A City’s Liability in Slip and Fall Cases
Whenever a person is in an accident, the next big issue is determining who is at fault. This is of course considering the fact that the victim did not contribute to the occurrence of the slip and fall accident.
Yet notwithstanding the same, still the party who may have contributed to the occurrence would still be liable if that party actually has duty of diligence in the conduct of its affairs.
It is however different when it comes to slip and fall cases where the party liable for the occurrence is the government or the state. In this particular instance, the government would be responsible for damages against the victim for any negligence brought about by the act of the agents of the state.
The non-keeping of the roads in a safe condition and the untimely demise of a person because of the bad condition of public areas are just some examples of circumstances where the state may actually be liable. But of course, liability is way different from payment which is another tedious process when it comes to claiming for any settlement when the other party is the government.
The rule on non-suability of states is actually enshrined in our Constitution. This is grounded on the fact that states are the sources of our laws. Hence, being the source thereof, it would be absurd to sue it based on the same laws it has actually passed and approved. Another is that, since it is the maker and enforcer of the laws, it would defy logic to enforce a law it made against it.
Nevertheless, of course, this rule is not without any exceptions, the one exception that is present in our current legal system is when the non-suability nature of states has been waived.
This means that upon waiver of the same, then the state can now be sued and be liable for any of its negligence and wrongdoings. The next important question to ask is, if the state waived its non-suability from suit, can it be made liable to pay for the liability is has accepted?
Well, the obvious answer is in the negative. This means that although the state has waived all its rights from the non-suability doctrine of states, it is not automatic that it has waived its rights from liability also. This logically means that the state may actually accept liability, but it is another thing if it has waived its rights to the payment of such liability.
Our Los Angeles Personal Injury Lawyers are capable of handling slip and fall cases
About the Author
Attorney Gabriel Cosh is a legal advocate and a practitioner of law for over 10 years now. He is also an expert in the field of social legislation and personal injury cases.
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