Slip/fall

[Andray]

monday 5-14-2012 i was shopping at walmart with my 2 kids. carrying one on my left hip. i went down a toy isle and was looking at toy and slipped on some spilt bubbles. me and my 2 year old went crashing down.. my 2 year old got up and i got up and found a associate. she asked to see where the spill was. so i showed her.(mind U she didn't ask if i nor my child was ok)she pushed a shopping cart over the spill and walked away. i then went and found another associate and asked for a manager. the associate asked what i needed so i told her i need to speak to a manager i slipped and fell. she called a manager and he came and asked me what happen and asked if id like to sit so i didn't and filled out a incident report. i went straight to the ER with hip pain and ankle pain. out come was a sprained ankle and hip contusion. which is just bruising and swelling. i am doing a follow up appointment with my doctor due to still aggravating pain in hip. most lawyers are telling to to wait for walmart to call and wait to have follow up visit and see what happens from there. their neglected to monitor spills and provide safe environment is unacceptable. need some advice

[Obrian]

I have had probably a couple hundred questions re slips and falls at Walmart and other big box stores.  The fact that you had this accident, even if it happened just as you say, doesn't automatically mean that Walmart has legal liability.  The universal rule is that the store owner must HAVE KNOWN OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN about the hazard on the floor.  They have a legal duty to police the aisles on a frequent basis but they do not have a legal duty to constantly monitor every aisle in a big store.  So, if those bubbles were spilt by another customer just a couple or even a few minutes before, then the store DID NOT KNOW AND COULD NOT HAVE KNOWN about them.  See the issue?  And you as the plaintiff have the burden to prove that they DID KNOW OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.  How do you prove it. No telling if the bubbles were there for 5 minutes....in which case they are not at fault............or 15+ minutes(no law about 15 minutes, just what a judge or jury would consider a reasonable time for them to notice it) in which case they do have legal liability.  Either way, no lawyer would ever take the case becasue fortunately, you didn't suffer a serious injury that would be worth enough for the lawyer to get involved.  You can always sue Walmart in the local Small Claims but you still have the liability issue and I suspect you would lose unless you could prove how long the bubbles were there.  Walmart has insurance to reimburse you for any OUT OF POCKET medical costs, regardless of liability.  So document your medical costs that are not covered by insurance.  They will also probably offer you a modest store credit if you ask.  Walmart won't be calling you.  They get hundreds of claims like this every week. 95% of them usually just go away on their own so they don't have the time  nor interest to follow up with you. That is up to you. Document the out of pocket costs after you finish treating, ask for reimbursement and something for your trouble. That is the best you can hope for.