Texas Slip and Fall Lawyers

Understanding Texas Slip and Fall Lawsuits

A slip and fall lawsuit happen when someone is injured due to a hazardous condition on someone else’s property that causes the person to lose their balance and fall onto the ground.  Most people probably envision someone stepping on a grape or a banana in the grocery store and falling when they think of the typical slip and fall case.  However, slip and fall cases can happen at many other properties, such as movie theatres, bars, restaurants, gyms, and other properties.  Slip and fall cases typically fall under Texas premises liability law, which holds property owners or occupiers responsible for maintaining safe conditions of floors and walkways.  

What are the elements of a Slip and Fall Case?

A slip and fall claim requires the injured party to prove four elements:

1. The property owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the condition causing an injury.  For example, if a grape has been on the floor of the grocery store for over 30 minutes, that is a long enough time for the grocery store to have known that the grape was on the ground; 
2. The condition posed an unreasonable risk of harm.  For example, a grape on the floor of a grocery store can be considered a dangerous condition because it poses a significant risk of slipping, which can lead to serious injuries;
3. The property owner/controller failed to take reasonable care to reduce or eliminate the risk.  For example, if the grocery store employees failed to walk around the store looking for falling items like a fallen grape on the floor; and
4. The risk was the proximate cause of injuries to the injured party.  For example, if the injured party was hurt because they fell on the grape left on the floor, then the risk of leaving the grape on the floor was the proximate cause of the injuries. 

Who do you sue in a Slip and Fall Case?

After someone has been injured by a slip and fall, one of the first questions to ask is who to sue for the injuries from the fall.  The person or entity the injured person ends up suing is known as a “defendant.”  Picking the right defendant is important because the category of defendant can affect how long you have to bring a lawsuit and particular notice requirements in Texas. 

Potential defendants in a slip in fall case in Texas include:

• Property Owners: Residential, commercial, or government entities. 
• Tenants/Occupiers: Businesses leasing the property, responsible for maintenance.  For example, this could include a McDonald’s, Barnes & Noble, or other company that might control the building but doesn’t own the property. 
• Maintenance Companies: Responsible for cleaning or upkeep.  For example, many businesses have cleaning contracts with third party cleaning companies like Republic Services.  Thus, if the cleaning company failed to notice a hazardous condition, they could be liable for someone slipping as a result of the hazardous condition.
• Contractors: Third-party vendors contributing to unsafe conditions.  For example, if a tomato distributor for McDonald’s leaves a tomato on the floor of the store and then a customer slips on it, the injured customer would likely have a slip and fall claim against the tomato distributor, not McDonald’s. 
• Municipalities: For hazards on public property (requires compliance with notice and procedural rules).  For example, imagine someone walking on a public sidewalk maintained by the City of Houston, Texas near a community park.  While walking, that person tripped over a large tree root that had lifted a section of the sidewalk, creating an uneven surface.  Unlike slip and fall cases on privately owned property, the injured person has to send a notice to the city within 90 days or else the claim could be barred. 

Examples of Texas Slip and Fall Cases

Slip and fall cases encompass a much wider range of circumstances beyond slipping on food or drink items on the ground.  Some other examples of slip and fall cases include; 

• Slipping on a wet floor in a grocery store without warning signs.
• Tripping on uneven pavement or a broken sidewalk.
• Falling on stairs due to defective railings or poor lighting.
• Slipping on ice or snow that wasn’t promptly cleared.

How much is My Texas Slip and Fall Case Worth?

Slip and fall cases can be very valuable to the injured person and their family.  Morrow & Sheppard LLP have handled slip and fall cases worth over a million dollars.  Your slip and fall case value is going to depend on;

• Severity of Injuries: Broken bones, head injuries, or long-term disability typically lead to higher compensation.
• Medical Expenses: Current and future treatment costs.
• Lost Wages: Income lost due to inability to work.
• Pain and Suffering: Emotional and physical distress.

Examples of Slip and Fall Verdicts

• Confidential: Morrow & Sheppard LLP reached a confidential settlement with Target when a customer slipped inside the store while shopping.  The customer suffered from a cracked collar bone as a result of the fall. 
• Confidential: Morrow & Sheppard LLP reached a confidential settlement with a hotel in North Texas when a resident slipped outside the walkway on a patch of ice that the hotel did not remove in a timely fashion. 
• $1.7 Million: A jury in Webb County awarded $1,7 million to a couple who were injured in a Laredo, Texas movie theatre when they slipped on an unmarked hazard on the floor near the concession stand.

How much does it cost to hire a Slip and Fall Lawyer?

Morrow & Sheppard LLP offers a free consultation to evaluate your slip and fall case, discuss your legal options, and explain how our contingency fee arrangement works.  You only pay if we win your case.

Reach out to us today to schedule your free consultation.

What type of lawyer handles Slip and Fall cases?

Personal injury lawyers who specialize in premises liability and slip and fall cases are the best type of lawyer to handle your slip and fall case.  The attorneys at Morrow & Sheppard LLP have a strong track record of handling slip and fall cases of all sizes and have a deep understanding of the local laws regarding slip and fall cases.