Slip, Trip & Fall Accidents

Even A Minor Injury Can Have A Major Impact

Even seemingly small accidents that cause minor injuries can still drastically impact a victim’s life. Suffering from a foot, ankle, hip or back injury can be detrimental to a person’s life, affecting someone’s mobility and ability to work. At Caesar & Napoli, we represent people who have been injured in slips, trips and falls throughout New York City.

Keeping Abreast Of The Law

Staying up-to-date with case law is one of the biggest priorities for our lawyers. We avidly read case law and are highly knowledgeable of the factors that the courts will consider in slip-and-fall cases. Our New York fall accident lawyers know what evidence needs to be gathered in order to prove that the defendant was aware of the defect. Our firm routinely represents people who have been injured on sidewalks and defective roadways and other accidents caused by property owner negligence throughout New York City.

We know that liability is in question in many slip-and-fall cases, and will work with engineers and other experts to help establish that the owner knew of the condition. One of the benefits of working with our law firm is that you know our Queens trip accident lawyers will invest in the necessary resources for your case from the beginning.

Who Is Responsible For A New York City Sidewalk

This is the question that decides most sidewalk cases, and the answer is not the one people expect. Under section 7-210 of the New York City Administrative Code, the owner of the property next to the sidewalk carries the duty to keep it in a reasonably safe condition. That duty is non-delegable, which means an owner cannot pass it to a managing agent or a contractor and walk away from it.

There is one significant exception. A one, two or three family home that is owner-occupied and used only as a residence falls outside that rule. Where the exception applies, responsibility sits with the City, and a claim against the City faces a further obstacle described below.

So the first work on a sidewalk case is identifying who owned the abutting property on the day of the fall, and what that building was used for. A photograph of the defect is not enough on its own. The claim follows the ownership.

Proving The Owner Knew About The Hazard

An owner is not liable simply because someone fell. The claim turns on notice, and notice comes in two forms.

Actual notice means the owner knew. A prior complaint, a repair request, a violation, or an earlier accident in the same place all establish it.

Constructive notice means the hazard was visible and apparent, and it stayed there long enough that the owner should have found it and fixed it. A cracked flag that has lifted over years is a different case from a spill that happened four minutes earlier, and the defense in almost every slip and fall case is that there was no time to discover the condition.

That is why the evidence that establishes how long a condition existed matters more than the photograph of the condition itself. Prior inspection records, cleaning logs, earlier complaints, repair histories and dated images from before the accident are what convert a fall into a claim.

Snow And Ice Falls

Section 16-123 of the New York City Administrative Code requires property owners to clear snow and ice from the sidewalk within set periods after the snowfall stops, and to spread sand or a similar material when ice cannot be removed without damaging the pavement. Failing to do so within the permitted time supports a claim.

The defense that answers most of these cases is the storm in progress doctrine. While a storm is still falling, an owner is generally given a reasonable period after it ends before the duty to clear begins. This is why the weather record for the hours around the fall is often the single most important document in a snow and ice case, and why the exact time of the accident matters so much.

The Deadlines That Run Against A Slip And Fall Claim

• Ninety days to serve a notice of claim when the responsible party is the City or another public corporation, under General Municipal Law section 50-e. This runs long before any lawsuit is filed, and missing it usually ends the claim.
• Three years to file a personal injury lawsuit, under CPLR 214(5).
• Two years to bring a wrongful death claim, under EPTL 5-4.1.

Claims against the City carry a further requirement. Under the prior written notice provision in section 7-201(c) of the Administrative Code, the City generally cannot be held liable for a street or sidewalk defect unless it had already received written notice of that specific defect. The precise location of the fall, recorded accurately, is therefore part of the claim rather than a detail.

When You Are Partly Blamed For The Fall

Expect the argument that you were not watching where you were walking, that the footwear was wrong, or that the hazard was open and obvious. Under CPLR 1411, New York applies pure comparative fault. A share of the responsibility reduces the recovery in proportion, and it does not end the claim.

Questions People Ask After A Fall In New York

I fell on a sidewalk. Do I sue the City or the building owner?
Usually the building owner, because section 7-210 places the duty on the abutting property owner. The City becomes the defendant mainly where the abutting property is an owner-occupied one to three family home, and those claims carry the prior written notice requirement.

I did not report the fall at the time. Is it too late?
Not necessarily, although it makes the case harder. An incident report written on the day carries weight that a later account does not. If no report exists, the record is built from medical notes, photographs, and witnesses instead.

The store cleaned up the spill straight away. Does that hurt my case?
It removes the condition, but it does not remove the claim. Cleaning logs, staffing records and camera footage can still establish how long the spill was there. Footage is often overwritten within days, so the request to preserve it needs to go out early.

What if I was wearing sandals, or looking at my phone?
That goes to comparative fault under CPLR 1411. It can reduce a recovery. It does not bar one.

What does it cost to bring a claim?
Caesar & Napoli handles most personal injury cases on a no-win, no-fee basis. We are not paid attorney’s fees unless we win a recovery for your case.

Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Related Practice Areas

• Property Negligence
• Falls From Spills, Water And Ice
• Elevator Accidents
• Negligent Security
• Fire Hazards

Contact A New York City Personal Injury Attorney Today

At Caesar & Napoli, we do not charge for initial consultations. To schedule a meeting with one of our attorneys to discuss your injury case, please contact us at (888) 235-6766 . Most personal injury cases are handled on a no-win, no-fee basis. We are not paid attorney’s fees unless we win a recovery for your case.