Do I Have To Prove Negligence In Slip And Fall Accidents in Oklahoma

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Slip and Fall Accidents

Slip and Fall accidents in Oklahoma occur when someone trips or slips and falls because of another persons negligence. The slip and fall accident must also have caused you a personal injury. Depending on where this accident occurs, the property owner or operator may be held liable for your injuries. Depending on where the injury occurred determines the liability of the property owner or operator. Some injuries require a different showing of wrong doing depending on why you were there and why you were injured.

Anyone can be a victim of a slip and fall accident. The reasons for the fall can vary greatly. If you’re hoping to receive compensatory damages, you must prove that your injury occurred from the property owners failure to keep the premises safe.

Slip and Fall Accidents; What Do I Need To Prove

Due to slip and fall cases being premise liability claims, you must prove negligence. This is true unless the accident happened at your workplace in which case you don’t have to prove negligence. If it happens at work the slip and fall injury accident is covered by workers compensation. This means because its a workers compensation claim you negligence is never an issue. For non work injury accidents you can prove negligence by showing that the property owner or operator owed you a “duty of care.” A duty of care means that you were on the property for a lawful purpose, and owner of the premise was responsible for keeping the property safe for you while you were there.

The Court classifies people lawfully on a premises as “invitees.” This means the owner of the premises has the highest standard of care to meet to be considered not negligent for the slip and fall accident. A great example of an invitee is a retail store open to the public for shopping or eating.

Next, you’ll have to prove that the property was in disrepair or prove in some other way that owner or operator did not maintain the property to the proper standard expected of them by the law. This will show that the primases owner or operator breached their duty to maintain a safe property for you.

Need To Prove Causation of The Injury

After proving duty and breach, you’ll have to prove causation. We’ll have to show that your injuries are directly related to the issue with the property. The premises owner or operators failure to properly maintain the property must have caused your injuries. For example, suppose premises owner or operator reasonably should’ve known about wires covering a walkway and failed to remove them. You tripped and fell over them, shattering your knees. In this case, the wires directly caused your injuries.

Finally, after proving all of the above elements, we’ll need to show that your slip and fall harmed you monetarily, emotionally, or physically. You might also be entitled to pain and suffering for the injury. You can prove any of the aforementioned with medical bills, lost wages due to recovery time, and therapy costs. Additionally, in egregious cases you may be able ask for punitive damages.

Personal Injury Attorneys Near You

Slip and fall accidents can be very complicated in Oklahoma. Depending on your injuries and the premise owner or operator, each case is different. This means that even when the negligence appears to be straight forward complications arise. Generally, the owner of the property will might claim that you weren’t injured or that they didn’t owe you a duty of care. Either way our Tulsa slip and fall attorneys can help you. We analyze what caused your accident and determine what duty of care was owed to you. Once we do this our attorneys help you get the medical care needed to get you back on your feet. Contact Kania Law Office (918) 743-2233 or set up an appointment online.  

Tulsa's Local Personal Injury Lawyers

Law ScaleAre you looking for Tulsa attorneys who will fight aggressively for you? Our team of personal injury attorneys have the experience needed in Oklahoma law to secure the outcome you deserve.

Call us today for a free consultation 918-743-2233 or contact us online.