Personal Injury · Premises Liability
Slip & Fall
Premises Liability Defense
A slip and fall can cause life-altering injuries — broken bones, spinal damage, traumatic brain injuries. Property owners have a legal duty to keep their premises safe. When they fail, you have the right to hold them accountable. Attorney Brent Sherota fights to recover the full compensation you deserve.
Georgia Law
Premises Liability in Georgia
Georgia's premises liability law is governed primarily by O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1, which states that an owner or occupier of land is liable to invitees for failure to exercise ordinary care in keeping the premises safe.
The law recognizes that property owners are in the best position to know about and correct hazards on their property. When they fail to do so — and someone is injured as a result — Georgia law provides a legal remedy through a personal injury claim.
Premises liability claims can arise from a wide range of properties: grocery stores, restaurants, shopping malls, hotels, apartment complexes, office buildings, parking lots, and private residences. The key question is always: did the owner know or should they have known about the hazard?
Time is critical. Evidence disappears, surveillance footage is overwritten, and witnesses' memories fade. Contact Sherota Law immediately after a slip and fall to preserve your rights.
Legal Status Matters
Visitor Classifications & Duties of Care
Georgia law assigns different duties of care based on why you were on the property. Your classification as an invitee, licensee, or trespasser directly affects the strength of your claim.
Invitee
Someone invited onto the property for a business purpose (customers, shoppers, restaurant patrons).
DUTY OF CARE
Highest duty of care — owner must inspect, discover, and correct or warn of all known and reasonably discoverable hazards.
EXAMPLES
Grocery store customers, mall shoppers, restaurant guests, hotel guests
Licensee
Someone permitted on the property for their own purpose or as a social guest.
DUTY OF CARE
Must warn of known hidden dangers that the licensee is unlikely to discover on their own.
EXAMPLES
Social guests, door-to-door salespeople, neighbors
Trespasser
Someone who enters without permission or legal right.
DUTY OF CARE
Lowest duty — owner must refrain from willful or wanton injury. Exception: the Attractive Nuisance doctrine for children.
EXAMPLES
Uninvited visitors, people who ignore 'No Trespassing' signs
Proving Your Case
The Four Elements of Negligence
To win a slip and fall case in Georgia, you must prove all four elements of negligence. Attorney Sherota builds each element methodically using physical evidence, expert witnesses, and documentation.
Duty of Care
The property owner or occupier owed you a legal duty of care based on your status as an invitee, licensee, or trespasser. For business invitees — the most common slip & fall victims — Georgia law imposes the highest duty: to inspect the premises and correct or warn of all hazards.
O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1Breach of Duty
The owner failed to meet that duty. This means they either created the hazardous condition, knew about it and failed to fix it, or should have known about it through reasonable inspection. Evidence of breach includes maintenance logs, prior incident reports, security footage, and employee testimony.
O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1Causation
The breach directly caused your injury. Georgia requires both actual cause ('but for' the hazard, you would not have been injured) and proximate cause (the injury was a foreseeable result of the hazard). Pre-existing conditions do not bar recovery — the 'eggshell plaintiff' rule applies.
O.C.G.A. § 51-12-1Damages
You suffered actual, quantifiable harm — physical injury, medical expenses, lost wages, or pain and suffering. Georgia allows recovery for both economic damages (medical bills, lost income, future care costs) and non-economic damages (pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life).
O.C.G.A. § 51-12-4Frequent Causes
Common Slip & Fall Hazards
Wet or slippery floors
Spills, freshly mopped surfaces, leaking refrigeration units
Uneven walking surfaces
Cracked sidewalks, broken pavement, raised floor tiles
Inadequate lighting
Dark parking lots, poorly lit stairwells, burned-out fixtures
Defective stairs & handrails
Loose railings, missing steps, steep or uneven risers
Cluttered walkways
Merchandise in aisles, extension cords, debris on floors
Outdoor hazards
Ice and snow accumulation, potholes, unmarked curbs
Inadequate warnings
Missing 'Wet Floor' signs, no barrier around hazards
Defective mats & rugs
Bunched-up mats, unsecured area rugs, worn entrance mats
Georgia Law
Modified Comparative Negligence
Under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33, Georgia follows a modified comparative fault rule. This means your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault — but only if you are less than 50% responsible for the accident.
