South Florida Injury Lawyer Blawg

Articles Posted in Premises Liability

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Trees can be a beautiful sight in Florida parks and on private property. However, falling tree branches, exposed roots, and inadequately maintained trees can cause serious injuries to individuals. If you are injured in a tree accident, it is important to seek the help and guidance of a qualified Miami injury lawyer. We can assess the merits of your case and determine whether or not you have a viable legal claim.

When large trees or branches fall on individuals, they can cause injuries such as traumatic brain damage, broken ribs, broken bones, back injuries, fractures, neck injuries, and partial or total paralysis. These injuries can require extensive medical treatment. The most serious tree accidents can result in death.

An individual who has been hurt in a tree accident may be able to take legal action against the property owner or entity that controls the property. These accidents typically fall in the legal category of premises liability. Under Florida law, property owners have a duty to maintain their premises in reasonably safe conditions. This includes tending to trees that may be a hazard to others.

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Electrocution and electrical contact accidents can often be avoided. Unfortunately, many of these types of accidents are a result of the negligent installation or maintenance of power lines. If you or someone close to you has been injured in an electrocution or electrical contact accident, we can help. At the Law Offices of Robert Dixon, we are committed to getting our clients the compensation they deserve for their harm.

Electrical shocks take place when an individual comes into contact with a live electrical current. In some cases, the results can be minor discomfort with no long-lasting damage, while in other instances the shock can cause serious nerve damage, burns, or even a spinal cord injury.

Electrical accidents are often caused by a failure to enforce safety regulations, negligent maintenance, downed power lines, sagging power lines, or exposed electrical cords. Many times, the harm could have been avoided if the property owner had taken reasonable care to prevent or fix the hazardous condition. In order to hold a property owner responsible for injuries, a plaintiff must demonstrate the following elements:

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Earlier this month, an appellate court in California heard a case involving a woman who was injured while working out at a 24-Hour Fitness location. According to the court’s opinion, the woman was injured when the back panel of a workout machine came loose and fell, hitting her in the head. As a result, she suffered a traumatic brain injury. She filed suit against the gym, alleging several claims. However, relevant to this appeal was the woman’s claim of gross negligence.

The Case at Trial

At trial, 24-Hour Fitness claimed that they were not grossly negligent because they had hired a technician to perform routine maintenance on all the facility’s machines. However, 24-Hour Fitness was not able to bring this employee to court because he no longer worked for the company and could not be located. Instead, they had two other employees testify, but these employees did not have the exact knowledge of when the machine at issue was last serviced.

The gym argued for early dismissal, claiming that there was no possible way it could be grossly negligent under the facts given. The plaintiff argued that, absent evidence of specific maintenance that was performed on the machine, the court should allow the case to continue forward to trial. The judge sided with the defendant gym and dismissed the case before it reached trial.

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Falling merchandise accidents typically take place when products, boxes, and other items fall from shelves and cause injury to a customer. If you or someone close to you has been injured due to falling merchandise, it is important to seek the help of a qualified premises liability attorney who can assess the merits of your case. At the Law Offices of Robert Dixon, we will work diligently to help you get the compensation you deserve for your harm.

Merchandise can fall from shelves for a number of reasons, such as being improperly stacked, stacked too high, defective racking, defective pallets, failure to warn customers of dangerous areas, and more. Big department stores routinely receive complaints about falling merchandise. In fact, Wal-Mart revealed that 17,000 falling merchandise cases were filed against the company between 1989 and 1994. However, superstores continue to stack merchandise vertically as a cost-saving tactic.

Storeowners have a legal responsibility to keep their stores in reasonably safe conditions in order not to cause harm to customers. This responsibility includes keeping aisles clear. Under premises liability law, stores have a legal duty to protect their customers from falling merchandise. Otherwise, the store likely will be liable for any resulting harm.

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Elevators and escalators, like other moving devices, can cause serious injuries to individuals in Florida and across the United States. Elevators and escalators should constantly be checked and maintained, due to their frequent use. If you or someone close to you has been injured on an elevator or escalator, it is important to speak to a skilled Miami injury attorney who can seek the justice and compensation you deserve for your harm.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, approximately 17,000 individuals are injured and 30 people die in accidents involving elevators or escalators every year. Elevator and escalator accidents can take place in a variety of ways. Elevator cables can break, causing the elevator to plunge to the ground. Elevator doors can close on people, and elevators can get stuck for long periods of time. Escalator injuries can arise when steps loosen and catch on clothes, toes, or other body parts, when the steps don’t level properly, or when there is too much space between steps and side walls.

An elevator or escalator accident victim may wonder who he or she can hold responsible for the harm. To ascertain liability, inspection logs, maintenance records, operating permits, and other documents must be carefully reviewed. In many cases, the property owner may be legally responsible for the accident.

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Property owners in the state of Florida have a legal obligation to maintain their premises in a reasonably safe condition so as not to cause harm to those who enter the land. If you or someone close to you has been injured on somebody else’s property, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. Ascertaining liability in premises liability cases can be complicated, which is why it is important to seek the help and guidance of an experienced Miami injury attorney who can determine the viability of your case.

