Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX
What Happens When You Slip and Fall on Government Property?
Texas government has written itself special rules to reduce liability in such cases. You could make the argument this reduces the burden on taxpayers.
Texas government has written itself special rules to reduce liability in such cases. You could make the argument this reduces the burden on taxpayers.
The mediation was hard fought but ultimately resulted in a settlement that we were exceedingly pleased with. A $250,000 recovery on less than $25,000 in medical bills is quite an accomplishment.
Typically, property owners defend themselves by showing you were at least partially responsible for your own injuries. For example, if you were talking on your phone when you slipped.
We presented a very strong case to the mediator and negotiated a fantastic settlement after many hours of discussions. I was especially pleased with the amount of the settlement given the client’s fairly low recoverable medical bills.
The landowner had a duty under well-established Texas law to warn him of the dangerous condition or to make safe the condition since it posed an unreasonable risk which the landowner knew of or should have discovered upon a reasonable inspection of the premises.
So if you’re a business, when you clean floors, make sure you put up appropriate warning signage. Fill in those potholes and cracks. Look for and repair/improve anything that could be labeled a dangerous condition.
How long do you have to take action on that if you want to file an injury claim? It depends on where you fell.
To win a claim or case like this, you will need to demonstrate the store knew about the dangerous condition (actual knowledge) or that they should have known about the dangerous condition (constructive knowledge).
When you slip and fall at your work in Texas, law gets complicated. If you thought law was already confusing, it gets even more so. This is because Texas doesn’t require companies to carry workers’ compensation.
Most Texans are honest citizens like yourself, just looking for fair compensation in the event they’ve been injured due to the negligence of a person or business. After all, if someone else’s carelessness causes your injuries, they should help you cover them.
You can be partially, or even mostly, negligent yourself. Remember: If you’re an invitee on the premises you have enhanced legal rights as compared to a more licensee or trespasser. Invitees can recover damages even if they were comparatively negligent as long as their own negligence does not exceed 50%.