If you are found 50% or more at fault, you recover nothing. This is why insurance companies aggressively try to shift blame onto injured victims — even arguing that your shoes were inappropriate or that you were looking at your phone.
| Your Fault % | $100K Damages | Recovery |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | $100,000 | $100,000 |
| 10% | $100,000 | $90,000 |
| 25% | $100,000 | $75,000 |
| 49% | $100,000 | $51,000 |
| 50%+ | $100,000 | $0 — Barred |
Attorney Sherota works to minimize any fault attributed to you and maximize your recovery.
What You Can Recover
Damages in a Slip & Fall Case
Economic Damages
Emergency room and hospital bills
Surgery, physical therapy, and rehabilitation
Future medical care and ongoing treatment
Lost wages and income during recovery
Reduced earning capacity if permanently disabled
Out-of-pocket expenses (transportation, home care)
Non-Economic Damages
Physical pain and suffering
Emotional distress and mental anguish
Loss of enjoyment of life
Permanent disfigurement or disability
Loss of consortium (impact on family relationships)
Punitive damages in cases of gross negligence
No Fee Unless We Win: Sherota Law handles slip and fall cases on a contingency fee basis. You pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you. This means you can pursue justice without financial risk.
Act Quickly
Critical Deadlines
| Deadline | Timeframe | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Standard personal injury statute of limitations | 2 years from date of injury | O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33 |
| Claim against a Georgia government entity | Ante litem notice within 6 months | O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5 |
| Claim against state of Georgia | Ante litem notice within 12 months | O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26 |
| Minor victim (under 18) | 2 years from 18th birthday | O.C.G.A. § 9-3-90 |
| Wrongful death from slip & fall | 2 years from date of death | O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2 |
Warning: Missing these deadlines permanently bars your claim. Surveillance footage is typically overwritten within 30–72 hours. Contact Sherota Law immediately to preserve evidence and protect your rights.
How We Fight for You
Overcoming Common Defense Tactics
Insurance companies and property owners use well-worn defenses to minimize or deny your claim. Sherota Law anticipates these tactics and builds your case to counter them from day one.
Open & Obvious Doctrine
Georgia allows property owners to argue the hazard was so obvious that a reasonable person would have seen and avoided it. However, this is not an absolute bar — if the owner should have anticipated that invitees would be distracted or unable to avoid the hazard, liability may still attach.
Contributory Negligence
Under Georgia's modified comparative fault rule (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33), if you are found 50% or more at fault, you recover nothing. If less than 50% at fault, your damages are reduced proportionally. Defendants frequently argue distracted walking, inappropriate footwear, or ignoring warning signs.
Lack of Notice
The owner may argue they had no actual or constructive knowledge of the hazard. We counter this with evidence of how long the condition existed, prior complaints, inspection frequency, and whether a reasonable inspection would have revealed the danger.
Assumption of Risk
If you voluntarily encountered a known risk, the owner may argue assumption of risk. This defense is limited — it requires proof you actually knew of the specific risk and voluntarily chose to encounter it, not merely that a hazard existed.
Immediate Steps
What to Do After a Slip & Fall
01
Seek medical attention immediately
Even if you feel fine — some injuries (spinal, TBI) present symptoms hours later. Medical records establish the injury timeline.
02
Report the incident
Notify the property owner or manager and request a written incident report. Get a copy before you leave.
03
Document the scene
Photograph the hazard, your injuries, your footwear, and the surrounding area. Take photos before the hazard is cleaned up.
04
Collect witness information
Get names and phone numbers of anyone who saw the fall or was aware of the hazard.
05
Preserve your clothing & footwear
Do not wash or discard the clothes and shoes you were wearing — they may be evidence.
06
Contact Sherota Law immediately
Before speaking to the property owner's insurance company. Anything you say can be used to minimize your claim.
Your Attorney
Brent Sherota
Sherota Law LLC · Alpharetta, Georgia
With 10+ years in private practice, Attorney Brent Sherota has helped injured Georgians recover compensation from negligent property owners. He understands that a slip and fall can upend your life — and he fights aggressively to ensure you are made whole. Sherota Law handles all personal injury cases on a contingency fee basis: no recovery, no fee.
Injured on Someone Else's Property?
Don't let the insurance company minimize your claim. Contact Sherota Law today for a free, confidential case review. Attorney Brent Sherota will personally evaluate your case — at no cost to you, and no fee unless we win.
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