Complications of a Slip and Fall Injury Claim
Slip and fall injuries occur commonly and many times they are the result of negligence on the part of the property owner or operator. This is termed premises liability in the legal field and applies to injuries suffered on the property of another party. However, the mere fact that an individual is injured on the property of another individual does not necessarily automatically mean a personal injury claim will be valid, as the same principles that apply in other injury claims apply in premises liability.
It is incumbent upon the injured plaintiff counsel to prove that an injury occurred and that the respondent had a responsibility for reasonable duty of care toward the injured party. In addition, the plaintiff attorney must also prove that the injury was the fault of the respondent's failure to provide that reasonable duty of care. This failure can be direct or indirect, but there must be significant correlation between the fault and causation to establish negligence. These cases are always be defended vigorously, and individuals claiming a premises liability injury will always need an experienced personal injury attorney when they pursue slip and fall settlements.
Documentation
Personal injury claims are required to have supporting documented evidence that the injury occurred and medical treatment was necessary. Even when an injury does not appear serious, it is always important to seek medical attention anyway because this is documentation of the injury and the medical diagnosis. Injuries that require attention from paramedics will often result in an emergency room record initially and will begin the validation process of the injury. Your slip and fall attorney can then gather all information concerning official reports, including the internal report of the respondent if they are a business, and formulate the proof of a reasonable duty of care for all respondents.
Comparative Negligence
Comparative negligence is the legal concept that anyone involved in an accident could potentially have contributed to the causation. All parties to a claimed accident are assessed for comparative fault after the cause is determined, and this percentage can have a significant impact on a slip and fall claim. In Georgia, anyone assessed at greater than 50% fault for an accident cannot recover any damages, and then the amount of total damages available is discounted by the percentage lower than 50%.
