An unexpected slip-and-fall accident or trip-and-fall can significantly affect your life. At Earley Law Group, our lawyers see it as our mission to help you reach a favorable outcome after an accident. If you’re dealing with a slip-and-fall injury due to someone else’s negligence, know that you have a compassionate ally in us.
Our approach to personal injury claims is all about understanding your individual story and needs. At Earley Law, you’re more than a case file to us — we see a person in need of support, guidance, and someone to stand up for their rights. With our team by your side, finding your path to compensation is within reach. Let us be your voice in this challenging time.
Call Earley Law or complete our contact form today. You’ll get a free, no-obligation consultation with a Boston slip-and-fall lawyer to discuss your case.
Why Should I Hire a Boston Slip-and-Fall Accident Attorney?
Hiring a Boston slip-and-fall attorney is critical to securing fair compensation for your injuries. A lawyer from Earley Law is your navigator through the intricate legal process, offering clarity and support. Without professional legal representation, you’ll be going up against well-prepared insurance companies alone, potentially resulting in lower compensation than you deserve. In some instances, you might not recover anything at all.
A skilled attorney from Earley Law does more than just represent you in court. They meticulously gather evidence, including accident reports, witness statements, and medical records, to build a strong case on your behalf. Moreover, they understand the ins and outs of Massachusetts premises liability law and how to effectively argue your case.
Our lawyers also handle negotiations with insurance companies, striving to secure a settlement that covers your medical expenses, lost income, and other losses. Should settlement negotiations fail, an Earley Law attorney can file a slip-and-fall lawsuit and vigorously represent you at trial.
In short, working with an experienced advocate offers peace of mind during a challenging time. With a dedicated Earley Law attorney by your side, you can focus on your recovery, confident that your slip-and-fall case is in capable hands.
Moreover, we bring something other slip-and-fall accident law firms don’t: the Earley Experience. This is our guarantee that we will make this experience as easy for you as possible at every step. If you are not satisfied with your experience with us, we will do whatever we can to make it right. Our more than 600 positive Google reviews illustrate our commitment to our clients, and we hope you will trust us to handle your slip-and-fall claim.
What Kinds of Damages Can I Pursue in a Slip-and-Fall Case?
Your potential slip-and-fall compensation depends on many factors, but you can count on Earley Law to aggressively pursue maximum compensation on your behalf. We can help you seek compensation for:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Any income you lost from having to miss work
- Any reduction in your future earnings due to your injuries
- Damaged personal property, if applicable
Who Is Responsible for an Injury in a Slip-and-Fall Case?
Massachusetts premises liability law says that the party who owns or manages a property is typically liable for slip-and-falls on their premises. Depending on where and how a slip-and-fall occurs, potentially liable parties may include:
- Businesses – If the slip-and-fall happened in a store, restaurant, or any commercial setting, the business operating at that location could be responsible. This includes situations where the business might rent or lease the space; responsibility can still lie with them for ensuring the safety of their customers.
- Property Managers – Sometimes, a property management company handles the day-to-day operations and maintenance of a property, not the owner. In these cases, the management company might be liable for injuries if their negligence contributed to the unsafe conditions.
- Landlords – Landlords can be liable for accidents that occur in rental properties if they failed to maintain safe conditions or did not address known dangers that led to the accident.
- Government Entities – If your slip-and-fall accident occurred on public property, such as a sidewalk, park, or public building, a city or municipal government could be liable. However, claims against government entities often have specific requirements and shorter deadlines for filing a claim.
However, just because you fell on someone else’s property does not automatically mean they owe you compensation. To recover compensation in a Massachusetts slip-and-fall claim, you must show that the property owner or another party had a responsibility — which, in legal terms, is called a duty of care — to prevent injuries to you on their premises.
