Premises Liability / Slip and Fall Lawsuits

Many personal injuries and lawsuits are caused by dangerous conditions of property, and the largest category of such cases is the all-too-common slip and fall (or trip and fall) case / lawsuit. There are two general types of slip and fall personal injury cases: (1) where the landowner or business operator knew about the condition but did not alleviate it or at least warn about it prior to the accident (sometimes known as “actual notice” cases); and (2) where the landowner or business operator did not know about the condition prior to the accident, but did not have adequate procedures and practices in place to identify potential dangers and to fix them prior to an accident (“constructive notice” cases).

With actual notice personal injury cases, the defendant will either admit knowing the condition existed (especially where there are photos or video) or deny knowing about it. In the latter case, usually litigation is required before the defendant will admit to the knowledge of the dangerous condition. This is because a landowner or business operator is not obligated to give you the evidence until you ask for it in an actual lawsuit.

In “constructive notice” personal injury cases / lawsuits, the landowner or business operator has all of the evidence and usually the injured person has little or no evidence. Most of these cases require litigation to pry the evidence from the hands of the defendant. But this is not always necessary.

Again, insurers are well aware that the costs of pursuing a slip and fall (or trip and fall) court case may exceed the potential recovery, especially if lawyers are not experienced in handling such cases. Ken Ralidis has handled hundreds of slip and fall cases for supermarkets, stores and other businesses, so he is well familiar with the cost-benefit decisions and decision-making factors used by defendants. And he is aware of just when fighting aggressively for the injured client is going to produce results.

For example, he handled a personal injury case for a woman in her thirties who had slipped and fell in a restaurant bathroom. She had one of the top personal injury lawyers in the State of California. There were many difficult challenges in her case, including whether the restaurant had any liability at all (because the restroom did have mats), and the fact that she had many serious emotional traumas prior to the accident (which caused the defense expert to testify that all of her mental health issues and emotional damages preceded the accident). The biggest challenge was that multiple MRIs showed no brain injuries and no closed-head trauma, and there were no visible manifestations (“objective” evidence) of a head injury (no bruise, swelling, etc.). Yet she was eventually reduced to a wheelchair.

Eventually, because she refused to accept a quarter of a million dollars, her famous attorney dropped her case. She was representing herself for a year and a half. We met this challenge by getting her evaluated by more specific specialists, including a neuroradiologist and an osteopathic neuromusculoskeletal specialist. We were able to finally obtain an explanatory diagnosis and a treatment effective enough to get her out of her wheelchair. This personal injury case still had enormous challenges heading to trial, and the outcomes were uncertain. But we were able to obtain about one million dollars ($1,000,000) for her, just prior to the trial. She was able to move on with her life and pursue her music career again.

In a recent trip and fall personal injury case, the client was a dog groomer and made too much money to qualify for Medi-Cal and too little money to afford insurance. She tripped on some wires and broke her elbow. We were able to get her the needed surgery on liens (the doctors and hospital were not paid in advance; they were paid later, out of recovery funds, at a reduced negotiated level). The defendant had large pockets. The case resolved for a quarter of a million dollars ($250,000).

If you have a case and possible lawsuit similar to these, contact Ken Ralidis at 213.251.5480 today to see how he can help you get the compensation you deserve. We have often obtained results for our clients that are 10-25 times what the initial offer was. Don’t just settle for any attorney that may not have the experience, or a big law firm that doesn’t have the time or resources for a case like yours. Reach out to Ken Ralidis for his experience and the personal attention he offers. We can help you win your case!