Maison Law’s Livermore premises liability lawyers can help you with a claim when you’re injured on a sidewalk. Your tax dollars are supposed to prevent these kinds of accidents from happening, but unfortunately, things can get missed when there’s any question about who’s responsible. While it’s tough to deal with, we can help you. Set up a free consultation to talk through your options.
Should I Get a Lawyer After a Sidewalk Injury?
Most people don’t plan on calling a lawyer after a fall. In fact, a lot of sidewalk injuries start with the same thought: I’ll just ice it and see how it goes. Sometimes that works. But with these types of accidents specifically, injuries linger, bills pile up, and responsibility isn’t clear. That means things get complicated fast. That’s where our team can step in and help by:
- Looking into what happened and establishing who actually controlled the sidewalk
- Getting and keeping evidence before repairs are made
- Handling talks with insurance companies or government agencies
- Explaining your options clearly, without legal jargon
Most of all, legal help can keep small missteps from quietly hurting your case. With sidewalk injuries, timing and details matter more than people realize.
What Kinds of Sidewalk Accidents Could Happen to Me?
Sidewalk accidents don’t all look the same. Some happen in a split second. Others build up over time as conditions slowly worsen. This leads to:
- Trips over raised concrete slabs, often caused by tree roots
- Falls on cracked or crumbling pavement in older neighborhoods
- Missteps on uneven patchwork repairs that aren’t level
- Slips on slick surfaces caused by poor drainage or worn concrete
- Falls in poorly lit areas, where hazards are hard to see at night
These accidents happen during everyday moments—walking to a shop, heading home from dinner, pushing a stroller, or taking the same route you’ve walked hundreds of times. Familiarity is what makes them so unexpected. But no matter what happens or how careful you’re being, you can get hurt.
What Evidence Should I Look For After a Sidewalk Accident?
Sidewalk hazards don’t last forever. In fact, many get fixed quickly once someone reports them. That’s why evidence is so important early on. If you’re able, here’s what to look for:
- Photos or videos of the sidewalk. You’ll want to get pictures/videos of the exact spot where you fell, from multiple angles. Show height differences, cracks, shadows, nearby landmarks, and lighting conditions. You’ll also want to show where the sidewalk is located to help establish who may be responsible—near a business, home, or public area.
- Medical records. From the first doctor visit onward, medical documentation ties your injuries directly to the fall and shows how serious they are.
- Witness information. Anyone who saw the fall—or the condition of the sidewalk beforehand—can help confirm what happened.
- Your own notes. Write down what you remember while it’s fresh: time of day, weather, lighting, footwear, and how the fall happened.
- Official records. Maintenance records, prior complaints, inspection logs, and property boundaries often play a role in figuring out who exactly had control over the sidewalk.
The issue with these kinds of accidents is that this evidence tends to disappear faster than you think. Concrete gets replaced. Repairs are made. Memories fade. Gathering these details early can make or break your claim. And the most important questions—like who’s responsible—rarely can be figured out just by standing on the sidewalk and looking around.
Who’s Legally Responsible For My Sidewalk Injuries?
For as complicated as they end up being, sidewalk injury claims hinge on one question in terms of legal responsibility:
- Who was supposed to take care of that stretch of sidewalk?
So, a lot of it comes down to where your injury happened. But there’s still certain people and groups that are going to be legally responsible for sidewalks, like a:
- Private homeowner
- Business owner or management
- Homeowners association
- City or state government agency
The law looks at whether that person or entity knew—or reasonably should have known—about the dangerous condition and failed to fix it within a reasonable amount of time. The issue is that with liability, there will be finger pointing. But it doesn’t change your ability to file a claim.
How Do I Get Damages in a Sidewalk Injury Claim?
Obviously, getting damages after a sidewalk accident isn’t going to be easy. And it’s not just up to the claims process itself. With these types of accidents, where it happened and who’s responsible impacts how the process itself plays out. Basically, it comes down to whether it was a public sidewalk or a private one.
- Private sidewalks. If a private party is responsible, the process usually starts with an insurance claim. These claims may cover medical bills and lost income, but insurance companies don’t always see the injury the same way you do. If an insurance claim goes nowhere, you can then move forward with a personal injury lawsuit. And you only have two years from the date of the accident to file this kind of claim.
- Public sidewalks. If a public entity is involved, the process is stricter. Claims against government agencies follow the process laid out by the California Tort Claims Act (CTCA). Under the CTCA, any claim has to:
- Be made within six months of the accident, officially filed with a Notice of Claim.
- Be worth more than $10,000 in damages.
Once the Notice of Claim is sent in, the government has 45 days to respond. One way or the other, your damages can include things like:
- Current and future medical expenses and lost income
- Repair/replacement costs for your damaged property
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Reduced quality of life
Waiting doesn’t just slow things down. Sometimes it closes doors without warning. Again, a broken slab or cracked sidewalk is going to get filled in quickly once something is reported.
Let Maison Law Help You With Sidewalk Injuries in Livermore
If a Livermore sidewalk caused your injury, it’s worth getting clarity sooner rather than later. You can do that by reaching out to our Livermore premises liability lawyers at Maison Law. We’ll explain your options, help you figure out who’s responsible, and guide you through the process. Set up a free consultation today and let our team help you recover from your sidewalk injuries.
