West Palm Beach Slip and Fall Lawyer

A wet floor with no warning sign is not just bad luck. In Florida, it can be the property owner's legal fault, and proving that is the whole game.

A West Palm Beach slip and fall attorney makes the property owner answer for a hazard they should have fixed. At Rosenthal, Levy, Simon & Sosa, we handle falls in stores, apartment complexes, and parking lots across Palm Beach County, in English and Spanish, and you pay nothing unless we win.

Here is the catch most people do not know. You usually cannot win a case just because you fell. You have to show the owner knew, or should have known, about the danger and did nothing.

Hurt in a fall in West Palm Beach? Get a free case review before you talk to the property's insurance company. Call +1 (561) 478-2500. No fee unless we win.

Do You Have a Slip and Fall Case in Florida?

You have a case when a property owner's carelessness caused your fall and your injury. A fall alone is not enough. The law asks whether the owner failed a duty they owed you, which is why you must prove liability in a slip and fall case.

Three things generally have to line up:

• The owner owed you a duty to keep the property reasonably safe.
• A dangerous condition existed that they knew about or should have caught.
• That hazard caused your fall and real injuries.

If those pieces fit, you may be owed money for your medical bills, lost pay, and more.

What Do You Have to Prove Against a Store?

You have to prove the store knew, or should have known, about the hazard. This rule comes from Florida Statute 768.0755, and it is where most slip and fall accidents in Florida cases are won or lost.

A "transitory foreign substance" is a temporary hazard that should not be there, like a spill, spilled produce, or tracked-in water. To hold the store responsible, you show one of two kinds of notice.

Type of notice	What it means	How we prove it
Actual knowledge	The store actually knew about the hazard	Employee reports, prior complaints, work orders
Constructive knowledge	The store should have known	Video of how long the spill sat, tracking marks, skipped inspections

Timing is everything. Our job is proving the property owner knew about the hazard, often by showing the spill sat long enough that any careful store would have cleaned it.

Not sure how to prove the store was at fault? That is our job. Call +1 (561) 478-2500 for a free review.

Where Do Slip and Falls Happen in West Palm Beach?

Most happen in the places you shop, live, and park every day. The setting matters, because it changes who is responsible and what rules apply.

The cases we see most often involve:

• Stores and supermarkets: spills, leaking coolers, freshly mopped floors with no sign.
• Apartment complexes: broken stairs, poor lighting, cracked walkways in common areas.
• Parking lots and garages: potholes, wheel stops, uneven pavement, and standing water.
• Restaurants and bars: greasy floors, dropped food, and wet entryways.

Where you fell shapes the whole claim, so tell your West Palm Beach personal injury lawyer exactly where it happened.

What Injuries Do Slip and Falls Cause?

A fall can do far more damage than people expect, especially when the head or hip is involved. These are not minor bumps, and the bills add up fast.

Common serious injuries include:

• Head injuries, including concussions and traumatic brain injuries.
• Broken hips, which can be life-changing for older adults.
• Wrist, arm, and shoulder fractures from trying to catch yourself.
• Back and spine injuries, including herniated discs.

The full cost of these injuries often shows up over months, which is why you should not settle before you know your prognosis.

Who Is Responsible: the Store, the Landlord, or the Owner?

It depends on who controlled the area where you fell. More than one party can share the blame, and that can mean more than one source of payment.

Responsibility often lands on:

• The business that ran the store or restaurant.
• The property owner or management company that maintained the building.
• A landlord responsible for common areas like stairwells and sidewalks.
• A cleaning or maintenance company hired to keep the area safe.

Sorting out who controlled the hazard is one of the first things we do on your case.

How Do We Build Your Case?

We move fast to lock down proof before it disappears. In a fall case, the best evidence often lives on the store's own cameras.

Our first steps usually include:

• Sending a letter that forces the store to preserve its video.
• Requesting inspection and cleaning logs.
• Tracking down witnesses while memories are fresh.
• Tying your injuries to the fall with your medical records.

