Slip and Fall - FAQs

A Slip & Fall case occurs when a person slips on a substance which is too slippery to be safe. The expression “Slip & Fall” is also used when a person is injured because they tripped over an item and fell, causing an injury. These cases are much like premises liability cases, because the land owner is held liable - legally responsible– for the injuries of others. In most cases, it is important to know what caused the person to slip. For example, a person may slip when he stepped on a cherry tomato in the produce aisle in a grocery store. Another person may slip on spilled oil at a gas station. Sometimes, a person’s own shoes may be the cause on a rainy day or when walking on linoleum flooring or ceramic tiles. Whatever the cause, a law firm sometimes needs to hire a “coefficient expert”, an engineer who can measure and explain how “slippery” the substance was which caused the Slip & Fall accident.

To bring suit in a Slip & Fall case, one must show that the land owners had “notice” of the cause of the accident. A homeowner or shopkeeper is liable for injuries resulting from a defective or dangerous condition only if they have “notice”. By the expression “notice”, we mean that the homeowner or shopkeeper was aware of a dangerous or defective condition and had sufficient time to make the necessary repair. A shopkeeper is not necessarily liable for an accidental spill immediately after it is spilled. Liability - legal responsibility - occurs only after the shopkeeper or employee is made aware of the condition and has had sufficient time to remedy the condition. The same is true for an object which could cause someone to trip, such as a coat hanger or box lying on the floor in a department store.

In California, where we are headquartered, the Supreme Court decided there should be no distinction between a person’s legal status when on real property. See the Rowland v. Christian decision (1968) 60 Cal.2d 108. In other states, a visitor is placed in one of three categories: invitee, licensee and trespasser. An invitee is a person who is visiting for a commercial purpose i.e. a sales person making a sales call or a customer visiting a shop or grocery store. A licensee is a person who is on the land for a social purpose, such as a dinner guest or attending a party. A trespasser is a person who is on the land without permission, such as a person taking a “shortcut” across another person’s yard. Common law requires a land owner to inspect the property and warn an invitee of any known dangers. For a licensee, the land owner need not inspect his property, but nevertheless has a duty to warn the social guest of any dangers known to the land owner. At common aw, a land owner has no duty to warn a trespasser, the person who does not have permission to enter the property.

In a case handled by us, the injured party slipped in his apartment building due to an excessive wax build-up near an elevator.

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