In most negligence cases, a defendant has to have taken an action which presented a foreseeable and unreasonable risk of harm to you the plaintiff. But in a slip and fall case brought against a property owner, negligence works a little differently. The property owner does not actually have to take the action which caused your injury (for example, spilled a bucket of soapy water that you then slipped on). Instead, property owners can be held liable where accidents occurred on their property and they failed to take reasonable steps to protect you as a visitor on their property. Specifically, the steps involved in proving a slip and fall case against a property owner are:

• The plaintiff must prove that the defendant owned the property in question and therefore owed a duty to you as a visitor. In most cases this can be proven easily, whether you were a customer, a residential guest, or using a public facility, although it may be more complicated if you were trespassing.
• The property owner failed to take reasonable steps to keep the property safe from the dangerous conditions that caused the slip and fall. This standard can change based on whether you were on the property as a customer or as a personal guest, but generally it means the owner should either take steps to prevent slips and falls from occurring or adequately clean up spills when the owner notices them. In many cases, this is proved through a showing that the owner or possessor of the property knew the dangerous condition existed but negligently failed to correct the hazard, or the hazardous condition existed on the property long enough that the owner or possessor should have found and corrected it before your slip and fall accident occurred.
• The property owner’s failure to take the above reasonable steps was the foreseeable cause of your injury. For example, if you claim to suffer migraine headaches from a fall, the property owner may try to argue the fall did not cause your headaches.
• You actually suffered the full extent of damages you are claiming recovery for.

The key to recovering damages in a slip and fall case, or any personal injury claim, is to establish that there has been an act of negligence. Whether your slip and fall accident occurred on public, private, government, or commercial property, if the property owner failed to take reasonable precautions to protect the safety of those who are present on the property, a claim can be filed to seek compensation for all damages.

The law requires that property owners clear ice and snow once the snow has stopped falling. The hours of removal are specific, and New York City government lists them as follows:

• If the snowfall ends between 7 am and 5 pm, the property owner must clear sidewalks within 4 hours.
• If snowfall ends between 5 pm and 9 pm, the sidewalks must be cleared within 14 hours.
• If snowfall ends between 9 pm and 7 am, sidewalks must be cleared by 11 am.

In a perfect world, all would take responsibility, follow the laws, and do everything reasonably possible to keep others safe from harm. Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world. Every year, thousands of people slip and fall on New York City sidewalks, crosswalks, entryways, stairways and other areas. The question is — who can be held accountable?

Both federal and state laws are in place for worker protection. In a report entitled “The Price of Life,” it is revealed that nearly 20 percent of occupational fatalities occur in New York, even though the state’s economy only accounts for 4 percent of national employment. Working construction has inherent risks, but a failure to ensure construction workers have proper safety protections has left many families bereft after the death of a loved one, or facing the consequences of a loved one who is so severely injured that he or she can no longer work. The types of construction activities that have proven to be the most dangerous, as listed by the U.S. Department of Labor, include:

• Working at an elevation. Falls to a lower level made up 49 percent of the construction industry fatalities in two recent years. With 80 percent of roofing and siding contractors being found to be in violation of safety laws, workers have died needlessly.
• Electrocutions. Construction workers are often fatally injured when energized electrical lines come into contact with tools or other metal components.
• Struck by Object. Falling tools or other items endanger all those who are busy working below. As these injuries are frequently to the head and skull, either death or traumatic brain injuries with permanent consequences can occur.
• Caught in or Between. Workers that get caught in or between moving machinery, vehicles, items being moved by cranes or lifts, loaders, or other situations can leave a worker either permanently or fatally injured.

There’s no way to entirely eliminate the risk of a slip and fall on an icy sidewalk. However, with a little foresight, you can reduce the chances of a slip and fall. Consider taking these simple measures that increase safety for yourself and others over the long winter months.

• Keep the sidewalk in front of your home and business free of ice. Shovel away snow as soon as it falls to prevent accumulation and compression. If there is already ice, use a dissolving agent such as rock salt to melt it and scrape the remaining ice and snow off the sidewalk completely.
• In addition to salt, apply sand to slippery walking surfaces. Sand adds traction to the surface and makes it easier to walk on.
• Make sure your sidewalk is well lit. Slippery surfaces and poor lighting are a disaster waiting to happen. Keep any stairs illuminated with durable outdoor lights.
• Wear shoes with excellent traction. Carry other shoes with you and change when you reach your location, rather than wearing leather-soled or other footwear that make it more possible to slip in icy or snowy conditions.
• Walk cautiously when using sidewalks. During the winter, assume you are likely to encounter a slippery surface at any time. So, walk a little more slowly than usual and take cautious steps.
• Don’t place your hands in your pockets. A slip and fall is far more dangerous if you are unable to break your fall.
• Walk like a penguin. It sounds amusing, but walking with a wide stance, spreading your arms apart and “waddling” slightly widens your center of gravity. It will be harder to get knocked off your feet in slippery conditions.
• Try to keep your eyes ahead, rather than focused strictly on the ground. Walking while looking at the sidewalk can make it more possible to lose your balance.

New York is a pure comparative fault state. You can be partially at fault for causing your own injuries and still recover compensation so long as you can prove that another party, such as New York City or one of its city agencies, was also negligent. Your damages will be reduced by your percentage of comparative fault. For instance, if your damages are $100,000 and you were 45% at fault, you would recover only $55,000.

In a slip and fall case against the city, the defense attorneys will question you closely about your conduct, clothes you were wearing and the open and obvious nature of the hazard. You may be asked what kinds of shoes you wearing, if you were in a hurry or late to an appointment, talking on a cell phone or otherwise inattentive. You do have a duty to exercise reasonable care for your own safety, which the city will assert includes wearing non-skid shoes following a snowfall or icy weather, walking cautiously and being aware that you are walking in snow where other less dangerous routes were possibly accessible.

Following an accident, you will likely be contacted by a city attorney or investigator. Do not give any recorded or written statements without first consulting or retaining an experienced premises liability attorney.

Before you have a viable injury claim, you have to show that the other party, or landowner, was negligent. Negligence law has to do with a person or entity exercising reasonable or ordinary care towards others to whom they owe a duty of care.

Property owners have a duty of care to certain persons who are invited onto their premises or who are there lawfully such as meter readers, postal workers, police and fire or delivery persons. These persons are called licensees and are owed a duty by the residence owner to use reasonable care in keeping their property free of hazardous conditions or to warn guests or licensees of their presence.

Their duty of care does not extend to inspecting the property for hazards but to at least warn if they knew or should have known of the hazard. In the case of a slippery sidewalk or driveway, it can be unreasonably dangerous to allow the condition to continue since there is a high potential for people to slip and sustain serious injuries. You have to show that a residential owner using ordinary care would shovel their driveway or area of sidewalk, remove the ice or salt it, or warn persons of the condition.