Maryland Personal Injury Lawyers
Our lawyers handle slip-and-fall negligence lawsuits and other premises liability claims throughout Maryland. This page discusses slip and fall claims, how to win them, and expected settlement amounts in these premise liability cases.
Our Maryland injury lawyers handle slip-and-fall accident cases across the state. If you were injury in an accident on someone else’s property, call us today at 800-553-8082 or contact us online.
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Settlement Value of Slip and Fall Cases
How Much Will My Settlement Compensation for a Maryland Slip and Fall Case?
The median jury verdict in premises liability cases nationally is $100,000, but the average verdict is three times higher. The average settlement amount in a typical slip-and-fall case will be much lower, probably in the $20,000 to $50,000 range.
The defendant you sue impacts the settlement amount or verdict. The median compensatory jury award for premises liability cases against industry owners/operators is $335,000, and the overall median award for premises liability cases was $100,000.
The settlement payout of an individual slip-and-fall lawsuit or any product liability claim will depend mainly on how severe the plaintiff’s injury is. Slip and fall lawsuits in Baltimore City and Prince George’s County typically have higher settlement compensation than in other Maryland jurisdictions. In our lawyers’ experience, you see a higher average payout in slip-and-fall cases with surgery than those without. This makes sense, right? Surgery is a marker for more severe injury. So it is no surprise that slip and fall settlements without surgery will see, no average, less compensation.
Maryland has a lower average settlement amount for a slip-and-fall case than the national average. Why? Maryland is one of a handful of states that have contributory negligence. This means that if you are 1% at fault for your injuries, you cannot recover.
Our lawyers are not deterred from handling the right slip and fall lawsuit by Maryland’s contributory negligence law. Our Baltimore lawyers have recovered millions of dollars for clients in slip-and-fall-type cases in Maryland.
So when lawyers dismiss all slip-and-fall cases as hard to win, they throw the baby out with the bathwater. Many slip-and-fall cases resolve for larger settlement amounts, but the average slip-and-fall case is not a case at all.
What is a Slip and Fall Case Worth in Maryland?
A good but imperfect place to start when looking at calculating settlement amounts for slip and fall lawsuits is the statistics. The national median award for industrial/commercial premises liability cases is $345,000, while the median amount for all other premises liability claims is $105,000.
But that tells you little about the settlement compensation you should get for your claim. The value of a slip and fall case will be driven by two separate factors: (1) the nature and severity of the injuries and (2) the extent of the property owner’s negligence and resulting liability. Below is a description of both these factors and how they impact settlement value. We also discuss some additional factors that can drive the settlement value of your slip and fall case.
Severity of Injuries
The extent and impact of the injuries sustained in the slip and fall accident significantly affect the settlement. This includes both physical injuries and emotional distress. A slip and fall that results in minor injuries, such as a sprained wrist or some bruising, will naturally be worth much less than a case where someone slips and breaks a leg or worse. Slip and fall injuries that result in surgery are more likely to have a higher value and are more likely to command the best lawyers to take the case. Severe injuries usually, but not always, require extensive medical treatment, result in long-term disability, or cause significant pain and suffering will generally result in higher average slip and fall settlement amounts.
Liability
The second factor relating to the extent of the property owner’s negligence is more complex. Usually, it depends on the type of hazard or dangerous condition that caused the slip and fall: e.g., a wet floor with no warning, snow and ice, or dangerous design or construction.
Even when a slip and fall results in serious injury, this second factor can often render the case worthless. In most cases, the plaintiff must show that the property owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the hazardous condition to establish liability. For example, if a customer walks into a store and slips on a banana peel, they would need to prove that (a) the store owner or employees actually knew about the banana peel or (b) that under the circumstances, the store owner or employees reasonably should have known about the banana peel. The case could be worth nothing if the plaintiff cannot prove notice.
Liability is much easier in cases where the property owner or its employees created the hazardous condition. The classic example of this is when an employee mops the storeroom floor. In this case, the plaintiff does not have to prove actual or constructive knowledge of the wet floor. The property owner is the one who made the floor wet, so knowledge is presumed.
An example can be found in an unreported Maryland appellate opinion from 2024. In Cade v. Arrow Parking, the plaintiff tripped and fell while exiting an unleveled elevator in a parking garage located at 210 West Baltimore Street, Baltimore, Maryland, 21201.
Arrow Parking disputed these allegations and denied having notice, actual or constructive, that the elevator was un-leveled before the plaintiff’s fall. Arrow Parking further contended that the plaintiff was contributorily negligent and that the un-leveling of the elevator was an open and obvious condition, such that Arrow Parking had no duty to warn the plaintiff. The jury awarded the plaintiff over $1 million.