Additionally, the level of care someone owes you on their property depends on why you are there and whether you had permission to be there. People who suffer slip-and-fall injuries fall into three categories under premises liability law:
- Invitees – Invitees are guests invited to a place for business reasons. This includes customers in a store or clients in an office. Property owners have to make sure their space is safe for invitees. They need to regularly check for dangers, fix any issues, and warn guests about any risks they haven’t fixed yet. This is because the safety of invitees is a top priority given their reasons for being on the property.
- Licensees – Licensees are a bit different. They are usually social guests invited over for non-business reasons, like friends visiting your home. Property owners need to warn these guests of any dangers they know about. However, the responsibility to check and fix every possible hazard isn’t as strict as with invitees. The main thing is making sure guests know about any risks that the owner knows about.
- Trespassers – Trespassers are people who enter a property without permission. Generally, property owners don’t owe trespassers a high level of care. The basic rule is that owners should not intentionally create unsafe conditions to harm them. There’s less of a duty to protect trespassers from harm compared to invitees or licensees.
When you contact Earley Law, you’ll meet with a slip-and-fall lawyer in Boston who will assess your case to determine the liable parties for your accident.
Massachusetts law says that, in most cases, you have three years from the date of a slip-and-fall accident to file a lawsuit. However, there are crucial reasons to speak to a lawyer immediately after an accident. First, a lawyer can quickly investigate the accident to gather and preserve vital evidence before anything happens to it. Second, the deadline to file a lawsuit can vary in these cases, especially if the accident occurred on government property.
Speaking to an Earley Law attorney right away can help you avoid any issues with the slip-and-fall lawsuit timeline and preserve your right to seek compensation.
What makes slip-and-fall accidents so common and dangerous is that they can happen almost anywhere. Additionally, there’s no single cause of slip-and-falls, which can make it difficult to avoid an accident. Some of the most common types and causes of slip-and-falls in Boston include:
- Wet and Slippery Surfaces – Spills on floors, wet surfaces after cleaning, and moisture from rain or snow are classic causes of slip-and-falls. They can lead to falls that seem minor but can cause serious injuries.
- Uneven Surfaces – Unexpected changes in flooring, such as uneven sidewalks, loose floorboards, or potholes, can easily catch someone off guard, causing them to trip and fall.
- Cluttered Floors – Spaces crowded with items, like cords running across the floor or debris in walkways, are significant trip hazards.
- Poor Lighting – Inadequate lighting can make it difficult to see where you’re going, which can lead to falls, especially if other hazards aren’t visible.
- Stairs and Ramps – Poorly maintained or designed stairs and ramps, a lack of handrails, and slippery surfaces are frequent causes of falls.
Slip-and-fall accidents can occur almost anywhere, but tend to happen more frequently in certain places due to the nature of the environment or the activities performed there. Some common places where slip-and-falls occur include:
- Retail Stores and Supermarkets – With high foot traffic, occasional spilled liquids, and items that can fall onto floors, these places are hotspots for slip-and-fall accidents.
- Restaurants, Bars, and Nightclubs – Spills are common in dining areas and kitchens, making floors slippery. Dim lighting in some establishments can also contribute to guests not seeing potential hazards.
- Workplaces – Whether it’s an office or a construction site, workplaces can have a variety of hazards that can cause a fall, from wet floors to uneven surfaces.
- Public Spaces – Public buildings, parks, and sidewalks can be problematic, especially without proper maintenance. Weather conditions can also turn these areas into dangerous zones.
- Private Homes – Even at home, fall risks exist. Loose rugs, wet bathroom surfaces, and stairs without handrails can cause accidents that might seem surprising in such familiar settings.
Slip-and-fall accidents may be played for laughs in television shows and movies, but this downplays the severe injuries such accidents can cause. These include:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Spinal cord injuries
- Broken bones and fractures (especially hip fractures)
- Shoulder injuries (including dislocations and rotator cuff injuries)
- Knee damage
- Sprains and strains
- Cuts and abrasions
- Bruises