Have you recently been hurt in a slip and fall accident? Slip and fall accidents happen daily, often leaving accident victims with medical bills, lost income, or both. Our slip and fall accident lawyer can help you fight to recover demand damages from the negligent party.
Schiller & Hamilton is a South Carolina personal injury law firm with a strong track record of fighting for accident victims like you. The people in charge of the homes, businesses, and government buildings you visit every day have a legal responsibility to make sure their premises are safe and hazard-free. If their failure to take adequate safety measures harms you or a loved one, our team can demand compensation for your losses.
How Can Our Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer Help You?
It’s an unfortunate reality that whoever owns or manages the building or premises where your accident happened is unlikely to just admit liability or furnish you with evidence proving negligence on their part caused your accident. In many cases, they make efforts to conceal this evidence from you by stalling or offering a nominal settlement without admitting fault.
A slip and fall accident lawyer from our team can help you prove negligence by a property owner, manager (or another party) caused your injuries. When we take your case, we will gather evidence to reconstruct the circumstances that led to your injury. That process may include:
- Interviewing witnesses to your accident
- Consulting with medical professionals about your injuries and what kind of slip or fall caused them
- Requesting safety records or documentation about previous slip and fall injuries at the property where the accident occurred
- Requesting surveillance footage (e.g., security camera) that captures the accident
In addition to gathering evidence, we can represent you in settlement negotiations with the negligent property owner, manager, or their insurer. If those negotiations don’t yield a settlement agreement commensurate with your damages, we can prepare a comprehensive trial strategy that gives you a good chance of winning in court. Throughout the process, we will keep you updated and informed so that you always know your case’s status.
Who Is Liable in Slip and Fall Accident Cases?
South Carolina property owners have a legal duty to proactively minimize potential hazards to visitors and guests. Examples of these proactive steps include keeping floors dry and free of obstructions through routine cleaning and maintenance. If that doesn’t happen, and you suffer a slip and fall accident that could have or should have been preventable, our lawyers can hold them liable for the damage.
However, the potential liability doesn’t end with the property owner. If they have a management company responsible for the premises, the liability for your injuries may be split between both the owner and the management company. Remember, property owners are still responsible for the actions of their employees and subcontractors. So, even in cases where negligence on the part of property management caused your injury, the property owner may share liability with management.
Many property owners rent their property out to residential tenants or commercial businesses. In that case, the lessee also assumes some level of liability for the well-being of visitors or patrons to their establishment. Whether it’s direct negligence by the property owner, or a combination of owner, management, and tenant, our slip and fall accident attorneys will follow the facts and hold all the liable parties financially accountable for your injuries.
What Are the Potential Causes of Slip and Fall Injuries?
Several hazardous conditions can cause slip and fall injuries, including:
- Wet floors
- Poorly lit staircases, hallways, or walkways
- Obstructed hallways, staircases, or walkways
- Inadequate warnings to visitors about potential slip and fall hazards
- Cracked sidewalks
What Are the Damages in Slip and Fall Accidents?
Slip and fall accidents can seriously injure victims. If you’ve been hurt in a slip and fall accident, the costs of treating your injuries (e.g., medical treatment, continuing care, transport to the doctor) are economic damages. The same thing would hold true for any income you lost while recovering from your injuries. Our slip and fall accident lawyers will make a case that the at-fault or liable party fully compensates you for the financial damages you suffered in the fall.
Monetary damages are not the only losses accident victims suffer. Many people injured in slip and fall accidents also experience mental anguish that comes with not knowing when they will be able to work again or losing the ability to do something they love because of their injuries. South Carolina law allows us to demand compensation for these non-economic damages as well.
Our injury attorneys realize that receiving proper compensation for your accident-related damages can propel you down the road to recovery. As a Schiller & Hamilton client, you can rest assured that our slip and fall accident lawyers will go the extra mile and fight for the damages you are due.
You Have a Limited Time to Demand Damages
It’s important to act quickly after a slip and fall accident. First, South Carolina law has a three-year statute of limitations on personal injury cases (S.C. Ann. § 15-3-530). That means if you don’t demand damages within three years of the date you suffered your injury, you may permanently lose your right to do so. Secondly, the sooner our slip and fall accident lawyers get on your case, the less likely it is that the negligent property owner or manager can conceal evidence that points to their liability.
Talk to Schiller & Hamilton Today for Help From a Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer
Getting hurt in a slip and fall accident can be incredibly traumatic. One minute, you’re going about your business, and the next, you’re suffering from severe injuries. If you find yourself in this unfortunate situation, having a legal professional on your side can help you pursue damages. That’s why we invite you to reach out to us for help from our slip and fall injury accident lawyers for a free consultation.
If you hire us to handle your case, you don’t have to worry about coming out of pocket to pay up front. Schiller & Hamilton handles slip and fall accident cases on a contingency basis. That means you won’t have to pay us unless we recover compensation for you. We’re here for you, so if you’re recovering from a slip and fall accident, call us today to find out how we can help.