Determining Negligence of the Injured Individual
If you know that your trip and fall accident was caused by a negligent business owner or homeowner, you may quickly start looking for a personal injury attorney in Hollywood to get legal advice. It is, after all, your right to seek justice and compensation. For many people, however, there is some hesitation if they feel that they own actions contributed to a fall.
This should not be the case. There may be multiple liable parties in a premises liability case and even if you were drinking at the time of your fall or are found partly liable due to other actions, you can still seek damages from other liable parties in the case. To find out more about seeking compensation in your case, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free accident consultation. Our offices in Hollywood, Homestead, and Miami as well as our phone lines at 866-352-9626 are always open to you.
Finding Possible Liable PartiesA skilled personal injury attorney will work hard to find all liable parties in a case in order to maximize the possible recovery for a client. To do this, an attorney will not only interview their client and any possible witnesses, but will generally also conduct a thorough investigation of the accident. This may involve checking past charges against a property owner or checking through invoices or work permits to see whether contractors, subcontractors, the city of Hollywood, or individual property owners conducted any work or projects that may have resulted in a tripping hazard.
In some cases, an investigation will show that an injured party was partly liable for their own injuries. For example, a pedestrian may have been walking while texting in an area where sidewalks were uneven due to recently installed street lights. The plaintiff may be held partly liable because he or she was distracted, but the contractor or city installing the lights may also be held partly liable if there was not adequate signage or warnings for pedestrians in the area. In this situation, a plaintiff may still be able to seek damages for injuries suffered.
It is Important to Act FastIf you have been injured in a trip and fall case, it is always important to act quickly and to secure legal representation fast. Working with an attorney from the beginning can ensure that your attorney can secure evidence quickly and can file a claim fast. This is especially important if one of the liable parties is a municipality such as the city of Hollywood. In these cases, there is a very narrow window of time in which to file a claim.
If your actions may have contributed to the injury, however, it is even more important to secure an attorney before you sign anything or admit to any fault. In these situations, the insurance companies and attorneys representing the defendants will act quickly to shift all blame to you, even if the liable parties played their own role. It can then become more difficult to show that the liable parties also acted in a way that contributed to the injuries. A personal injury attorney can be very important in this type of case, as they can step in and prove that others were at fault and that you may qualify for compensation.
Through offices in Hollywood, Homestead, and Miami, the South Florida law firm of Flaxman Law Group helps clients across the region. If you have been injured, do not hesitate to contact our legal team for a free, no commitment case analysis.