Gainesville, Ocala & Daytona Beach Personal Injury Lawyer - Property Owner's Liability (Slip & Fall)

$30,000 Verdict for Trip and Fall Victim

Craig Cannon — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 14:13:18 GMT

The City of Ocala appealed a jury verdict awarding $30,000 to Cathleen Donner for pain and suffering and medical expenses after she tripped and fell on uneven slabs of sidewalk in downtown Ocala. Donner suffered a fractured nose, broken teeth and knee injuries that later required surgery as a result of the fall. When the jury ruled in her favor in March, she thought her case against the City of Ocala was settled.

Ocala City Attorney Pat Gilligan argued that the slabs of concrete on which Donner tripped had a height differential of about a quarter of an inch. The Florida Building Code suggests that height differences of more than a quarter of an inch along a sidewalk could be a trip hazard. The City filed an appeal because it believes errors were made during the trial.

Six jurors listened to the facts and evidence in the case, and found that the City was responsible for injuries incurred by Mrs. Donner. In the past five years, more than 746 liability claims have been filed against the city, which cost Ocala roughly $495,000.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cannon

$12 Million Slip and Fall Verdict

Craig Cannon — Wed, 02 May 2007 15:47:33 GMT

A Hampton, Virginia jury awarded a Williamsburg woman more than $12.2 million in a slip-and-fall case. In August 2003, Annette Ritzmann was walking into what was then a Miller Mart on the corner of Lafayette Street and Richmond Road to buy a newspaper and pay for gas when she slipped on a small puddle caused by a leaky awning. She landed on her chest and chin, and a witness would later say the impact sent her head snapping back. The fall occurred at a gas convenience store.

After returning to work days later to her job running European Beauty Concepts she found herself unable to concentrate or do many things at once. Her doctors eventually diagnosed her with post-concussion symptoms. Ritzmann continues to suffer seizures, in which she appears to stare into the distance for minutes at a time

She hired an attorney who specializes in brain injury lawsuits. A jury found Miller Mart and its insurance companies liable for her injury and awarded her more than $12.2 million. Her attorneys were able to get the Miller Mart officials to admit in depositions that they knew the outside curb was dangerous. Recent medical advances were also important in showing the extensive damage to Ritzmann's brain.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Craig Cannon

Legal Reforms and Tougher Juries Make Winning Slip & Fall Cases Difficult

Shannon Weidemann — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 16:06:27 GMT

In the last six years, the number of people winning a slip and fall injury case has decreased. Juries are putting much more personal responsibility on the plaintiff, especially after some very high profile cases with large awards. The biggest one to date is the woman who spilled coffee on her lap and was awarded $2.9 million.

Lawyers are becoming pickier about what cases they take on; choosing the few cases they think will have a better chance of winning. Reforms made in 1999 mean that plaintiffs must prove there was a dangerous condition that a company knew about and did not remedy it, causing injury. Many cases are being settled out of court.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Shannon Weidemann