San Francisco Slip and Fall Attorney

over three decades of legal experience

Over $100M Recovered for our clients

Extensive Jury Trial Experience

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San Francisco Slip and Fall Attorney

As top San Francisco personal injury lawyers, the attorneys at Delfino, Green & Green have made it their mission to ensure injury victims get the compensation they need to recover—physically and financially. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation. Everyone falls down on occasion, and sometimes it’s no one’s fault. These types of events are not what we’re talking about when we refer to slip and fall accidents, at least in the legal sense. Slip and fall accidents (sometimes called trip and fall accidents) refer to injuries that, rather than being caused by a misstep or loss of balance, were caused by a property owner’s careless actions. They can cause serious injuries that would never have occurred without negligence.

Here’s an example of a claim-worthy slip and fall accident: It’s your turn to pick up lunch for the office. You go to a multi-story shopping center to order takeout from your coworker’s favorite restaurant—a small organic cafe—on the second floor. After you’ve picked up your order, you head back to the escalator and walk onto the first step, heading down. Seconds later, the escalator malfunctions, jerking violently beneath your feet. You fall, tumbling down the remaining steps. You suffer serious injuries that require hospitalization and six months of physical therapy. You miss several weeks of work and wages. If you’re the injury victim in this scenario, you didn’t do anything wrong. You entered a public shopping center as a paying customer, expecting to be safe. Instead you were met with a hazardous environment that damaged your physical body, emotional wellbeing and financial standing. Don’t you deserve help? At Delfino, Green & Green, we think it’s unacceptable that so many injury victims are forced to pay the price for someone else’s negligent actions. That’s why we fight tirelessly in pursuit of compensation for our clients. Keep reading to learn more about slip and fall accidents, their consequences and how an experienced slip and fall lawyer can protect your future.

What Causes Slip and Fall Accidents?

Slips, trips and falls are among the most common causes of accidents in retail stores, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Although myriad factors can cause these types of accidents, the following are the most likely culprits:

Spilled liquids or food. Especially common in restaurants, spilled liquids can cause unsuspecting passersby to slip on the floor. It is the job of the business owner or manager to ensure they are adequately and appropriately staffed to clean up these messes before they become a hazard, or to warn customers with adequate signage.
Electrical cords or wires cluttering a walking space. When a property owner allows electrical cords and wires to clutter a pathway, they put guests at an increased risk of tripping, as well as suffering electrical injuries.
Sidewalk defects. It is the property owner’s responsibility to make sure that guests—especially ones with limited mobility—can travel safely along designated paths. Uneven, broken and otherwise damaged sidewalks can endanger pedestrian safety.
Loose or torn carpeting. When torn or lifted, carpeting increases one’s risk of suffering a slip and fall accident, especially if they depend on using a cane, walker, wheelchair or prosthetics to walk.
Inadequate lighting. Any publicly accessible area of a business should have adequately bright and properly maintained lighting fixtures.
Insufficient signage. It’s the responsibility of a store owner or manager to warn guests of potential hazards by providing signs that effectively communicate the danger.

Slip and fall accidents can be caused by a wide range of hazards. What connects these diverse cases is the fact that they could have been prevented.

Understanding Premises Liability

In California, the law of premises liability states that property owners and occupants owe a duty of care to visiting guests. That means they must maintain reasonably safe conditions on their property and warn visitors about any potential hazards that aren’t immediately noticeable. When a property owner or occupant fails to ensure a safe environment, they put their guests at unnecessary risk for serious injuries. As a result, they may be held liable for injury victims’ damages. Although premises liability encompasses myriad types of accidents, slip and falls are among the most common. Although most people associate slip and fall lawsuits with accidents that happen in stores and retail establishments, these cases are not limited to public spaces. Even if the accident occurred at a friend or family member’s house, an injury victim is entitled to file a lawsuit if a duty of care was breached.

Did you suffer serious injuries in a slip and fall accident?

Our trusted slip and fall lawyers may be able to help you secure the compensation you deserve. Give us a call at (415) 442-4646 to schedule a free consultation.

Liability and Negligence in Slip and Fall Cases

In order to receive compensation, a slip and fall injury victim and their lawyer will need to demonstrate that the other party acted with negligence, disregard or malice. The first step in determining liability is to answer this key question: Did someone else (generally the property owner) either cause or fail to prevent my accident? If the answer is yes, you may have a case.

Determining Liability

To hold another party responsible for your injuries, your slip and fall attorney will likely need to prove one of the following:

The defendant failed to recognize and remedy a potential danger. The property owner should have recognized a dangerous condition and removed or repaired the danger, but failed to do so. You will need to establish that a reasonable person would have seen the condition as hazardous and that the defendant had ample time to remedy the situation but chose not to.
The defendant directly caused the hazardous condition. Your slip and fall injury was a direct result of the defendant’s actions, and it was reasonably foreseeable that someone would be injured as a result.

A large part of proving either one will be demonstrating that the defendant responded in a way that most people would consider to be reckless or unreasonable.

