On April 30, 2007, for the first time in five years, New York’s Metropolitan Transit Authority suspended indefinitely maintenance work and construction throughout the subway system. The reason: for the second time in less than a week, a construction worker was killed on the tracks. The head of the New York City transit authority ordered all 6,000 workers off the tracks that day and into safety refresher training.

Often, it is faulty equipment. Falls from unsecured ladders while painting or cleaning are common accidents, as are severe injuries and deaths when a ladder supplied by the company is too short or too unstable for the required work, or when safety harnesses are inadequate. In addition, falling objects also present a danger at construction sites. Injuries from ceiling collapses or loose tiles can range from mild, to disabling back and brain injuries to death.

Under the law of premises liability, a construction site has an obligation to keep its premises safe for workers and pedestrians. Likewise, a property owner has a responsibility to guests or neighbors to keep the property safe. Premises liability refers to a lawsuit against a property owner for injuries sustained on that person's property due to the property owner's negligence or intentional conduct. A property owner can be held liable for damages if he or she fails to maintain reasonably safe conditions, or warn you of any potential hazards, and an injury results. Damages may include medical expenses, pain and suffering, loss of current and potential wages, and other damages.

Premises liability cases often depend heavily on the circumstances surrounding the accident. For example, the owner of a jewelry shop who does not provide proper security despite knowing that he or she is doing business in a community with a high crime rate may be held liable if a customer falls victim to a violent act. Injuries because of certain equipment on property, such as on a construction site or at a business, are a common source of our premises liability cases. This can include both workers and visitors who are injured in warehouses, construction sites, or oilfields because of forklifts, cranes or other heavy equipment.

Premises liability also includes such accidents as slipping on a substance on the floor that should have been cleaned up (slip-and-fall), tripping over an object in the walkway (trip-and-fall), attacks by other dangerous animals, chemical exposure, poisoning, asphyxiation, equipment failure, inadequate security (resulting in assault), construction accidents, and oilfield accidents.

Not everyone who suffers an injury on someone else's property will necessarily be eligible for compensation. In order to file a successful premises liability claim, you must be able to demonstrate negligence on the part of the property owner or the party commissioned to act on behalf of the property owner. For example, a patron of a grocery store who slips and falls on a wet floor will have a difficult time showing negligence if he or she ignored clearly posted warning signs. Likewise, if that patron slips and falls immediately after another patron spills some liquid, leaving no opportunity for the store's employees to attend to the spill, the owners of the property will most likely not share liability. However, if the slip and fall occurs due to a spill that the store's employees knew about but failed to respond to, there may be grounds for a strong premises liability case.

At David Resnick & Associates, PC, our lawyers understand that premises liability covers a comprehensive range of suits for injuries caused by a property owner’s failure to warn, maintain and correct situations on public and private premises. Many times the owner of property, learning of an injury, will go out and conduct a repair. They do this for two reasons: to eliminate evidence, and to make sure no one else gets injured.

If you or someone you love has suffered a serious injury due to the negligence of a property owner, we would like to hear from you. The key to a successful slip and fall or trip and fall accident claim at the law offices of David Resnick & Associates, PC is the careful screening of your case and the immediate investigation of the circumstances to establish a link between your injuries and the negligent conditions that caused them.

If you contact our firm, you will talk to David Resnick directly about your situation. If we can be of help to you or your loved ones, we would enjoy the opportunity to acquaint you with our work.

There is no fee unless we win.

For more information:
NY Property Owner Responsibility
Premises Liability FAQ's
New York Slip and Falls
Slip and Fall Evaluation Form

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