In Grover v. Karl, the plaintiff filed a lawsuit against a bar and its owner after she slipped and fell at the bar when other patrons got into a fight. After sustaining the injury, the woman sued the property owner for negligence. In her original complaint, the woman claimed that another patron had intentionally attacked her. At deposition, however, she alleged that the fall took place when the bar manager shoved into her during the fight that took place between the other two patrons.

The bar owner responded to the woman’s lawsuit by filing a motion for summary judgment. According to the bar owner, he had no notice of the hazardous condition that caused the woman’s injuries. The plaintiff  filed a motion to amend her complaint and filed an affidavit explaining her contradictory testimony. The trial court granted the defendant’s motion for summary judgment and denied the woman’s motion for leave to amend her complaint.

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Property owners in Florida have a legal obligation to keep their premises in reasonably safe condition. Failure to do so can result in liability if a visitor enters the land and injures him or herself. Premises liability law is complex, and a property owner’s liability may be contingent on the type of visitor who enters the land. If you or someone close to you has been injured due to a property owner’s negligence, you may be able to seek compensation for your injuries.

In Millard Mall Service, Inc. v. Bolda, a woman filed an action for negligence against Millard Mall Services, Inc. and other relevant parties that own and operate a shopping mall after the woman sustained injuries in a slip and fall accident while shopping at the mall. To support her claims, the plaintiff asked for documents relating to similar incidents that had taken place in the mall in the preceding three-year period, including the Quarterly Safety Committee Reports. Additionally, the plaintiff wanted mall cleaning and maintenance records and any other documents relevant to cleaning or maintenance performed by a third party during the month she fell.

The defendants objected to the production of the documents, stating that these documents contained information that was not discoverable, including photographs, discussions, prior accident reports, and mental impressions regarding incidents that took place at the mall. Continue Reading ›

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Every year, a number of people in Florida get into various types of accidents and suffer personal injuries. Under state law, an injured party may seek compensation for his or her injuries from the at-fault party by filing a personal injury lawsuit. Personal injury claims are rooted in the legal principle of negligence, which denotes the failure to take proper care when doing something, which leads to foreseeable harm. Put another way, negligence law is designed to hold people responsible for their careless or reckless actions that cause injury to another.

While some cases go to trial, most cases settle out of court. Laws surrounding settlements, however, can be complex and nuanced, which is why it is always important to consult a qualified attorney who can help you understand and comply with all the procedural requirements that may come into play.

In Design Home Remodeling Corp. v. Santana, an individual was injured in a slip and fall accident while on premises owned by a condominium association. Some time later, the man and his spouse filed a lawsuit against the association, alleging negligent maintenance of the premises. The association answered by saying that another company was accountable for any negligent maintenance. As a result, the plaintiffs amended their original complaint to add the other company as a defendant, claiming that the company did not adequately warn the individual of a slippery liquid on the ground, which ultimately led to his fall. Continue Reading ›

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If you are injured through a slip, trip, and fall on someone else’s property, you may be able to seek compensation for your injuries. Property owners have an obligation to keep their premises in reasonably safe conditions to ensure that those who lawfully enter the land do not unduly injure themselves. There are very specific premises liability rules that govern slip and fall cases, which is why it is important to consult an experienced Miami injury attorney.

In Tallent v Pilot Travel Centers, the plaintiff fell on a fuel spill at a gas station and sued the gas station under the theory of negligence. Specifically, the plaintiff claimed that the negligent maintenance caused him to fall. Negligence is the failure to take proper care in doing something. The doctrine is intended to encourage individuals to act in a sensible and prudent manner so as not to cause foreseeable harm to others. The defendant claimed that the spill was open and obvious, and the company followed procedure to clean it up.

The Second DCA noted that because the plaintiff was a business invitee, he was owed two duties by the defendant:  the duty to use reasonable care in maintaining the property in a reasonably safe condition, and  the duty to warn of dangers that the owner knew or should have known about that were unknown by the invitee and could not have been known by the invitee through the exercise of reasonable care. Continue Reading ›

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Premises liability issues can arise in a variety of ways. Whether it’s through a slip and fall or an elevator malfunction, property owners have a legal obligation to keep their premises in reasonably safe conditions for visitors. An injured victim can typically sue a property owner for damages based on premises liability if the plaintiff can establish that the injuries were caused by the landowner’s negligence. Premises liability law is complex, which is why it is important to seek the help of a qualified attorney who understands the nuances of this area of the law.

In Friedrich v. Fetterman & Assocs, the Florida Supreme Court held that a law firm was liable for injuries incurred by the plaintiff when the chair he was sitting on suddenly collapsed. The plaintiff was a potential client visiting the law firm’s office for a consultation regarding an automobile accident he had recently gotten into. When the chair collapsed, the plaintiff fell backwards onto the floor, hitting his head. After the incident, the plaintiff voiced concerns of persistent headaches, neck and back pain, and a host of other problems. Eventually, he went through spine surgery, which he claimed improved his overall condition. Continue Reading ›

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