Filing a Charleston Slip and Fall Claim

From the plaintiff’s perspective, the slip and fall claim process is twofold. First of all, and most importantly, is the person’s health. A person has to treat their injury regardless of whether or not it is a valid case. Whatever injury a person has sustained, they must seek treatment as soon as possible.

From the claims process, early on in the case, it is the lawyer’s job to gather evidence that the property owner either knew or should have known that the hazard existed. An experienced attorney will document that evidence and file a claim with the liability carrier of the property where the alleged injury occurred.

To further determine the elements of filing a slip and fall claim in Charleston, it is important to consult with an attorney as soon as possible. An experienced Charleston slip and fall lawyer can build a case to help maximize any potential damages a person may be owed.

Relevant Case Evidence

A client should be prepared to share with their attorney any and all evidence that has anything to do with both the injury that the client has sustained as well as the circumstances under which the fall happened.

Very important to these cases is eyewitness testimony. A client should be prepared to supply the names and contact information for witnesses, photographs, and the names of any store employees that were present when the accident happened.

Gathering Information

Among the first questions that a lawyer will ask a potential client is what their injuries are. They will also attempt to determine if they were subjectively diagnosed.

Through these initial inquiries, a lawyer can help a person determine how to legally proceed when filing a slip and fall case in Charleston.

Subjective Injuries

Slip and fall cases are almost always tough liability claims and there are always, with very few exceptions, a valid defense to them. For instance, a person may have been sitting at a red light and had gotten rear-ended by another car. There is not really a defense in a rear end car wreck where a person is sitting at a stop light and another person just runs into them. That is often a clear-cut liability claim.

In a premises liability case, there is virtually always a valid defense. A common one is that an individual must watch where they are going, and has a duty to make sure that they know what they are encountering in their immediate area. There are never any guarantees when filing a premises liability case in Charleston.

Experienced lawyers who know what they are doing generally will not take a soft tissue injury case. If the injury is minor, for example, a sprained ankle that does not require any treatment and does not show up on film, that is generally not a case that a seasoned lawyer will accept.

An injury typically needs to be fairly serious and significant in a premises liability case before a seasoned lawyer will be willing to open a file on it. A lawyer will evaluate the circumstances of the case to determine what needs to be done in order to properly file a Charleston slip and fall case.