Medical Treatment and Lost Wages
Jurisdiction Where Case is Filed
The plaintiff in Sharpe arguably had more severe injuries but only $11,400. The only apparent explanation is that Sharpe was in Baltimore County. The damages in White were awarded by a P.G. County jury. Another example of this is the case of Dunlin v. Two Farms Inc. In Dunlin, neither of the first two factors were particularly strong – the plaintiff’s injuries were comparatively minor, and the defendant claimed it placed adequate warning signs – but a jury in Baltimore City awarded $120,000 to the plaintiff.
Lawyers, insurance adjusters, and juries may use different methods to determine the settlement amount in slip-and-fall cases. When negotiating a settlement with the insurance company, lawyers may consider the victim’s medical expenses, lost wages, and other damages. Insurance adjusters may use formulas that consider the injuries’ severity and impact on the victim’s life. Juries may consider all these factors and more when determining a verdict in a slip-and-fall case. Ultimately, the settlement amount will depend on the specific circumstances of the case and the evidence presented by the victim and their legal team.
Quality of Legal Representation
Hiring the best slip-and-fall lawyer in Maryland will make a difference in your compensation payout. Period. Don’t look for a “slip and fall lawyer near me,” look for the lawyer that can maximize the value of your claim.
Slip and Fall Settlements and Verdicts
Reported verdicts and settlements indicate that about 68% of Maryland slip and fall cases had a value somewhere between $5,000 and $50,000. Just under 5% of the cases had a final value in excess of $500,000. The highest reported verdict was $4.2 million which came in a 2002 case in Prince George’s County where the Plaintiff slipped on ice, broke her leg and ended up with a bone infection.
Slip and fall accidents can result in severe injuries, leading to significant medical expenses, lost wages, and prolonged pain and suffering. Understanding the potential settlement amounts for these cases can provide valuable insight into what you might expect if you’ve experienced a similar incident. Below, we present a list of sample settlement amounts from various slip and fall cases.
It would be great if there were a slip-and-fall settlement value calculator where we could punch in some numbers. However, there is no expected formula to predict the settlement value of a slip-and-fall case in Maryland. But a review of these cases shows that in Maryland, there are at least three factors that will consistently impact the calculation of the value of a slip and fall case: (1) the severity of injury, (2) the nature and extent of the property owners’ negligence and liability; and (3) the jurisdiction which the case is filed in.
These examples highlight the range of compensation that can be awarded, depending on the specific circumstances and severity of the injuries involved. Reviewing these cases can help you better understand the legal landscape and what factors might influence the outcome of your own claim.
$500,784 Verdict (Maryland 2023): The plaintiff slipped and fell in a bathroom at work, which was maintained by the defendant company. After a janitor had sprayed disinfectant and told her the bathroom was ready for use, she initially declined but returned 30 minutes later, slipping on the still-wet floor. The fall resulted in knee injuries necessitating a total knee replacement and unspecified cervical spine damage. The plaintiff claimed the defendant’s employee failed to place warning signs and allowed the bathroom to be used while the floor was wet. The court denied the defendant’s motion for summary judgment. The jury awarded the plaintiff $500,784 for compensatory pain and suffering.
$30,000 Verdict (Baltimore City 2023): The plaintiff, a tenant, fell when the exterior back steps of his rental residence collapsed. The fall caused headaches and injuries to his neck, back, and right leg. The plaintiff claimed that the landlord had exclusive control over the property and failed to maintain or repair the premises properly, also failing to warn of the dangerous condition. The defendant, who rented bedrooms in the home to various tenants, argued that the plaintiff had previously demanded and rejected a $17,500 settlement offer. The jury awarded the plaintiff $30,000, comprising $8,752 for past medical expenses and $21,248 for noneconomic damages.
$154,379 Verdict (Baltimore City 2022): A plaintiff and her two grandsons entered a Walmart Supercenter in Pasadena, Maryland, to buy cakes for her daughter’s birthday. After picking up the cakes, they walked through the produce aisle, passing a pyramid-shaped banana display table with black metal wheeled carts underneath. These carts were used to hold overstock bananas and were supposed to be stored under the table when not in use. As the plaintiff followed her grandsons, who were slightly ahead, she turned a corner around the display and stepped on an empty cart. The cart rolled out from under her, causing her to fall and suffer severe injuries. Her 12-year-old grandson had noticed the cart and tried to warn her, but she did not see it in time. Video surveillance captured the incident, showing an employee restocking the display and walking away with cardboard boxes before the fall. However, the cart and the floor were obscured from view during the fall, and the cart was not visible in the footage.. The plaintiff alleged that she sustained injuries, including tears to her right hip, hamstring, and thigh, as well as Grade IV chondromalacia patella of her knee. The plaintiff was awarded $154,379.
