Trip & Fall Lawsuit Success Story.

San Diego Trip & Fall Lawsuit: One Client’s Story

This article will summarize a Phillips and Pelly Client’s Trip and Fall Lawsuit Success Story. The fall occurred at our client’s apartment complex, where she rented an upstairs unit. The client, who we shall call “Jane” (pseudo name) was renting an apartment in San Diego for a period of time before the accident. The apartment had two ways to get in or out, the internal staircases that led to the front door, or an external staircase out of the kitchen.

Historically the client would enter the apartment through the front door, the internal staircase. On this particular day, she went to take out the trash through the kitchen door and began to walk down the external wooden staircase. As she descended, the stair tread collapsed and she fell on her tailbone.

First Step After A Trip and Fall Accident

In our story, Jane felt pain in her tailbone but hoped it would go away. After the first couple of days, the pain was not subsiding and she knew she was hurt. Having never spoken to a lawyer before in a professional setting, let alone having never hired a lawyer before, Jane was hesitant to call as she was not sure what the process would be, if there were costs involved, or if a lawyer would even talk to her about it. When it became apparent the pain would not go away, she reached out to Phillips & Pelly and scheduled a consultation. Later that day she took the first steps and came into the office to discuss her case. The attorney stopped what he was doing, listened to what happened, explained that Jane would pay nothing out of pocket to have a lawyer represent her and that the attorney’s could assist with arranging necessary medical care, with no upfront costs, to diagnose and treat her injuries. Jane moved forward with hiring our attorneys for her trip and fall accident.

Liability For Trip & Fall Accidents

The handling attorney with Phillips & Pelly immediately hired an investigator to visit the staircase that collapsed. Fortunately, Jane had called and hired us before conditions on the staircase changed. Had she waited, we may have lost critical evidence necessary to prove her case. The investigator found that stair case had extensive termite damage that had weakened the structure, leading to the collapse. Despite this evidence, the insurance company for the apartment complex denied the claim, stating that the owner and management company had done everything right and had no ‘notice’ of the stair condition.

In proving fault in a trip and fall accident, the law requires that the plaintiff prove that a dangerous condition existed, the dangerous condition caused a fall and the landowner either knew, or should have known, of the dangerous condition but failed to take action to remedy it. These elements are essential to have a lawsuit success story for the client. The elements can also be proven in multiple ways.

In Jane’s case, the owner took the position that they had not idea about the termites. While it may have been difficult to prove what was in the owners mind (usually shown through testimony of others and documents) in Jane’s case the attorney was able to prove that the landlord ‘should have known’ about the dangerous condition had she, or the management company, conducted regular property inspections and repaired substandard conditions on the property. In fact, in her deposition, when asked about property inspections, the manager replied: “What’s that?”. Needless to say, the manager was not properly trained in property management and inspection which ultimately led to dangerous conditions developing on the property, hence causing Jane’s trip and fall injury.

Injuries After a Trip & Fall Accident

While the Phillips & Pelly attorneys were working on Jane’s case and getting to the bottom of it with liability, Jane was treating for a lower back injury that ultimately resulted in a lumbar disc surgery. Trip and fall often cause serious injury as the body is not designed to hit the ground forcefully. Often trip and fall result in broken bones and head injuries. As we age, slip and fall accidents tend to cause more severe injury. Older Adults and Falls: Why It Happens More Often As You Age (webmd.com)

Trip & Fall Lawsuit Settlement

After approximately 8 months of litigation, Jane’s case resolved short of trial for $875,000.00. Jane was happy that the attorney’s at Phillips & Pelly were able to take a ‘denied’ case and recover nearly a million dollars on her behalf.

If you have had a trip and fall accident, contact the San Diego attorney’s at Phillips & Pelly for a free consultation. Slip and Fall Accidents | Phillips & Pelly (sdinjury.com). Once we accept your case, we will work for you on a No Win, No Fee contingency basis. This means you pay nothing unless and until our lawyers obtain a financial recovery on your behalf. Let’s see if you will be out next client to have a trip and fall lawsuit success story.