Paducah Slip and Fall Lawyer
Kentucky law states that businesses and property owners have a duty to keep their premises free from hazards, including those that may cause a person to slip and fall.
If you have been injured because of an unsafe property condition, our Paducah slip and fall attorney at Bryant Law Center P.S.C. may be able to help you recover compensation for your injury.
Our personal injury lawyers in Paducah can investigate to determine whether you have a case and fight on your behalf, while you recover from your injuries without stress. If you have been injured in a slip and fall accident in the Paducah area, contact us for a free, no-obligation case evaluation today to learn what legal options you have available.
Your time window to file is limited. Kentucky statute of limitation laws for a slip and fall lawsuit must be filed within one year of the date of the accident. Don’t wait, get in touch with us today.
The Slip and Fall Lawsuit Process
In most slip and fall accidents, you will need to file a claim with the owner of the property’s insurance company. The insurance company will send an adjuster out to investigate the incident who may try negotiating a settlement with you.
Insurance companies are always trying to do what’s best for them — not you. You should seriously consider speaking with an attorney who specializes in personal injury law in Kentucky before speaking with the adjuster. An attorney will help guide you through the process, negotiate for you, and even take your claim to trial if they have to.
Important: The settlement process can take weeks or even years. This is one of the reasons why it’s so important to work with an attorney as they will handle everything for you from the start of your claim to finish when you receive your settlement check.
Proving Negligence in a Slip and Fall Case
If dangerous conditions on the property caused you to slip and fall, proving negligence in the case is a process that hinges on both cause and intent.
The first thing to do when trying to prove negligence is to figure out why you slipped or fell in the first place. Was there something slippery present? Were walking surfaces uneven or did they lack appropriate lighting? If so, these conditions are what an attorney will look for to build your case.
In the legal sense, your attorney will investigate if the following conditions are satisfied:
- The property owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition on the property.
- The property owner failed to repair the dangerous condition or did not provide proper notice to visitors about the dangerous condition.
What Does “Dangerous Condition” Mean?
A property is considered to have a dangerous condition when an attribute of the property creates a substantial risk of injury when the property is used in a reasonably foreseeable manner. For example, if the property does not have safety features to prevent harm or is likely to cause injury.
What Areas a Property Can Be Considered Dangerous for a Slip and Fall?
Sidewalks, staircases, and other common areas of a property can be considered dangerous. For example, sidewalks that are not maintained or have cracks in them could lead to injuries if someone slips on the sidewalk while walking. Similarly, an improperly installed handrail can cause injury when someone is walking up or down a set of steps.
Additional Requirements Involving Children for Kentucky Property Owners
Under Kentucky law, property owners have a duty to keep their premises free from hazards that might attract and injury children.
This means that property owners can be held liable for injuries to children hurt by unsafe property conditions even if those children are trespassing. For example, if a property does not have proper mechanisms in place to secure and prevent access to things like trampolines and swimming pools, the property owner can be held liable.
Compensation for Slip and Fall Cases
Compensation for slip and fall accidents depends on the severity of the accident as well as whether or not the responsible parties knew a dangerous condition existed and didn’t fix it.
You may be able to recover compensation for:
- Medical expenses
- Lost wages, benefits, or future earnings you may have lost due to the accident.
- Pain and suffering, if there were emotional injuries that resulted from a slip-and-fall accident. Examples include things like mental anguish, anxiety, humiliation, etc.
Punitive damages may be awarded when involving a reckless disregard for the safety of others. These types of damages are meant to deter others from doing the same in the future. In Kentucky, the victim must prove with clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted with fraud, malice, or oppression to justify punitive damages.
Contact Us If You’ve Been Injured and Want to Seek Compensation
If you’ve been injured due to a slip and fall, you should contact an attorney to understand your options.
Whether you’ve hurt yourself due to an uneven sidewalk or due to a slippery floor in a big retailer like Walmart — you’ll want an experienced ally in your corner who isn’t afraid to go to trial for you. At Bryant Law Center P.S.C., we have an entire team of attorneys dedicated to personal injury who know the Kentucky legal and judicial systems in ways no big out-of-state firm can. Contact us today for a free consultation.