The daughters of a man who sustained injuries in a Danvers, MA slip and fall accident in a Target parking lot will be getting $400,000 in personal injury compensation. Emanuel Papadopoulos was walking back to his car in 2002 when he fell on a patch of dirty ice in the parking lot and broke his hip.
He and his wife filed a Massachusetts premises liability case gainst Target and Weiss Landscaping Company, Incorporated. The latter was hired to get rid of the ice and snow in the lot. Their complaint was dismissed because of the then existing standard, which did not hold property owners liable for injuries involving ice and snow that had naturally accumulated.
It was this case that led to a change in the legal standard for proving negligence in Massachusetts slip and fall incidents where ice and snow are involved. In 2010 the Supreme Judicial Court went on to establish a new standard to hold premise owner accountable about clearing up such accumulations.
The Danvers slip and fall case went to trial in 2013 and a jury awarded Papadopoulos’s family $212,846 in damages. He and his wife had passed away in the time leading up to the proceedings.
Target filed an appeal and the damages were lowered to $177,276. The retail giant asked the judge to put the jury’s verdict aside, which she did, vacating the ruling.
Earlier this month the Appeals Court overruled that, finding that instead of looking at the evidence that favored Papadopoulos, the judge took it upon herself to make her own “characterizations of the facts.” The court reinstated the verdict and the award. Now, with interest, Papadopoulos’ children will get approximately $400,000.
Massachusetts Slip and Fall
Massachusetts slip and fall accidents can cause painful and debilitating personal injuries. In rare instances they may even prove fatal. That’s why it is so important that property owners clear out any hazards that could cause someone to trip and fall, slip and fall, or step and fall. This type of premises liability accident also happens in conditions other than snow and ice. Other common causes: poor lighting, a loose floor board, inadequate maintenance, debris or objects on the ground, uneven payment, spilt liquid or food, failure to put up signs cautioning that the floor is wet after a cleaning, a missing step, and construction areas that lack the requisite warning signs.
Slip and fall cases can be brought against private property owners and public ones, depending on what happened and where the incident occurred. If you were injured in a Massachusetts slip and fall case at work you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits in addition to third party compensation if others were involved. Contact Altman & Altman LLP today.
Massachusetts law about snow and ice, Mass.gov
The Supreme Judicial Court’s Ruling in Papadopoulos v. Target Corp.
Appeals court reverses judge in Peabody slip and fall case, The Salem News, April 17, 2015
More Blog Posts:
Slip and Fall Accident on Icy Sidewalk Renders $1.2M Personal Injury Verdict, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, January 30, 2015
Snow, Ice on Roofs Leads to Massachusetts Worker Injuries, Deaths, Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Blog, February 27, 2015
State Superior Court upholds $11M Topamax Injury Verdict Against Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Drug Injury Lawyers Blog, April 6, 2015