Let The Law Take The Strain

Slip and fall accidents present tricky legal grounds through which you must navigate to secure the proper compensation for your injuries. Any fall you experience on someone else’s property provides the basic foundation on which you would be legally allowed to file a claim. However, there may be underlying details that weaken your claim’s validity. For example, one core component of successful slip and fall lawsuits is proof of the property owner’s neglect to warn visitors of hazardous walkways. Even if there is a visible “Wet Floor” sign, it is critical to have all the absolute clear evidence to prove negligence in your slip and fall accident claim so that you may receive compensation for your injuries.

The basis of a slip and fall accident is as follows: You were on property that belongs to someone else, and while on that property, you were exposed to a slippery or otherwise hazardous surface, which caused you to fall, and perhaps, sustain injuries. With this basic definition, it may seem that you have the right to file a claim regardless of whether a “Wet Floor” sign was up or not. Yet, this is not true. This becomes apparent when looking at the necessary components of a successful slip and fall case, one of which is the proof of the property owner’s negligence.

If one is to allow others to visit a building or a gathering area in their possession, it is their responsibility to provide a safe environment in which those visitors can walk and congregate without the risk of injury. This is known as the property owner’s “duty of care.” If they breach this duty of care, they can be held liable for any injuries incurred in a slip and fall accident. To prove such negligence, you will need to demonstrate all the following elements in your case:

• The property owner had a duty of care to their visitors.
• The property owner neglected to fulfill this duty of care. 
• This neglect was the direct cause of your fall. 
• The resulting fall caused further damages (i.e., pain and suffering, financial losses, etc.).

The most important element here is the proof that the property owner breached their duty of care. This is where the “Wet Floor” sign comes into play, as it is an element that enables the property owner to fulfill this duty. 

How a “Wet Floor” Sign Can Void Liability 

The “Wet Floor” sign is critical in providing the legal basis for the property owner to defend themselves against any accusations of neglect. The entire purpose of this sign is to warn the public about a potentially hazardous surface. It provides critical information that visitors can choose to use at their own discretion by either walking carefully over the surface or avoiding it altogether.

Part of the property owner’s duty of care is to provide such warnings. Thus, if they positioned this sign in a visible location, then you would potentially have no grounds on which to sue them. Visibility is …

Across the United States, wrongful convictions have amounted to over 20,000 years of undeserved sentences for innocent individuals. This represents only the cases between 1989 and 2017; so, there could tens of thousands more years that have been stolen from American lives. Still, even with such knowledge, it is a tricky matter to attempt to count the number of people this failure of the legal system has affected. If you have become a victim of the flawed legal system, it is very important to immediately contact a wrongful conviction lawyer who will ensure your rights are protected in this matter.  

What to Know About Wrongful Convictions

Recently, the National Registry of Exonerations revealed that, between 1989 and 2018, more than 2,300 Americans had been exonerated of wrongful convictions. Another 166 exonerations took place in the year 2016 alone, breaking the annual record since the foundation of the Registry. The year 2018 came almost as close, having approximately 150 exonerations in total. Though this is, in a sense, a cause for celebration, it represents profound flaws in our existing legal system.

Never should you be subject to a sentence that you did not deserve or forced to meet the consequences of a crime that you did not commit. If you do find yourself in such circumstances, it is critical that you get familiar with your rights granted by the 2004 Justice for All Act. This law has granted you the right to the following types of compensation:

• For each year that you served in prison for a wrongful, federal conviction, you will receive $50,000.
• If you were on death row at some point in your sentence, you would receive $100,000 for each year you spent on death row. 

Although you will always have the right to compensation upon exoneration, the amounts may vary according to the state in which you were convicted. (Note that the amounts above are regarding federal exonerations.) Check the state laws for the area in which you were convicted to ensure you are offered the appropriate amounts in settlement negotiations.

Further Considerations for Wrongful Convictions

Often, wrongful convictions occur alongside other harms inflicted upon you by either the state or law enforcement officers. For example, some of the most common related claims that exonerees file alongside wrongful conviction lawsuits are as follows:

• Coerced confession. You have the right to take legal action against officers that attempted to intimidate you into a false confession. 
• Tampering with evidence. Any efforts that were made to manipulate evidence to make you look guilty are grounds for a lawsuit. 
• Police brutality. Likely, you were also physically assaulted by officers as they arrested you for a crime you did not commit. It is your right to press charges against the violent policemen.

Understand that pressing charges against state and local legal authorities is a difficult endeavor. Though it is well within your rights to do so, you will face tremendous resistance from the criminal justice system that failed to protect you when it …

Texting and driving is one of the most lethal forms of distracted driving. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most common. Most people do not recognize the danger of texting and driving upon immediate consideration. After all, you are only taking a brief glance at a text, or an email – what could be the harm? 

Contrary to popular belief, texting while behind the wheel is nearly as dangerous as driving blindfolded. In the United States alone, it accounts for approximately 1.6 million collisions annually. If you have been a victim of a texting and driving accident, it is imperative to contact an experienced texting and driving accident lawyer at Reyes Law who will assist you in holding the offending motorist accountable. Here’s how to go about doing that. 

The Dangers and Legality of Texting and Driving

In most states across the U.S., it is against the law to text or otherwise operate a mobile device while behind the wheel. The only time at which this is acceptable is if the vehicle is completely stopped and in a parked position in an appropriate area (e.g., a parking lot or curbside). Even on this basis alone, you have the right to file a lawsuit against an individual who is breaking this law. Unfortunately, many drivers do not respect such laws, and thus, endanger themselves and others. 

This danger of this habit lies in its multifaceted inhibition to the motorist’s attention and reaction time:

• Cognitive ramifications: The driver cannot fully comprehend all environmental information due to their split attention.
• Visual impacts: Since the driver is looking at their phone, they are not paying attention to the surrounding environment. This is why this habit is compared to driving blindfolded.  
• Manual effects:  When someone is texting, they are blatantly ignoring that standard and reducing the efficiency with which they control their car. 

There are several repercussions that can come about when an individual is engaging in this behavior. If you have been the victim of someone who was texting and driving, you must exercise the following rights:

• The right to pursue legal action and, thus, compensation. 
• The right to legal counsel when filing a lawsuit.

Exercising Your Rights as a Victim of Texting and Driving

Whether the driver was issued a citation by police officers or not, you can exercise your right to file suit against them. A successful case will prove the following:

• The guilty driver was responsible for the action as a result of the three distracted driving effects listed above.
• The individual was texting at the time of the crash. 

Note that, above, we state that most states outlaw texting and driving. Thirty states prohibit the habit for new motorists, while only 20 states outlaw it for all drivers. Before you pursue legal action, check your state laws to form the foundation of your case. 

Proving liability in a texting and driving accident can pose quite a challenge. People tend to be relatively covert when engaging in this type of …