The slip-and-fall lawsuit is often the source of derision and suspicion, but what happens if you are someone who is legitimately injured in such an accident?
Mary Lane found out the hard way Dec. 14, 2016 after an employee at the McDonald’s on State Route 92 in Sierra Vista mopped the floor outside the restrooms. When Lane walked out of the restroom, she slipped on the wet floor and fell backward, landing on the floor of the restaurant owned by PATANN, Inc.
The nonprofit National Floor Safety Institute reports that slip-and-falls account for more than 1 million hospital visits annually. The NFSI collaborates with colleges and universities for research and development of slip, trip, and fall prevention, and promotes public awareness of such dangers.
Court records show Lane’s fall resulted in injuries to her head, neck, and back. She eventually sued PATANN Inc. in December 2018 for “negligently and carelessly failing to inform Plaintiff Mary Lane of a potential risk due to the hazardous condition” caused by the wet floor.
More than four years after Lane’s fall, the parties were set for a weeklong trial this month at the Cochise County Superior Court. However, a settlement between Lane, her husband, and PATANN’s insurer Nationwide Mutual Insurance was approved by a judge Aug. 5, just four days before the start of trial.
The settlement calls for $130,000 in damages, with half of the amount going to Lane’s husband for a loss of consortium claim. Meanwhile, Lane’s half will be subjected to claims from various medical providers.
The agreement also includes a hold-harmless clause in favor of PATANN, with all parties responsible for their own attorney’s fees.
Judge Timothy Dickerson addressed the Lanes after approving the settlement terms. He acknowledged the life-altering effect of Lane’s 2016 slip-and-fall, and noted the settlement provides the couple “with finality” and avoids the tension and uncertainty of a trial.
“Nothing we can do can put Ms. Lane back to where she was the day before the fall,” Dickerson said, adding that the couple “can’t spend your life thinking about what might have been. But you move forward and make the best of things now.”
Dickerson added he hopes Lane can regain the ability to enjoy some of the activities she previously participated in.
Court records show Nationwide Mutual, acting as PATANN’s attorneys, initially denied responsibility for Lane’s fall, alleging there was no “unreasonably dangerous situation on the premises” on Dec. 14, 2016. Even if such a condition existed that day, the company alleged “it was open and obvious” to Lane and other patrons.
However, such denials and counter-allegations by a defendant’s attorney are common shortly after a lawsuit has been filed, as the parties have not yet had time to exchange evidence.
Robert Stachel, the Lanes’ attorney, declined to comment on the outcome of the lawsuit. Calls placed to Nationwide Mutual were not returned by press time.
