident occurs, it is important for a consumer to select an Experienced Slip and Fall Attorney because these cases can be extremely tricky. It is not like a rear end accident where liability is clear; often times these cases are scrutinized on liability by the claims adjuster, and then even more so by a defense attorney if the claim proceeds in litigation. For more info on the above, go to the following video: San Diego Slip and Fall Lawyer, Trip and Fall Attorney, Win Your Slip and Fall case
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SAN DIEGO COUNTY SLIP/TRIP AND FALL INJURIES, PLEASE SEE THE FOLLOWING SLIP AND FALL VIDEO ON CALIFORNIA TRIP AND FALL LAW:
Premise Liability law is the area of law where one person or entity can be held responsible for the damages/injuries to another person. This can be due to an injury that occurred on the premises.
My law office handles all types of Premises Liability injuries in San Diego, and through out California. I have been handling these types of cases since 1999. For more information on San Diego Premise Liability law, you can check out the following video link: San Diego Premises Liability Lawyer/Attorney
IF YOU HAVE BEEN INJURED IN A SLIP AND FALL (PREMISES LIABILITY) ACCIDENT, PLEASE READ THIS:
My name is Attorney Mark C. Blane and I have been practicing in all of the San Diego County Courts since 1999; I represent injured folk who have been injured in what lawyers call Premises Liability Accidents. This can be a slip or trip and fall, or any injury that is caused while you are on someone else’s property. I have represented prior clients simply because merchandise have fallen on them from unsafe shelving or because certain safety features were not in place at the time of the injury. If you would like more FREE information please click the following link for a video on these specific types of injuries and FIND OUT WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO WIN YOUR PREMISES LIABILITY CASE: SAN DIEGO PREMISES LIABILITY ATTORNEY-Talks About What You Need To Know With Your Slip or Trip and Fall Case
San Diego Slip & Fall Attorney Discusses: Slip/Trip & Fall Accidents Causing Bodily Injuries
Slip and fall accidents can cause tremendous injuries; at times, they are known to cause spiral fractures in the lower extremities, or even hand fractures when a person is bracing for a fall. At times, the trip and fall accident itself can cause minor to severe “soft tissue” injuries. The point here is you can really get injured from these type of accidents which makes them extremely unique than a typical car accident. In San Diego, I have been practicing in Slip/Trip & Falls since 1999.
PLEASE WATCH A VIDEO I DID ON SAN DIEGO SLIP & FALLS:
More Legal Questions About San Diego California Injury Accident Cases?
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The Law Offices of Mark C. Blane, APC
GOLDEN EAGLE PLAZA
525 B Street, 15th Floor
San Diego, CA 92101
Toll Free: (888) 845-6269
Direct: (619) 813-7955 The San Diego California Injury Accident Law Firm that offers FREE Legal Help Books to anyone BEFORE they speak to a Lawyer, Claims Adjuster, or have to sign any Legal Forms; also we represent clients across Southern California including the following areas: