While the following story didn’t occur here in Wisconsin, the circumstances are still important because any slip and fall in the country could cause similar, or even worse, harm to a victim. The case is out of the Quad Cities in Iowa, and it dates back to January 2010.
The victim is a woman who worked as a traveling software consultant. She was staying at a Marriott-owned hotel during the winter when she exited the hotel and walked along the premises, only to slip and fall on some ice. The resulting injury, a broken right ankle that was described as “shattered” in the lawsuit, required multiple surgeries to fix, and even after all of that medical treatment, the woman still had a severe limp in her right leg. Arthritis also set in to her right ankle, leading to chronic pain.
As a result of all of the injuries and medical treatment, the woman was forced to take a lower-level job at her company that stripped her of the ability to travel for work. She also had to take a pay cut to accommodate her new life situation. An initial $1.2 million verdict in favor of the woman was bumped up to $4.9 million after an appeal.
Slip and fall accidents are no joke, and they can lead to absolutely devastating injuries that can change your life or, even worse, take it from you. If you have been wronged by an establishment that failed to keep their premises clean and safe, then you should consider your legal options.
Source: Quad-City Times, “Follow-up File: Slip-and-fall verdict awards Texas woman $4.9 million,” Tara Becker-Gray, March 11, 2018