Long Beach Sidewalk accident attorney – City Liability injury lawyer
Long Beach Sidewalk accident attorney – City Liability injury lawyer
A sidewalk accident can result in numerous damages, especially if you are walking quickly or have your hands full. Tripping and falling on a defective portion of a sidewalk is enough to cause you serious injuries. You may not be able to readily identify the proper party who was responsible for the damage to the sidewalk; for this reason, it is important that you contact a qualified sidewalk accident attorney in Long Beach, especially if you feel that the city had liability. We will handle your case for you.
What Are Reasons Sidewalk Accidents Occur?
Sidewalk accidents can happen due to natural reasons or the negligence of property owners and city entities.
For example, adverse weather, earthquakes, storms, and extreme heat can all shift sidewalks in some way, leading to cracks, jagged edges, raised sections, and more. The defects may not be readily visible and could pose a large hazard to anyone walking. In such instances, the city is usually responsible for the repairs.
Activities and actions could wear a sidewalk down; vehicles that constantly drive on the sidewalk, impact from dropped materials, walking, and more can all contribute to the deterioration of a sidewalk.
The city may have planted trees whose roots eventually caused damage to the sidewalk, or they may have made errors when laying the sidewalk down. It is necessary that the soil below the concrete be compacted and immobile; if the soil is loose or not pressed, the concrete atop it can shift and separate. These issues should be fixed by the city, and if you need a Long Beach accident attorney to help you after a fall, contact our firm.
Our Recent Verdicts and Settlements
$1.96 Million
Pedestrian Accident
$1.4 MIllion
Dog Bite
$600,000
Shoulder Injury
$825,000
Slip and Fall Injury
$500,000
Premises Liability
$460,000
Back Injury
$420,000
Back Injury
$525,000
Head Trauma
Who Is Liable In A Sidewalk Accident?
Liability can be determined in a few different ways. Most commonly, sidewalk accidents can be attributed to the negligent action of a business owner or a property owner. The sidewalks in front of homes and companies must be kept clean by the inhabitants. It is the duty of those individuals to ensure there are no cracks, holes, jagged edges, ice, materials and hazards, and other issues with the sidewalk. If they do not take care of the sidewalks, they can be held responsible for any ensuing accidents.
Cities, however, are liable for sidewalks as well. Just like with property owners, cities can be held responsible if the accident happens on a sidewalk in front of a city building.
Further, the city likely planted trees in hundreds of neighborhoods, which could result in the tree roots spreading beneath the sidewalk and cracking it or raising it. The city also routinely repairs water lines, telephone lines, and other things, and their vehicles and tools can crack and damage sidewalks. The city often refuses to fix the issues they caused in the first place.
The city will often try to claim that it does not need to repair a sidewalk if the damage is negligible, as in the case of small cracks and damages. This is but one of many issues with the city.
In order to sue, you will need to show that the responsible party fulfilled one of these points:
He knew there was an issue with the sidewalk but chose not to fix it or repair it or to put any warning signs for pedestrians
He caused the problem with the sidewalk in the first place
He did not know there was a defect or problem but should have reasonably known if he had paid more attention to the area or any complaints from others
You will need a city liability injury lawyer if you were hurt in a sidewalk accident in Long Beach and need to prove negligence. Contact our firm for more help.
How Can I Sue For Negligence?
Personal injury lawsuits, and premises liability lawsuits specifically, can be filed with the proving of negligence of the responsible party. Generally, you are owed a duty of care in day-to-day life to be kept safe where others can manage it. This means that property owners must take care of sidewalks and prevent dangers and hazards from forming. The degree of care depends on your status; you may be an invitee (customer, for example), a licensee (friend or guest), or a trespasser (individual without the legal right to be on the property).
Learn more about your legal options: call (855) 339-8879 to speak with a representative now.
Invitees may be walking on the sidewalk near businesses, while a licensee could be walking outside of a friend’s home. Trespassers may be in private apartment complexes and fall on the sidewalks inside.
You must prove these four points of negligence to win your case:
You were owed a duty of care
The duty of care was breached
The breach resulted in an accident
The accident led to actual physical harm
All four points must be true or you will not be able to file a personal injury claim. The presence of physical injuries is the most important; if you weren’t hurt, you wouldn’t be able to sue for certain damages.
How Much Can I Receive From A Sidewalk Accident Lawsuit?