$45,000 Verdict (Maryland 2019): A 13-year-old male plaintiff suffered a right displaced hip fracture at an amusement park operated by the defendant. The injury occurred when he slipped and fell on a wet walkway near a wooden bridge, which was frequently splashed by water from a nearby log flume ride. The plaintiff required closed manipulation, open treatment with capsulotomy, and hip joint aspiration, resulting in permanent impairment. The plaintiff claimed the defendant was negligent in maintaining and inspecting the premises, as the walkway was not slip-resistant and lacked proper matting or other measures to ensure dryness. The defendant denied liability, asserting the presence of a warning sign and arguing that the minor plaintiff had a pre-existing hip injury and had been complaining of hip pain prior to the accident. The jury awarded the plaintiff $45,000 for compensatory pain and suffering.
$9,200 Verdict (Montgomery County 2017 ). The plaintiff was awarded $9,200 for minor injuries incurred when she tripped and fell in a stairway that was poorly lit by the property owner.
$11,400 Verdict (Baltimore County 2012): The plaintiff received $11,400 for minor physical injuries caused by a slip and fall on a wet floor with no warnings in the produce department of a grocery store.
$20,000 Verdict (Howard County 2012): The plaintiff was awarded $20,000 for slipping and falling on the icy parking lot while walking into a Chick-fil-A in Columbia. The injuries, which included a concussion, could still be classified as minor.
$153,000 Verdict (Frederick County 2007): The plaintiff was awarded $153,000 when she slipped and fell on a patch of ice at a shopping center in Frederick. The circumstances of her slip and fall were typical, but she fell awkwardly and sustained a permanent injury to her shoulder, requiring shoulder replacement surgery.
$1.5 Million Verdict (Baltimore City 2007): The plaintiff was a doctor who slipped on a wet hospital floor, and the impact was particularly hard. The doctor suffered a stress fracture in one of his vertebrae that required three separate surgeries. The injury was permanent and effectively ended his career. The case was settled for $1.5 million.
$9,000 Verdict (Anne Arundel County 2006): Plaintiff got $9,000 for a strained back and other minor injuries incurred when she slipped and fell on a cardboard box left in the middle of a hallway.
$160,000 Verdict (P.G. County 2004): Plaintiff claimed she tripped over a waiter because the restaurant was poorly lit. The plaintiff’s injuries from the fall were significant as she broke her wrist and also fractured her hip. She was awarded $160,000.
Slip and Fall Law in Maryland
Below is a summary of the current state of slip and fall premises liability law in Maryland in 2024:
Snow and Ice
One thing has been made clear to Maryland premises lawyers over the last few years. The majority of slip-and-fall on snow and ice cases—if you are not walking to/from your home (and possibly to or from your place of employment) — will fail because they will be dismissed before the claims get to a jury. In the last few years, our high court has somewhat backed, and you will see that in the Bland case below, off this harsh rule. But they have not backed off as much as our Maryland slip-and-fall lawyers would like.
Slipped and Fell on an Object on the Walkway
The classic law school torts slip and fall case is the customer walking down the aisle of her local grocery store who slips on a banana peel and suffers an injury. In these cases, the key is whether the owner had either actual or constructive notice – they should have known it was there – of the banana peel. The difficulty in proving actual notice is that the plaintiff must demonstrate that the owner or defendant did or should have had knowledge of the slippery condition, in this case, the existence of the banana on the floor.
Store employees are good at playing dumb when acknowledging awareness of hazardous conditions. In this regard, actual notice will be hard to come by. So what will matter is how long the banana peel had been on the floor. If it is fresh, that is good evidence that it just fell. The case is much stronger if it looks like it has been put through the wringer.
Another way that plaintiffs establish the constructive notice (should have known even if you did not know) requirement is to demonstrate that defendants are charged with constructive knowledge of what a reasonable inspection would have disclosed. In the banana peel example, at some point, you should inspect your store to make sure the aisles are clear because you know or should know things will fall in the aisles.
When the Owner Creates the Condition
The best Maryland slip-and-fall cases involve the owner or defendant creating the slippery condition. Slip and fall attorneys who play their cards right in these cases generally win. The plaintiff need not offer evidence that the defendant knew of the condition because the defendant’s knowledge in such a case is conclusively presumed. Examples would be mopped, oiled, or waxed floors.
Maryland Slip and Fall Law from the Key Cases
- Mayor v. Wallace, 260 Md. App. 388, 309 A.3d 111 (2024): This is a case about duty. The court found that the city was obligated to maintain safe public pedestrian walkways and shared-use bicycle paths that function as waterfront sidewalks.
