When pursuing any type of case after you have suffered an injury in which you believe that someone else is to blame, the key point that you must prove is that there was negligence on another person or entity’s part.
But negligence is not an easy thing to prove. There are many criteria that must be fulfilled in order to prove that negligence existed and the extent to which it was displayed. This is crucial to forming a successful claim.
For instance, if a person falls down a flight of stairs at a local establishment like a restaurant, negligence will be assessed as detailed below.
Initially, consider the amount of and type of duty that the defendant had toward you. For example, a shop owner has a duty to keep all of their customers safe to a reasonable degree in the establishment.
If the shop owner breached this duty, e.g., if they failed to take reasonable measures to keep customers safe, this could constitute negligence. An unsafe staircase that the shop owner knew was unsteady could be perceived as a breach of duty.
It must then be proven that this breach of duty caused the injury, and also that you would not have suffered the injury if the owner had not breached this duty.
If you fall down the stairs in a Maricopa County private establishment, it is important that you first determine whether it is likely that the owner was negligent before you attempt to file a claim for damages in order to recoup any financial losses from the damages.
Source: Findlaw, “Arizona negligence laws,” accessed Nov. 07, 2017