You slipped and fell—and you are hurt. It is a common occurrence, but one that is prosecuted less than the typical automobile insurance case. The Best Personal Injury Law Firms know that you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries arising out of your slip-and-fall case. Multiple laws affect your lawsuit, including your slip-and-fall claim. Two important ones are (i) the deadline to file your lawsuit (known as the “statute of limitations”) and (ii) the reduction in any award based on one’s own fault (known as “comparative negligence”). As it pertains to almost any personal injury claim in Alaska, Alaska Statutes §.09.10.070 limits the time by which your lawsuit must be brought to two (2) years if you suffer any injury for which someone else is responsible. This time limitation applies to property damage, too. For example, if you trip on a defect on someone else’s property and, when you fall, your iPhone is shattered, the property owner may be held responsible for the damage to your phone, too. Although there are certain limited circumstances where the two (2) year statute of limitations may be extended (i.e. you did not “discover” your injury until a period after your accident), it is highly unlikely you will ever be able to recover if your suit is not filed timely. As it pertains to comparative negligence, Alaska Statutes §09.17.060 reads: contributory fault chargeable to the claimant diminishes proportionately the amount awarded as compensatory damages for the injury attributable to the claimant's contributory fault, but does not bar recovery. In other words, you trip over a large stump on somebody’s property. The stump is a clear danger and the failure of the property owner to remove it or at least rope off the area or put warning signs around it was negligent. As such, you are entitled to, let’s say, $10,000.00 for that resulting broken arm. But what if you were watching YouTube videos when walking into the stump and not paying attention to your surroundings? Yes, the property owner was still negligent, but your actions contributed to your injuries. If a judge or jury decides you were 50% responsible for your injuries, you will only see $5,000.00 of the $10,000.00 award given to you. There is a lot to know, and, as such, it is crucial to reach out to the Best Personal Injury Law Firms for advice as soon after your incident as possible. From insurance paperwork to medical treatment to obtaining records to gathering evidence to the discovery process to depositions to trial and beyond, there are rules that the best attorneys will know. As such, no matter how minor you believe your personal injuries to be, speak with Best Personal Injury Law Firms to make sure you are able to obtain the maximum compensation you are entitled to.
