Sidewalk Construction Injury

Sidewalk Construction Injury Law

Sidewalks require constant maintenance from the city, county, local municipal, or private owner. Sidewalks are damaged by weather, vehicles, accidents and the surrounding environment. One of the most common reasons a sidewalk needs repair is from tree roots under the sidewalk. Tree roots cause the sidewalk pavement to raise causing an uneven walking surface.

Cities do the best they can to maintain pleasant and safe sidewalks. To accomplish this, sidewalk construction is constantly taking place throughout the city. During the construction process there is an added level of hazard for pedestrians. Sidewalk construction crews protect the public from Sidewalk Construction Injures by erecting safely barriers, fences and signs. Despite city efforts and policies pedestrians are occasionally injured in a sidewalk construction zone.

Sidewalk Construction Injuries can be serious. They are a type of Premises Liability Law.

Benefits of working with an Injury Lawyer

The most important element to determine in a Premises Liability case is to determine who owners the sidewalk. If the sidewalk is on private property and is privately owned an injury attorney can investigate if there is private insurance for injuries on the property. If a separate contactor is doing the repair, they may carry insurance for possible sidewalk construction injuries. If there is no insurance coverage for contraction accident victims the property owner may be directly sued.

If the sidewalk construction injury occurred on a city or Government owned and maintained sidewalk a lawyer with experience in litigating and negotiating with city, county and government entities is highly recommended.

In order for the sidewalk owner or construction firm to liable negligence must have occurred. During the sidewalk construction an action, event or a non-action or non-event must have occurred to create a probable situation for pedestrian injury.

If you have a Sidewalk Construction Injury an injury attorney can make sure severity of your injury is documented. An injury attorney can highlight the negligence that was a direct contributor to your injury. An attorney can help challenge counter arguments that sidewalk owners may raise such as the type of shoes you were wearing, and whether there is any distraction, such as a store window, nearby. California law recognizes store windows as distractions and can lower the responsibility of the sidewalk owner if they are nearby the scene of the injury.

Shoes are an important factor in sidewalk construction injury cases. An attorney can help preserve your shoes for evidence because its likely that a sidewalk owner will attempt to relieve themselves from liability if your shoes have a high heel or are worn out.

Often times after an injury, a sidewalk owner will make immediate repairs. This is why promptly hiring an attorney is essential to preserving evidence in your case. California law does not allow subsequent repairs to a sidewalk to prove that a sidewalk was a danger. This rule is in place to encourage sidewalk owners to make routine repairs and to protect public safety.

There is usually a 2 years statute of limitations with sidewalk injury cases involving private owners. The time period begins from the date of injury and the case must be filed in court before the time runs out.

For sidewalks involving public entities, such as a city or county, the statute of limitations to file a claim is usually 6 months; therefore the time will run out on these cases unless a proper claim is filed.

If you have been the victim of a sidewalk construction injury, contact Attorney Search Network today for a free lawyer referral.

If you have any questions about the information provided above, please contact us. Call us toll free at (800) 215-1190 or fill out our online form for your Premises Liability lawyer referral.