Slip & Fall · Fort Lauderdale

Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer.

A wet floor at the supermarket, a spill nobody cleaned at the mall, a broken step at a beachfront hotel — a fall can break a hip, a wrist, or your back in a second. The hard part is not proving you fell. It is proving the business knew the hazard was there and did nothing. For 40 years, Robert DiStefano has built those cases for hurt Broward residents. Same-day, confidential case review. No fee unless we recover for you.

  • 40+ yearsFlorida personal injury
  • $100M+ recoveredfor Florida accident victims
  • 4.8 ★ / 51verified Google reviews
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After a fall on someone else’s property

A Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer who knows what really wins these cases

You slipped on a wet floor at the grocery store and went down hard. It feels obvious — the floor was dangerous, you got hurt, the store should pay. But a slip and fall claim in Florida is harder than it looks, and most people lose theirs without ever knowing why. The store does not have to pay just because you fell on their property. You have to prove the business knew, or should have known, that the hazard was there — and failed to fix it or warn you. That single rule is where most cases live or die, and it is why people search for a Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer the moment a claims adjuster starts pushing back.

Here is the part that surprises people: the proof you need usually belongs to the business that hurt you. The surveillance video that shows how long the spill sat there. The incident report a manager filled out. The cleaning log that says — or does not say — when an employee last checked that aisle. Those records can answer the whole case. They can also be taped over, lost, or “unavailable” within days if no one demands them in writing.

That is the real fight in a slip and fall case, and it starts immediately. The longer you wait, the more evidence quietly disappears. Reach out before that video gets erased — the call is free, and the first move is sending the legal notice that forces the store to preserve it.

The Florida law that decides your slip and fall case

The rules that control whether the store has to pay

Slip and fall claims turn on a few specific Florida statutes and on old common-law rules about who owes you a duty. Here are the ones that matter most.

Fla. Stat. § 768.0755

You must prove the store knew

This is the heart of nearly every supermarket and store fall. To win, you have to show the business had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition. Constructive knowledge means the hazard was there long enough — or happened often enough — that the business should have found and fixed it. A spill that sat for an hour is very different from one that hit the floor seconds before you did. Proving how long it was there is the whole game.

Common-law duty by visitor status

How much the property owner owed you

Florida still sorts visitors into categories. As a shopper or paying guest — what the law calls an invitee — you are owed the highest duty of care: the property must be kept reasonably safe and you must be warned of hidden dangers. A guest invited for free is owed less, and a trespasser less still. Your status when you fell shapes exactly what the owner was required to do.

Fla. Stat. § 768.0706 enacted 2023

Negligent security at apartments

If you were hurt by a crime — an assault or robbery — in the common area of an apartment or other multifamily property, this 2023 law matters. An owner who follows its safety checklist (lit parking, working locks, cameras, and more) earns a presumption against liability. That makes negligent-security cases tougher, and makes early investigation of what security actually existed even more important.

Fla. Stat. § 768.81 amended 2023

The 51% fault bar

Stores love to argue the fall was your fault — you were on your phone, you ignored a cone, you wore the wrong shoes. Under Florida’s modified comparative negligence rule, if a jury finds you more than 50% at fault, you recover nothing. Below that line, your recovery is cut by your share of blame. Expect the insurer to push your fault as high as it can.

Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a) amended 2023

Two years to file

The 2023 reform (House Bill 837) cut the deadline for most injury claims, including slip and falls, from four years to two years from the date you were hurt. Miss it and the court can throw out even a strong case. With evidence vanishing fast, waiting is the most expensive mistake you can make.

This page provides general information about Florida law and is not legal advice. Statutes and case law change; your specific case requires a consultation.

Where these falls happen in Broward

We know these properties because we shop and eat here too

A slip and fall case is local. Who owns the property, what cameras they run, and how they keep their floors all shape your claim. Here is where we see Broward residents and visitors get hurt.

Supermarkets & pharmacies

  • Publix & Winn-Dixie — spills in produce, leaks from freezer cases, and tracked-in rain near the entrance on a wet South Florida afternoon
  • Cleaning logs — the record of when an aisle was last checked is often the single most important document in your case
  • Self-serve stations — rotisserie, soup, and drink areas where spills are constant and frequently ignored

Malls & big retail

  • Sawgrass Mills — one of the busiest malls in the country, where food-court spills and polished-tile walkways create constant fall risk
  • The Galleria Fort Lauderdale — escalators, valet entries, and restroom floors that get missed during peak hours
  • Surveillance coverage — big properties record nearly everything, which helps you — if the footage is demanded before it loops over

Hotels & restaurants

  • Beachfront hotels — wet pool decks, lobby floors slick from the ocean air, and unmarked steps catch guests off guard
  • Las Olas Boulevard restaurants — greasy kitchen-door paths, spilled drinks, and uneven patio surfaces along the strip
  • Out-of-town guests — tourists often fly home days later, so getting their account and the property’s records fast is critical

Forty years in Broward means we know how these properties run their floors, which ones keep real cleaning logs, and how long their cameras hold footage before it disappears.

