While Avondale is mostly suburban and car-centric like many other parts of the greater Phoenix metro area, there are still plenty of sidewalks and walking paths connecting residential streets to each other and linking commercial buildings together. Unfortunately, that means there are also plenty of opportunities for negligent landowners to create hazardous conditions for pedestrians, some of which end up causing those pedestrians to suffer serious and ultimately preventable injuries.
If you were hurt recently through a sidewalk slip and fall accident in Avondale, you may have grounds to file suit against the owner of that sidewalk and demand compensation from them for your injury-related losses. However, you may have a very hard time getting the restitution you deserve if you try to sue without the support of a knowledgeable slip and fall attorney from Phillips Law Group.
Holding the Right Person Accountable for a Sidewalk Injury
Part of what makes lawsuits over sidewalk slip and fall injuries in Avondale so complex is how difficult it can sometimes be to determine who is actually responsible for maintaining a particular patch of sidewalk in the first place. Sometimes, the answer to that question is fairly straightforward—for example, if someone trips over a cracked concrete slab in a sidewalk connecting a privately owned parking lot to a privately owned retail store.
In other situations, the precise distance between a sidewalk and nearby commercial or residential property can raise challenging questions about whether liability for an accident on that sidewalk lies with the owner of the nearby land, with local municipal authorities, or a combination of both. One of the most important services that skilled legal counsel can provide after an accident like this is helping to sort out exactly who is at fault for the accident in legal terms and what source(s) compensation for ensuing injuries should come from.
Fighting Accusations of Comparative Fault
Another thing legal counsel can provide vital help with in the wake of an Avondale sidewalk trip and fall accident is proving that the person injured in that accident was not negligent themselves. More specifically, a skilled lawyer can help fight allegations made by a defendant being sued over a sidewalk slip and fall that the plaintiff filing that lawsuit was partly to blame for causing their own injury through their own reckless or careless conduct.
Even something as seemingly minor as wearing shoes with worn-down treads or running someplace where most people were walking could be interpreted by a court or insurance company as “comparative negligence” on the part of an injured person. In accordance with Arizona Revised Statutes §12-2505, the court or insurance company could reduce the total amount of money that the injured person can recover for their damages by the percentage of comparative fault assigned to them. This could translate to a loss of thousands of dollars—or much more than that—depending on the injuries caused by the accident.
Work With an Avondale Attorney on a Sidewalk Slip and Fall Accident Claim
While central Arizona fortunately does not see much ice or snow even during the coldest parts of winter, sidewalks in this area of the Grand Canyon State can still be treacherous for any number of other reasons. If one of those reasons led to you slipping and falling recently, the process of filing suit over your ensuing injuries may be nearly impossible to get a good result from if you try to go through it alone.
Assistance from Phillips Law Group will almost certainly make a world of difference in how effectively you can demand compensation following a sidewalk slip and fall accident in Avondale. Call today to set up a confidential meeting with a member of our legal team.
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