L.I. Personal Injury Attorney Tells Why Negligence is so Important in Accident Cases

Several months ago, we wrote a blog about a woman who called our firm in regards to a treadmill accident. The woman had fallen off the machine, injured herself, and was looking to sue. However, when we asked how she had fallen, she couldn't identify a problem with the treadmill. The woman had simply fallen on her own. This call depicts a misconception that many people have. Many believe that just because they have been injured, there are sufficient grounds for a civil lawsuit. This is wrong. In order to sue, there must be negligence or liability on behalf an individual or company. So what's negligence? Negligence is the failure of an individual to take reasonable steps to ensure the safety and well-being of another. In order for a slip and fall, or any other type of accident victim to sue, there must be some type of negligence.

So what are some situations in which there may be traces of negligence? Many of the calls we receive that fit this criterion are in regards to slip and fall cases. So for instance, a restaurant owner may have failed to fix a large crack in the flooring, causing a customer to trip, fall, and get injured. In this case, the negligence is clear--the restaurant owner had failed to do something about the damaged floor. Another example may be, an individual slipping and falling as a result of an apartment complex owner failing to have the property's walkways cleared of snow. Once again, the negligence is pretty apparent--the property owner failing to do something about the snow covered pathways. As you can see, negligence is important when proving a slip and fall accident case. However, negligence isn't always as clear as in the cases that I have detailed above, and sometimes negligence can be extremely difficult to prove. Therefore, its often important for accident victims to look for skilled and experienced lawyers when dealing with these types of cases.

Given that negligence can lead to some pretty serious injuries, our Long Island Personal Injury attorneys are dedicated to helping accident victims to obtain compensation for the damages that they have sustained. If you have been injured as the result of negligence, please contact our New York or Long Island offices for a free case evaluation.