Archive for February, 2010

28 February

The Ditty with Slip and Fall

Slip and Fall is a case that results from civil wronging that did not arise from contracts and such. This is called a tort law and it covers the area of law where the two parties are not bound by any contract, and sometimes even, do not identify with each other. In general, tort laws are made for civil acts that cause substantial losses to one party, whether it was pure intention, neglect or through accident.

Slip and fall is a tort case, because it is based on a person slipping, tripping or falling with the claim that the owner of the property had not taken good care in assuring that the condition of the floor would not allow proper conditions to cause the victim to slip or trip. This would usually mean neglect in the owner’s part but it could also be caused by patrons who pass by in the area, especially if the place is public.

Owners have two defenses against this tort case. The first one is the denial of negligence. For example, if a person tripped because he accidentally spilled liquid on the floor which caused him to fall down, it would not be the responsibility of the owner. By due diligence, the store owner wouldn’t have had the time to clean the spill, and he was not responsible for spilling the liquid in the first place.

The second one is that the fall or trip was caused by the person himself, and is not the responsibility of the owner even if the accident happened in his area. The first example was a given, but another good example is a woman who’s high heels caught in the grills of a storm drain. Any normal man would see the rather conspicuous grill, so if the woman trips on it and falls down, it is due to her carelessness in minding her surroundings.

Slip and fall cases usually rank lowest in terms of worth. A lot of these cases do pop up occasionally, but they end up getting dismissed because of the above-mentioned defenses. The slip resistance in the floors of most cases seem enough, so it usually ends up being the prosecuting party’s fault than the owner’s.

To find out exactly how to make good judgment about slip and fall, visit this website about slip and fall. This and other unique content ’slip and fall’ articles are available with free reprint rights.