The earlier we start, the more of that evidence still exists when we need it.

Can You Still Recover If You Were Partly at Fault?

Yes, as long as you were not mostly to blame. Florida uses a rule called Florida's comparative negligence rule, set out in Florida Statute 768.81.

Here is how it works in plain terms:

• If you share some fault, your money is reduced by your percentage.
• If you are found more than 50 percent at fault, you recover nothing.
• Insurers push this hard, claiming you were on your phone, wore bad shoes, or ignored a sign.

Because a few percentage points can cost you real money, fighting an unfair fault split is central to the case.

How Long Do You Have to Sue in Florida?

You generally have two years from the date of the fall to file a personal injury lawsuit. This deadline dropped from four years to two under Florida's 2023 tort-reform law, so old advice you read online may be wrong.

The clock keeps running while you treat and while you negotiate. Waiting also lets evidence disappear, since video often gets erased within days or weeks.

What Is a Slip and Fall Claim Worth?

It depends on how badly you were hurt and how the fall changed your life. There is no flat average, because a broken wrist and a lifelong back injury are not the same claim.

A fair claim can include:

• Emergency care, surgery, and future medical treatment.
• Lost wages and reduced earning power.
• Pain, suffering, and the daily limits the injury creates.

Falls are especially serious for older adults, where a broken hip can change everything. Over four decades, our firm has recovered more than $500 million for injured Floridians.

What Should You Not Do After a Fall?

Avoid the moves that hand the insurer an easy defense. A few early mistakes can quietly sink a strong case, especially after a slip-and-fall accident.

Try not to:

• Give a recorded statement to the insurer before talking to a lawyer.
• Post about the fall or your injuries on social media.
• Wait weeks to see a doctor.
• Throw away the shoes and clothes you were wearing.

If you have already done one of these, do not panic. Tell your lawyer, and we will work with the facts as they are.

Why Do Injured People in West Palm Beach Choose Us?

Because these cases turn on proof, and we know how to build it fast. Video gets overwritten and floors get cleaned, so the early work often decides the outcome.

A few more reasons clients trust us:

• We handle your case in English or Spanish, start to finish.
• We know the local stores, property managers, and their insurers.
• We work on contingency, so there is no fee unless we win.

We also cover the Treasure Coast, so if you fell up north, see how we handle slip and fall claims in Port St. Lucie.

About Jonathan T. Levy

Jonathan T. Levy is the managing shareholder of the firm's West Palm Beach office and a civil trial lawyer certified by The Florida Bar, a distinction held by about 1 percent of Florida attorneys. He has represented seriously injured people since 1995.

He has only ever represented injured individuals, never insurance companies or corporations, and he has won multi-million dollar results in catastrophic injury cases. He earned his law degree from the University of Wisconsin and prepares every case as if it will be tried before a Palm Beach County jury.

What If You Fell at Work?

If you fell on the job, that is usually a workers' compensation claim rather than a premises case. Workers' comp pays your medical care and part of your wages no matter who was at fault.

You may also have a second claim if a company other than your employer created the hazard. We check both, so you do not leave money behind.

Can a Warning Sign Alone Decide Your Case?

Not by itself. A wet floor sign helps the store, but it does not automatically end your claim. What matters is whether the store knew about the danger and acted reasonably.

Even with a sign out, a store can be at fault if the sign was hidden, came too late, or ignored a bigger hazard. We look at the whole picture, not just one yellow cone.

West Palm Beach Slip and Fall FAQ

Talk to a West Palm Beach Slip and Fall Lawyer

The evidence that proves your case is fading right now, while the store's insurer is already building its defense. The sooner someone works your side, the stronger your claim.

Call +1 (561) 478-2500 or visit our West Palm Beach office at 1401 Forum Way, Suite 730. We also serve Port St. Lucie and work with clients in English and Spanish. No fee unless we win.