Los Angeles Slip and Fall Lawyer

Los Angeles slip and fall lawyer Cyrus Shahriari points out that slip-and-fall or trip-and-fall accidents are a form of premises liability. If you suffer a serious personal injury because your fall was due to the carelessness or negligence of another, you may be eligible to collect compensation for your damages, including medical care, lost wages, and so on.

Slip and fall accidents – or trip and fall accidents – can happen anywhere: schools, restaurants, shopping centers, hospitals, stores, airports, city streets, movie theatres, or at someone’s home.

Causes of Slip and Fall or Trip and Fall Accidents

The most common causes of these accidents include:

  • Poor or careless maintenance
  • Faulty design
  • Bad construction
  • Inadequate lighting
  • Failure to warn
  • Broken or uneven pavement or concrete

Though these are the most common causes of slip and fall accidents, at Los Angeles slip and fall lawyer Cyrus Shahriari also has seen people injured because they:

  • Slipped in oil or grease left on a floor or a parking lot
  • Tripped on an exposed cable
  • Fell on a badly maintained or designed stairway
Responsibility for the Slip and Fall

The responsibility for your slip and fall could be one or any combination of the following:

  • Property owner
  • Renter or lessee of the property
  • Employer
  • Contractor or sub-contractor
  • Manufacturer of a defective product
  • City, county, state or federal government entities

California has a comparative negligence law. This means that the responsibility for your slip and fall accident may be due to the negligence of more than one entity. The court determines what percentage of fault each party is responsible for, and that entity is responsible for that amount of damages.

For instance, if you fell off a ladder at your workplace, the manufacturer could be 50% responsible for your injuries if the ladder was found to be defective, and your employer could be 50% responsible if there was grease on the floor. If the court awarded you $1 million in damages, the ladder company would be responsible for $500,000 and your employer would be accountable for $500,000.

Determining who is responsible for your slip and fall accident and applying premises liability law is complicated. That is why it is so important that you have a personal injury attorney, such as Cyrus Shahriari, who is experienced in slip, trip and fall accident cases.

What You Can Recover

If you have a slip and fall accident, you may be able to recover damages for:

  • Physical injuries
  • Emotional distress
  • Loss of a loved one who is killed or disabled
  • Medical costs
  • Pain and suffering
  • Lost wages
  • Loss of future earning capacity
  • Loss of financial support
  • Damage to other physical property

It is important to remember that compensation is an opportunity for you to regain much of what you lost due to your injuries. Typically, the monies paid out comes from the individual’s or entity’s insurance company.

You Can Afford a Slip and Fall Attorney

Slip, trip and fall lawyer Cyrus Shahriari takes cases on a contingency basis. This means you pay nothing until your case is resolved.

It is important to your case that you contact a slip and fall attorney at The Shahriari Law Firm as soon as possible. This will allow them to gather evidence and to contact witnesses before witnesses disappear.

All personal injury cases have deadlines by which time you must have filed a case if you intend to. The deadlines are unforgiving. If you miss the deadline, you give up all rights to ever get compensation for your injuries.

Contact a Slip and Fall Lawyer

For a free, no-obligation consultation, contact slip, trip and fall lawyer Cyrus Shahriari at The Shahriari Law Firm.

Slip and Fall — Trip and Fall
Frequently Asked Questions

Q: I tripped and fell in the grocery store, do I need a premises liability lawyer or a personal injury lawyer?

A: If you suffered personal injuries when you tripped and fell, you need a personal injury lawyer to handle your premises liability case. A premises liability lawsuit holds the owner — and in some circumstances the renter and/or the maintenance company — responsible for your being injured on their property. Besides slip and fall and trip and fall lawsuits, examples of premises liability cases may include swimming pool injuries, inadequate security, dog bites, and restaurant, gas station, and retail store liability cases.

Q: How much is my slip and fall case worth?

A: There is no set amount as to how much your slip and fall case is worth. It depends on the extent of your injuries, how much your medical care and wage losses are, how much insurance is available, who was negligent, and which personal injury attorney you choose to represent you. To learn about your legal options, contact Cyrus Shahriari of The Shahriari Law Firm.

Q: Do I have to sue my friend if I fell and hurt myself badly at their house?

A: You never HAVE to sue anybody. But if you’re worried about suing your friend to recover compensation for the damages you suffered when you fell at their house, don’t worry. Homeowners are required to carry homeowners insurance for just this reason. Compensation is typically paid by their insurance company, not by the individual homeowner.

Q:  Who do I sue if I slipped and fell at work?

A: In most circumstances if you slipped and fell at work you will be able to file a workers’ compensation claim to cover your medical bills and lost wages. You usually can’t file a lawsuit against your employer if you were injured at work. The major exception is if a third party — someone other than your employer — was responsible or partially responsible for your injuries and damages. For instance, if you slipped and fell because of a wet floor and if the janitorial service was a separate company, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the janitorial company. Talk to a personal injury lawyer to find out your legal options.

Q:  Can I sue the city for the broken sidewalk where I fell and suffered serious personal injuries?

A: If you are injured on government property — city, county, state, federal — you can bring a lawsuit against the appropriate entity, but there are special rules that must be followed. If you don’t follow these rules, you might lose your right to bring a lawsuit. The first rule is that you usually must file a formal notice of injury with the proper government entity. Be aware, that each entity might have different notice requirements. We strongly urge you to contact a personal injury attorney with experience in bringing government lawsuits.