- Bland v. EMCOR Facilities Servs. (unreported) (2023). This is an unreported but important case in understanding our appellate court’s view of walking on snow and ice because you have no real choice. The pivotal issue centered around whether the plaintiff had voluntarily assumed the risk of injury when slipping on ice at his workplace, leading to his negligence claim. Initially, the trial court ruled in favor of the defendants based on the assumption of the risk defense. They argued that the plaintiff was aware of the icy conditions yet chose to walk across the ice to get to work, knowingly exposing himself to potential harm. However, the plaintiff contended that his decision was not truly voluntary. Why? He feared significant job-related consequences if he failed to show up, including the potential loss of future overtime opportunities and other employment penalties. This fear, he argued, coerced him into taking the risk of walking on the icy surface to maintain his employment status. He is saying his choice was really no choice at all. On appeal, the appellate court found sufficient evidence to question the voluntariness of his actions. This evidence suggested that the trial should be reassessed to consider the external pressures influencing his decision to navigate through hazardous conditions.
- Wagner v. Doehring, 553 Md. 97, 553 A.2d 684 (1989): A landowner must use reasonable and ordinary care to keep the premises safe for an invitee. Under Maryland law, an invitee is defined as one permitted to remain on the premises for purposes intrinsically related to the purpose of the business.
- Rawls v. Hochschild, Kohn & Co., Inc., 207 Md. 113, 113 A.2d 405 (1955): The court found that the proper owner does not need to know the dangerous condition that caused the victim to fall. But the victim must show that the storekeeper could have discovered the condition by exercising ordinary care. That’s the key. The question in these cases will always center around whether the defendant acted reasonably under the circumstances.
Does Your Law Firm Represent Slip and Fall Plaintiffs?
Yes. The caveat is that we only represent Maryland slip-and-fall clients who (1) have a severe and objective injury and (2) there is a strong possibility we can prove that the owner/defendant had actual or constructive notice of items or the condition of the walkway or area in question. If you have a smaller case and would like a referral, call Ron Miller, and he will be glad to direct you to someone qualified to handle your case.
If you have a serious injury case in Maryland, our legal counselors will gladly speak with you. You can reach a Maryland slip and fall lawyer at 800-553-8082 or get a free Internet consultation.
What Should I Do After a Slip and Fall Accident?
If you injure yourself in a slip and fall accident at a retail store or other commercial property, you should take the following steps after the incident to preserve any potential legal claim you might have against the property owner:
- Get immediate medical treatment
- Promptly report the incident to the owner/operator of the property
- Take pictures or video the scene of the accident
- Find out if there is any surveillance video and ask that it be preserved
- Contact a personal injury lawyer about bringing a lawsuit
Why Am I Having a Hard Time Finding a Maryland Lawyer to Take My Slip and Fall Case?
There are several possible reasons why a lawyer might turn down your slip-and-fall case. The first and most likely reason is that your injuries are not significant. Even if the property owner were negligent (e.g., wet floor with no caution sign, a massive hole in the sidewalk), your slip-and-fall claim wouldn’t be worth much if you only suffered minor injuries.
Another possible reason for a lawyer to pass on your case is that establishing the owner’s liability may be difficult or impossible. In Maryland, you must show that the property owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition (e.g., wet floor or hole in the sidewalk) to have a valid slip-and-fall case.
Are Slip and Fall Cases Hard to Win in Maryland?
Slip-and-fall cases can sometimes be challenging to win because Maryland law requires the plaintiff to prove that the property owner knew about the dangerous condition that caused the slip-and-fall (or reasonably should have known about it).
For example, if soda spills on the floor in the very back of the grocery store and 10 minutes later, someone slips and falls on the spill, it would probably be tough to hold the store liable. Store employees were unaware of the soda spill and couldn’t say they “should” have been aware of it 10 minutes after it happened.
Hiring a Maryland Slip and Fall Lawyer
Our firm is currently handles serious injury and wrongful death slip and fall lawsuits. Contact us at 800-553-8082 for a free consultation or contact us online.
More Maryland Slip and Fall Information
- Settlement Value of Slip and Fall Cases (get statistics and sample verdicts and settlements to figure out the value of your claim)
- A $537,000 verdict we received in a slip and fall case in Baltimore City
- Claims Against Home Depot
- Premises Liability in Maryland (an overview)
- Sample Deposition Subpoena to Property Owner (in snow and ice slip and fall)
- Sample Slip and Fall Complaint (sample slip and fall lawsuit)
- What Is the Settlement Value of My Slip and Fall Case? (discussing settlement compensation amounts of personal injury cases)
- Slip and Fall Cases in Maryland on Ice and Snow (new Maryland Court of Appeals Opinion
- Worst slip and fall injury: skull fracture. Look at settlement amounts for these awful injuries.
- Slip and Fall Settlement Payouts in Maryland