Why DiStefano Law

Robert handles your slip and fall case himself

At a lot of firms, your case gets handed to a case manager and you barely speak to a lawyer. That is not how we work. Robert DiStefano has practiced Florida personal injury for more than 40 years, and he is the one who reviews your fall, sends the preservation notice, deals with the insurer, and decides strategy.

You pay nothing up front. We take slip and fall cases on contingency — no fee unless we recover for you — and the first case review is free. See related case results →

01

Tell us what happened

Call or send the form. We answer your questions and give you a candid assessment of whether you have a case — same day, at no cost to you.

02

We race to save the proof

We send written notice that forces the property to preserve its surveillance video, incident report, and cleaning logs before they vanish — then we lock down witnesses.

03

We prove they should have known

We build the timeline that shows how long the hazard sat there, beat back the “your fault” argument, and fight for full value in settlement or at trial.

Hurt somewhere else on a property? We also handle retail and store injury claims and hotel accident cases, which raise their own evidence and liability questions.

Slip and fall questions, answered

What hurt Broward shoppers ask us most

What do I actually have to prove in a Florida slip and fall case?
More than just that you fell. Under Florida Statute 768.0755, you have to prove the business had actual or constructive knowledge of the dangerous condition and did not fix it or warn you. Constructive knowledge means the hazard was there long enough — or happened so regularly — that a careful business should have found it. So the key question is usually: how long was that spill on the floor before you stepped in it? Proving that timeline, often with surveillance video and cleaning logs, is what separates a winning case from a dismissed one.
The store says it was not their fault. Do I still have a case?
Very possibly. Almost every store denies fault at first — it is the default response, and it does not mean you are wrong. What matters is the evidence, not their statement. We send a legal notice demanding the surveillance footage, the incident report, and the cleaning records, then build a timeline showing how long the hazard was there. Many cases that started with a flat “not our fault” turn around once the video shows a spill sitting untouched for 20 minutes. Do not take the denial as the final word, and do not give a recorded statement before talking to us.
How important is the store’s surveillance video?
Often it is the most important piece of evidence in the entire case. Video can show how long the hazard sat there, whether employees walked past it, and whether anyone put out a warning — the exact facts you need to prove constructive knowledge. The problem is that many systems record over old footage in days or weeks, and a store will not preserve it unless it is legally required to. That is why we move fast to send a written preservation demand. The sooner you call, the better the odds the video still exists when we ask for it.
What if I was partly at fault for the fall?
You can still recover, as long as you were not mostly to blame. Under Florida’s modified comparative negligence rule, your compensation is reduced by your share of fault — but if a jury finds you more than 50% at fault, you get nothing. Stores know this and routinely argue you were distracted, ignored a warning cone, or wore unsafe shoes to push your share over that 51% line. That is exactly why early evidence matters and why you should not accept the blame an adjuster tries to hand you. We push back with facts.
How long do I have to file a slip and fall claim in Florida?
For most slip and fall injuries, the 2023 reform set the deadline at two years from the date you were hurt — down from the old four-year window. If you miss it, the court can dismiss even a strong case. But you should not wait anywhere near that long, because the evidence that wins these cases — surveillance video, incident reports, cleaning logs, witness memories — starts disappearing within days. The smartest move is to call right away so the proof gets locked down while the deadline is still far off.
Client reviews

What clients say about working with us

4.8 ★★★★★ 51 verified Google reviews Read all on Google →

★★★★★

“The best lawyer in South Florida. Thank you DiStefano for all the hard work that you and your team have done to get me amazing results.”

Taravia Google

★★★★★

“I had a wonderful experience with Robert! He fought hard for me and kept me in the loop the whole time. The whole office is just great!”

Paulavia Google

★★★★★

“Mr. DiStefano is the best! Kept me up to date with everything, and his paralegal Michelle also kept us informed. Happy with my settlement — I highly recommend him.”

Stacy Leevia Google

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Talk to a Fort Lauderdale slip and fall lawyer today

Tell us where you fell and what happened. The review is free, and you pay no fee unless we recover for you — but the video clock is already running.

(954) 572-8000
Robert DiStefano, Esq. · Fort Lauderdale