Short answer: if you slipped or tripped and fell on someone else’s property in Los Angeles (a supermarket, a restaurant, an apartment building, a parking lot), the property owner may be liable for your medical bills, lost income and pain and suffering. But the evidence that proves these cases (surveillance video, incident reports, the spill itself) starts disappearing within days. Whether you have a strong case often depends less on how badly you fell than on how fast someone preserved the proof. Free consultation. Call 24/7, English and Spanish: (888) 772-2529. No attorney fee unless there is a recovery.
Where slip and fall cases actually come from
The strongest premises liability cases in Los Angeles happen at businesses: grocery stores and supermarkets (spills, leaking coolers, just mopped floors with no sign), big box retail (fallen merchandise, pallet debris), restaurants (grease, wet tile), apartment and commercial buildings (broken stairs, missing handrails, bad lighting), parking structures (oil, potholes, uneven surfaces), and public sidewalks (lifted concrete, with a special trap explained below). Businesses owe customers a real legal duty: reasonable inspection and either fixing hazards or warning about them. A different rule applies if a dog on the property bit you or knocked you down, because the dog’s owner is strictly liable under Civil Code section 3342 with no proof of carelessness required; see our page on dog bite and dog attack claims. A store that let a spill sit for forty minutes without an inspection sweep is exactly the case California premises law exists for.
The evidence disappears within days
Nearly every store and building in Los Angeles runs security cameras, and nearly all of them overwrite the footage automatically, often within days. That video is frequently the whole case: it shows the fall, how long the hazard sat there, and whether employees walked past it. The moment we take a case, a preservation letter goes out demanding the footage, the incident report, the inspection logs, and the cleaning schedule. Wait a month and that evidence is usually gone forever. Legally, silently, routinely. This is the single biggest reason to call early.
What to do after a fall
- Report it immediately to the store manager or property owner and ask that an incident report be created. Get a copy or photo of it.
- Photograph everything: the hazard, the surrounding area, warning signs (or their absence), your footwear, and your injuries.
- Get witness names and phone numbers before they walk away.
- See a doctor the same day. Delayed treatment is how insurers argue you were not really hurt.
- Do not give a recorded statement to the property’s insurance company or sign anything before speaking with an attorney.
How California law treats your case
To win, we prove the property owner (1) owned or controlled the property, (2) was negligent in maintaining it, meaning they knew or should have known about the hazard and did not fix it or warn you, (3) you were harmed, and (4) their negligence was a substantial factor. And do not let anyone tell you clumsiness kills your case: California’s pure comparative negligence rule means that even if you were partly at fault (looking at your phone, wearing sandals), your recovery is reduced by your percentage, not eliminated.
What compensation can include
All medical care, past and future (falls produce fractures, hip and knee injuries, back injuries, and head injuries with long tails), lost wages and reduced earning capacity, and pain and suffering, which is uncapped in ordinary California injury cases. Falls are especially serious for older adults, where a broken hip changes everything; those cases deserve full valuation, not a nuisance settlement.
Stairways, handrails, and building code violations
Falls on stairs deserve their own mention because they produce some of the most serious injuries and some of the clearest liability. California building codes set specific requirements for handrail height, tread depth, riser height, lighting, and slip resistance. When a stairway violates code (a missing or loose handrail, uneven risers, a burned out light over a landing), that violation itself can be powerful evidence of negligence. The same goes for balconies, walkways, and balcony railings. If you fell on stairs, photograph the whole staircase from top and bottom, the handrail or the spot where one should have been, and the lighting, and keep the shoes you were wearing. A contractor or code expert can measure the rest. These cases are won with a tape measure more often than people think.
The deadlines, including the sidewalk trap
- Two years from the fall to file a lawsuit (Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1)
- Six months, not two years, to present a claim when the property is owned by a city, county, or other government entity (Gov. Code § 911.2), and then six months from the notice of rejection to file suit (Gov. Code § 945.6). Lifted public sidewalks, city parking lots, transit stations, and government buildings all fall in this trap, and it catches people constantly.
- If you fell at work (making a delivery, on a job site), different deadlines apply and you may have a workers comp claim plus this case. We handle the workers’ compensation side in-house and coordinate the injury case with it.
Exceptions can extend or shorten these deadlines; confirm yours with an attorney rather than guessing. The camera footage will not wait either way.
Frequently asked questions
The store says I should have watched where I was going. Case over?
No. That is a comparative negligence argument; it reduces recovery by your share of fault at most. The store’s duty to inspect and fix hazards does not disappear because you are human.
I did not report it when it happened. Do I still have a case?
Possibly. It is harder but not fatal. Medical records, witnesses, and photos can still carry it. Call before deciding it is hopeless.
The fall happened at my apartment building. Can I sue my landlord?
Landlords owe tenants safe common areas: stairs, walkways, lighting, railings. Yes, these are real cases.
Does my immigration status matter?
No. Your right to compensation in California does not depend on status, and your consultation is confidential.
What does it cost?
No attorney fee up front. Slip and fall cases are taken on a contingency fee, so the attorney fee is a percentage of the recovery and comes out of the settlement or verdict. If there is no recovery, there is no attorney fee.
Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals with slip and fall claims throughout California and, where a case calls for it, works with experienced personal injury trial counsel we trust while staying involved in your case. We handle any related workers’ compensation claim in-house.
Call now: (888) 772-2529, any time, day or night. Hablamos español.
Reviewed by Shawn Abdi, Esq., Abdi & Associates, Inc. Last reviewed: September 4, 2026. Attorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation. Legal deadlines have exceptions; confirm yours with an attorney. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
See also our personal injury claims overview for other kinds of injury cases.