Effective Springfield Slip and Fall Attorney Helps Injured Parties Recover

Aggressive attorney will fight for your rights for harm caused by hazardous conditions

Whether in a retail store or business premises, on a sidewalk or in a parking lot, hazards that lie in the path of visitors can trigger slips and falls, some resulting in serious injuries. Usually, these accidents would have been prevented if owners had upheld their legal duty to keep their properties safe. Since 1993, RJC Law in Springfield has helped slip and fall victims win compensation for their injuries. If you were hurt because a walking surface was dangerous, attorney Ronald Coticchio has the skill and determination to assert your legal rights effectively so that you can obtain the financial reimbursement you need.

Helping you decide if you have a case

Whether your slip and fall was due to a wet floor, spilled liquid, poor lighting, ice or snow, cracks or potholes, loose stair treads or any other property hazard, my Green County firm will evaluate your accident and assess the financial recovery you may be entitled to. Winning money damages in a slip and fall case depends on multiple factors, among them:

• Why you were on the property — There are different duties of care required of property owners depending on the injured person’s right to be on the property. For invited guests, the owner must use ordinary care to remove, remedy or warn of dangers he or she knows about. For licensees — people allowed on the property to make deliveries, perform maintenance and the like — the same rule applies unless the injured person knew of or reasonably should have known of the hazardous condition. As for trespassers, owners generally are required only to refrain from harming them by willful or wanton actions. This may include a duty to warn them about artificially created hazardous conditions.
• Whether you were partly negligent — Even if you were lawfully on a property when you slipped and fell, your right to recover damages may be affected by your own conduct. For example, you may have gone beyond the areas in which you were allowed, or you may have ignored warning signs, cones or other markers cordoning off certain spaces. However, a victim can win damages even when he or she partially contributed to their injury, though the award will be reduced. For example, if someone suffers $100,000 in damages after falling on a hazardous surface but is found to be 20 percent liable because he or she had untied shoes, the award would be $80,000.

I will thoroughly evaluate your circumstances to determine the legality of your presence on the property and whether the owner breached the applicable duty of care.

Pursuing just compensation for slip and fall injuries

If you fall on a hard surface, you may suffer not only harm from the direct impact but also muscle, bone and nerve damage resulting from your attempts to break the fall. Examples are broken wrists or arms or injuries from twisting the neck or spine. Even when your original injuries heal, you may experience lasting pain and suffering. Slip and fall cases often depend on expert witness testimony about the extent and expected duration of the harm you have suffered. I engage the medical professionals needed to make a comprehensive case that offers the best chance of full compensation.

Missouri law allows five years from the date of a personal injury to file a lawsuit, so it is important not to delay the investigation and preparation of a slip and fall case. I begin work immediately upon being retained so that I get you reimbursement of your damages promptly and efficiently.

Contact a skilled Greene County lawyer for a free consultation about a slip and fall claim

RJC Law in Springfield advocates on behalf of Missouri residents who have been hurt in slip and fall incidents caused by someone else’s negligence. For a free consultation regarding your case, please call 417-233-0073 or contact me online.