Proving Negligence

To be deemed negligent and be held liable, the defendant must have failed to act as a reasonably prudent person would have. This can be harder to do than you might think, as what constitutes “reasonable” varies from person to person. To investigate whether a defendant acted reasonably, your lawyer may consider the following questions:

Did the hazardous condition exist long enough for a reasonably responsible owner or employee to take action?
Does the property owner or employee routinely check the property for hazards?
Was there a reasonable justification for the hazard and did it still exist at the time of the accident?
Could steps have been taken to prevent the accident from occurring?
Was poor lighting or limited visibility a factor?

As you can see, slip and fall cases require a thorough investigation in order to prove liability and negligence. After clearly establishing the at-fault party and their role in your accident, a San Francisco personal injury lawyer can move forward in pursuit of your compensation.

Types of Compensation Slip and Fall Victims Can Receive

Most injury victims don’t realize that they can typically include a lot more than just medical expenses in their settlement calculations. In fact, most slip and fall lawsuits allow injury victims to include both economic (financial losses) and non-economic damages (intangible losses). When you calculate your settlement, you may be able to include the following damages:

Medical expenses related to the accident
Future medical expenses
Lost wages, benefits and future lost wages
Property damage
Pain and suffering
Loss of enjoyment of life
Permanent disability
Scarring and disfigurement

If the court determines that the defendant acted with outrageous negligence or malice, it may also award you punitive damages. Unlike compensatory damages (both economic and non-economic), punitive damages aren’t designed to replace your losses. They are awarded in an effort to punish the defendant and deter similar behaviors in the future. After suffering a serious injury, no one feels like starting a lawsuit. The harsh reality is that if you wait until you feel like it, your window to receive compensation may close. At Delfino, Green & Green, we’ve seen every type of premises liability case imaginable. Although their case details vary greatly, the thing that connects our clients remains the same: They were paying the ultimate price for someone else’s actions. That idea will never sit right with us.

Delfino, Green & Green: Premier Slip and Fall Lawyers in San Francisco

If you’re searching for the best slip and fall lawyer in San Francisco, save yourself some time and reach out to our firm. We’ll help you schedule a free consultation with one of our top attorneys to evaluate your case, and whether we end up working together or not, we will always treat you with the respect and compassion you deserve. Schedule your free consultation here or give us a call at (415) 442-4646.

Verdicts & Settlements

We've recovered millions for our clients

$10,400,000

Construction Death

The husband and father of 4 young children was working at a construction site when he died because of another contractor's negligence. After more than two years of hard fought litigation, our team of experts was able to win a tremendous victory on behalf of our clients and ensure that all of their financial needs will be met. We could not bring back the husband/father for this family, but we were able to protect them from the financial devastation that can and often does result where the primary source of income for the family is taken away. We then worked with our team of financial planners to make sure that this family will always have financial security.

$10,000,000

Bad Faith Insurance Claim

Insurance Coverage/Bad Faith Bad Faith – Pollution Coverage Prior to forming his own firm, Mr. Green worked at one of the largest and most prestigious firms in the U.S. He was the primary attorney on an environmental insurance case that went to trial in San Francisco. After a several week trial, Mr. Green came away with a trial verdict against the insurers with a value of over $10,000,000 in available insurance coverage.

$5,750,000

Traumatic Brain Injury

A 16 year old developmentally disabled kid was hit by a bus while in a crosswalk. He suffered a concussion which turned into post concussive syndrome, where the symptoms of the concussion don't heal completely. This is also known as a mild Traumatic Brain Injury ("mTBI"). Our firm was hired as trial counsel 6 months before trial because of our expertise in TBIs as well as cutting edge trial techniques. When we first associated into the case, there was a very minimal settlement offer and it did not appear that the Defense was taking the case seriously. Our team of attorneys, experts and staff immediately immersed ourselves in the case as we prepared to demonstrate the catastrophic consequences of this incident. Shortly before trial, the Defense could see that we had put all the pieces together to prove liability and that full justice for our young client required damages in the many millions of dollars. The matter settled for $5,750,000.

$2,400,000

Disability Claim

Disability – Neurological Issues Our client became disabled from neurological issues. Our attorneys were able to work with the client and his physicians to quickly assemble all of the documentation necessary to support out client’s claim of total disability. The insurer agreed that our client was totally disabled and paid his claim.

$2,000,000

Traumatic Brain Injury

Traumatic Brain Injury to Child A three year old child was being carried across the street when she was struck by an oncoming car. The child suffered a serious traumatic brain injury when she hit the ground. Her injuries were so serious she had to be hospitalized for several months. Our firm negotiated a settlement of $2,000,000 by forcing the payment of all of the available insurance from the driver’s automobile insurer ($1,250,000), the entire amount of the homeowners insurance limits available ($500,000), and all of the amounts that the person carrying the little girl was able to recover from the negligent driver ($250,000). We then arranged for another firm to prepare and fund a large Special Needs Trust for the health and welfare of the injured child.

