NYC Sidewalk Accident and Fall Lawyer

New York City Sidewalk Attorney with Winning Record

New York City is a busy place where people often need to shift through crowds. Sometimes it can be difficult to see the sidewalk ahead of you and avoid dangerous conditions on the walkway. In some cases, trip and fall cases are caused by a negligent property owner or the City of New York. Sidewalk accidents and falls can result in injuries such as broken bones requiring surgery, lacerations, fractures, concussions, disc herniations or soft tissue injuries. One or more people may be responsible for your fall. If you are injured, you should retain a New York City sidewalk accident lawyer to hold the responsible parties accountable for your injuries.

NYC Sidewalk Accidents and Falls

In New York, private property owners, both residential and commercial, are required to maintain the sidewalks in front of their homes or businesses in a condition that is reasonably safe for people walking thereupon. This means that they need to take positive steps to help prevent dangerous conditions like snow and ice, which can freeze, thaw and then refreeze, fix the pavement when it is broken and dangerous, and fix stones and uneven areas like dangerous gratings. They should also make sure that proper precautions are taken when any construction is done on their sidewalk in the front of their property.

A private property owner may be held liable for a dangerous condition that causes injuries if you can show that they knew or should have known about a dangerous condition; that they didn’t take the proper steps to repair the condition or provide warnings to others; the dangerous condition was a substantial factor in causing your injuries, and you suffered serious injuries as a result. A NYC sidewalk accident attorney can help you and determine whether these factors are likely to be established in your case.

A property owner is not held responsible for a dangerous condition when it neither knew about it nor should have known about it in the exercise of reasonable care. Snow and ice falls accidents present particular challenges in this respect. Usually, you will have to show that a property owner knew or should have known that ice or snow had accumulated and that the owner didn’t clear the snow or ice in a reasonable time frame or didn’t re-salt or shovel following a thaw and subsequent re-freeze. If the snow or ice accumulated in a small window of time, it is less likely that an individual can recover damages. For example, if a patch of black ice formed, and you slipped early in the morning, you may not be able to hold a property owner responsible for the fall because there was not enough time for the owner to find out about it and fix the the issue.

Under Section 7-210 of the New York City Administrative Code, a property owner whose property abuts the sidewalk is supposed to maintain it. However, the City of New York is responsible for sidewalks that abut a one, two, or three family residence where the owner resides. After a sidewalk trip and fall, it is a good idea to take pictures of exactly where you fell and the dangerous condition that caused you to fall. These may be useful for your New York City sidewalk accident attorney later to identify who was responsible for the sidewalk where the fall occurred.

If the City of New York is responsible for your sidewalk accident, you will need to prove that the City received prior written notice of the dangerous condition that caused your injury. Proving notice can be challenging. Additionally, under the New York General Municipal Law, if the City of New York is responsible for the dangerous condition, they must be served a Notice of Claim within ninety (90) days after your accident. The city will investigate the fall and can ask for a 50-h hearing, during which you will be required to give sworn testimony.

You can recover compensatory damages if you can prove liability for a sidewalk accident by a preponderance of the evidence and you sustained injuries as a result of the accident. This means that you must show that your version of what happened is more likely true than not true. Compensatory damages can include medical expenses, hospital bills, lost wages, lost earning capacity, household services, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and loss of consortium.

Discuss Your Case with an NYC Sidewalk Accident Lawyer in New York City

When you walk down the street, you do not expect to suffer serious injuries during your prowl of the City. Property owners in New York City are supposed to provide warnings or repair conditions that could result in sidewalk accidents and falls. Michael J. Redenburg, Esq., PC has provided effective legal representation to victims of sidewalk accidents and other types of slip and falls. We represent people in Queens, the Bronx, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island and Long Island. Call us at 212-240-9465.