A sidewalk accident lawsuit can result in different amounts of compensation depending on the circumstances of the incident. You may be able to receive over $1,000,000 if you were seriously injured and if the responsible party were highly negligent. Some cases, though, are worth less than $10,000 because of very minor injuries, or because you were partially at fault.
An insurance agent will determine the amount to offer you after evaluating your injuries. If they were severe and had a profound effect on your daily life and ability to continue working, you would probably receive a sizeable offer. If he feels that you were not as badly hurt as you claim, he would probably make a much smaller offer. It is our job to ensure that the offer is respectable and worthwhile.
What Kind Of Compensation Can I Get From A Sidewalk Accident?
Your sidewalk accident lawsuit can yield various types of compensation. As a victim of an accident, you can have the damages covered by the insurance agency, but you may not be able to receive the maximum amount without the help of a skilled lawyer. We can make sure you get the following:
Coverage for medical expenses from the past and future (surgery, physical therapy, medication, hospitalization, and more)
Property damage (for any items that were lost or broken in the incident, like cell phones, sunglasses, and more)
Missed wages from the past and future
Pain and suffering (psychological trauma, emotional scarring, PTSD, anxiety, fear)
Wrongful death expenses (pre-death medical bills and pain and suffering, funeral and burial costs, loss of consortium, loss of sexuality and companionship, loss of expected savings and inheritance)
Learn more about your options for compensation by calling (855) 339-8879.
Our lawyers will do all we can to bring you the compensation you deserve.
Should I Hire A Long Beach Sidewalk Accident Attorney?
Yes, you should hire a Long Beach sidewalk accident attorney, especially if there is city liability in your case. An injury lawyer can take care of your case from start to finish. You may not have the necessary experience required to negotiate a good deal and you may find yourself stressed out while dealing with the legal actions. We will make sure that you are accurately represented, especially if the city is the intended target of your lawsuit.
It is much more difficult for an individual to take action against a government entity than against a single person. This is because the city has much more manpower and more dedicated insurance agents. Therefore, only the most skilled attorney will be able to handle such claims, and our lawyers are the most adept at sidewalk accident lawsuits.
What Is The Deadline To File A Sidewalk Accident Lawsuit?
If you wish to file a sidewalk accident claim, you only have 2 years from the date of the injury to take legal action. This is because claims should be filed within an acceptable amount o time, and the longer the lawsuit waits, the more likely it is that evidence will get lost or become corrupted and witnesses will forget key points and details. The faster a claim gets filed, the fresher everything will be, and the more relevant the damages and expenses will be.
However, if you plan on suing a city entity for damages from a sidewalk accident, you will only have 6 months from the date of the injury to file a claim. It can be confusing for victims to keep track of these important dates. In fact, many lawsuits have been lost or rejected because a victim did not know there was a different amount of time. Our lawyers will ensure that your claim is filed within the appropriate time limit.
You may also be eligible for an exception to the statute of limitations. The two most common exceptions are related to your age and the defendant’s location. If you were underage at the time of the incident, your statute could be suspended until you turn 18 years old. Also, the defendant must be in California for you to sue him, and if he leaves California or the country, the statute will be temporarily suspended until he returns.
Talk with one of our experienced attorneys for more help determining the statute of limitations on your case.
How We Help
Our law firm, the Downtown LA Law Group, will do all we can to bring you the maximum compensation available for your claim. We are an aggressive team of lawyers with years of experience on our side, and we have won dozens of sidewalk accident lawsuits. We are the top-rated firm in town for a reason.
Call our firm at (855) 339-8879 today to schedule a free consultation with a city liability injury lawyer. We will answer your questions and help you understand the legal process. All of our consultations are completely confidential and none of your details will be shared elsewhere. If you hire us, we’ll give you our zero fee guarantee that promises that you won’t have to pay a single penny for our services. We will only get paid if we win, and if we lose, we take nothing at all.
Get in touch with our firm today for more help filing a sidewalk accident claim against the responsible party.
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“Farid was great! My boyfriend and I retained him in April 2017, as we were rear ended on the I101 . Our car was totaled and we were badly injured. On a family member’s recommendation, we took a chance and contacted Farid for help with the process. After the whole ordeal, the last thing we wanted to do was deal with insurance companies.”
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YOU Deserve the Best Free Case Review 24/7 Call 855.339.8879
By submitting this form, you agree to receive telephone calls and text messages at anytime, which include hours outside of business hours (8:00 am PST – 9:00 pm PST). This is so that we may reach you as soon as possible in order to consult on your potential case.
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