$1,800,000

Heart Condition Disability

Our client became disabled by a heart attack. The insurer refused to pay, claiming that our client was still able to perform his occupation. We met with all of our client’s doctors, obtained reports confirming the client’s inability to perform his prior occupation, and ultimately convinced the insurance company to pay the claim in full.

$1,700,000

Builder’s Risk/Collapse

A contractor suffered a severe collapse at one of his sites. The claim was submitted to the insurer and denied. Mr. Green reviewed all of the facts, researched the law, and brought together the necessary experts to prove that the Contractor’s Builders Risk insurer was responsible for a substantial portion of the loss. He also proved that a subcontractor was negligent and the subcontractor’s insurer also paid a substantial settlement. In total, Mr. Green was able to obtain more than $1,700,000 in compensation for his client.

$1,000,000

Heart Condition Disability

Our client had worked for the government for many years when she began suffering from a serious heart condition. All of her doctors told her that she could no longer work and if she continued to do so, she would be risking further injury to her heart or even death. Based on thi

$1,000,000

Traumatic Brain Injury

Our client suffered a mild Traumatic Brain Injury when heavy object struck her in the head. The responsible party denied all fault and insisted until the very end that our client had not suffered a brain injury and offered nothing to settle the case. Our firm assembled a team of world renowned expert‘s to demonstrate that our client had suffered a mild Traumatic brain injury. The case settled shortly before trial.

$985,000

Traumatic Hand Injury

Our client was working at a manufacturing plant. While operating a piece of machinery, his glove became caught in the machinery and part of his hand was severely injured. Ordinarily, this type of injury would be restricted to remedies available through Worker’s Compensation. However, through the knowledge, ingenuity, and creativity of our team of attorneys, we were also able to obtain a very substantial civil settlement for our client in addition to the workers comp settlement of his case.

$975,000

Aviation Death Settlement

A husband and father of two small children was killed in an aviation accident involving a small aircraft. Our firm represented the widow and two children against the pilot of the aircraft. By hiring experts in aviation (to prove negligence) and economists (to prove damages), and utilizing William Green’s expertise as an instrument-rated pilot, we were able to make a very powerful case and obtain a very favorable settlement that allowed the family to survive financially.

$700,000

Forklift Accident

A construction supervisor went to pick up some materials for a construction job. A worker at the yard neglected to set the parking brake on a piece of heavy equipment a few yards away. While the construction supervisor had his back turned, the machine rolled into him, pinning him against the side of his pick-up truck. He suffered several broken ribs, but that was the least of his injuries. Within several weeks of the accident, he had partially lost his sight. By working with medical experts, our firm was able to directly connect the sight loss to the injuries caused by the machine that rolled into our client. The case settled at Mediation without any need for a trial.

Words of Praise from Our Clients

“I had the pleasure of working with Sharon Delfino on my workmens comp case. She definitely had my best interest at hand. She was able to find me a great doctor and help me resolve my case. The staff there are always polite and friendly, never had an issue. It was a pleasure working with Delfino Green & Green !”

- Tabitha W

“I’ve known the firm’s founder, Bill Green, for many years and I can say that he is one of the best attorneys I’ve had the pleasure of working with. He and his associates at Delfino Green & Green are hard-working, highly responsive, and very professional, and they get the job done, without excuses. Bill is a great communicator, both with clients, and in Court, and invests time and money to include visual storytelling in his trials and mediations. You won’t find an attorney who cares more about you, and getting you an outstanding result for your case. Bill is one of the “good guys” in the legal profession…a great person to have on your side when dealing with the craziness of litigation.”

- Tim M

“A few years ago, I referred a friend of mine to the attorneys at Delfino Green & Green. He was extremely happy with the job they did on his case. He was severely injured when a car hit him when he was crossing a street and this event had the potential to ruin him in a number of ways – financially, physically, emotionally, etc. We kept in close contact during the lawsuit and he told me how great his lawyer and his assistant were throughout the process. Caring, compassionate and very knowledgeable. My friend ended up with a great result – fair financial compensation and great treatment for his injuries. Little did I know when I referred my friend that a few years later, I would need a lawyer for injuries I suffered, but I did. Based on my friend’s experience, I knew that Delfino Green & Green would be the right attorneys for me. So I hired Bill Green and his team to help and they jumped right into action. Now I can saw that I too have firsthand knowledge of just how great these guys are. They knew the law, they knew just how to handle my particular case, and they helped me get my life back after the horrible events that lead to my injury. I can’t imagine that you could do any better than hiring these folks. I’m so grateful for all they did for both me and my friend.”

- Evelyn A

“The work Delfino Green & Green did on my case was beyond excellent. The final result was superb, but I also truly appreciated how Mr. Green and the team kept me up-to-date at every stage of the case. I was able to reach someone whenever I needed something or had something important to report and the firm always let me know what was going on in my case. That was very important to me because I hadn’t found that to be true with other attorneys. In short, really top flight work, great people and results that met all of my expectations above and beyond.”

- Byron H

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