Articles Posted in Premises Liability

If you were badly injured from an accident at a 7-Eleven store in Florida, it is a good idea that you should reach out to the best Florida personal injury law firm for help. It may feel intimidating to call a lawyer when you’ve been hurt. Perhaps you think you can’t afford to get legal help. But if you don’t know what your legal rights are, it can cost you far more. Find about your legal rights by calling Wolfson & Leon today any time day or night at 305-285-1115. We represent injured victims throughout Florida.

History of 7-Eleven Stores

Back in 1927, John Jefferson Green started the Tote’m Store. The establishment sold ice to customers. Seeing a need for customers to buy essential grocery items at stores that were closer to their homes, Green added bread, eggs, and milk to his product mix. In the late 1920s, some Tote’m Stores were equipped with gas stations.

Our community has suffered through the COVID Pandemic for months. In addition to various rules and regulations, many companies have also enacted masking rules for customers. But the question is just how far can a corporation go in the enforcement of masking rules?

Consider if a customer entered a Publix to purchase coffee. She is asked by a Publix employee to adjust her mask which had slipped below her nose. She adjusts the mask as requested. Subsequently, another Publix employee directs a security guard to go to that same customer. As the Publix security guard approaches the customer at the check-out, the customer reaches for a bag and her mask slipped below her nose again. The security guard tells the customer to fix her mask. The customer fixes it and says to the security guard “Will you get away from me now?”. The guard responds “I will drag you out of here”. Then the guard pulls and fires a Taser into the customer’s back and injuring her.

What should the customer do? Even if another Publix employee tries to usher the injured customer out, she should stand her ground and demand to make a report with the manager. Thereafter, the injured customer should call the Miami personal injury lawyers at Wolfson & Leon so a lawsuit can be filed on her behalf in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.

The Florida Courts seem determined to factually analyze every substance known to man and whether that substance and the specific condition it is in can serve as evidence of constructive notice.  Constructive notice is important in slip and fall cases these days because Florida Statute 768.0755 places the burden on the plaintiff to prove that a business establishment had constructive notice.  The only other way to have a case, per the statute, is to show that the condition occurred with regularity or that the defendant had actual knowledge of the substance.  So, in Florida, we have a body of case law that goes substance by substance and picks apart the substance from a factual basis to determine whether the person who slipped on that substance has a material issue of fact that can be presented to a jury.  This case by case analysis goes from fruit to fruit and frozen substance to frozen substance.  There seems to be no end to the various foods, chemicals, compounds, molecules, drinks, and items of all kinds that the Florida Courts will look at.

If you look at the history of the case law, there is some irony in all of this.  The Courts have ruled upon thawed ice cream (Camina v. Parliament Insurance, 417 So. 2d 1093 (3rd DCA 1982)), partially frozen peas (Teate v. Winn-Dixie, 524 SO. 2d 1060 (3rd DCA 1988)), partially liquified orange juice concentrate (Grizzard v. Colonial Stores, Inc., 330 So. 2d 768 (1st DCA 1976)), dirty water (Encarnacion v. Lifemark Hospitals of Florida, 211 So. 3d 275 (3rd DCA 2017), and other substances.  The irony is that the evaluation that they are supposed to be making is whether there is any issue as to material fact.  But, in analyzing the substances down to the molecules, most of these cases seem to make factual determinations that should be within the sole province of a jury.  It seems inconsistent to say that there must be an absence of a material issue of fact and then spend considerable time factually picking apart, analyzing, and determining that a substances specific condition does or does not tend to prove constructive notice.  Going on a case by case basis and looking at each substance and how it may or may not serve as evidence of constructive notice is no different than the job a jury, in the end, must do.

Now, recently, on February 19, 2020, the Fourth DCA ruled upon a grape.  In Oliver v. Winn-Dixie Stores, (No. 4D19-291), the 4^th DCA held that a clear and dirty liquid with a red or purple speck in it that looked like it had been smeared upon the ground was not enough for Brandy Oliver to get to a jury.  They cited the absence of wheel tracks and footprints and found there to be no issue of material fact.  The 4^th DCA leaned upon the testimony of an employee that he passed by the area repeatedly and that the floor was clean and dry moments before the fall.  But, apparently, there was a video that was not part of the record.  And, this video, according the Plaintiff, tended to show he was not looking carefully.  Moreover, there was no discussion whatsoever of how the condition was created.

In the world of grocery store chains, there are many choices available to consumers. Although grocery stores provide the same service by selling food, what causes consumers to choose one store over another? There are many reasons, such as convenience, location, pricing, but the products offered are what distinguishes one store from another. Modern day society has grown in its awareness of nutrition and what ingredients we are feeding our bodies. With the increase in awareness, came the diversity in nutritional diets.

People have many different needs in order to satisfy their diet essentials. This could range from a strictly organic diet of ingredients harvested without pesticides and growth hormones, or even a simpler diet that does not have specific requirements. Where the problem lies, is that not all stores may offer the specific needs of all diets. Traditional grocery stores offer all essential products, but this may not cater to all consumers. That is why they have begun to offer more availability of organic products. Depending on the store, there may be more or less options for healthier food. Fresh produce is the general area of a store that will have options for regular and organic products. Although this can satisfy many consumer needs, it still would not be enough for the individuals searching for all organic products. The main difference between general grocery products and healthier options, is the pricing.

There are several stores that offer all organic options, but this comes with a higher price tag. It has become a commonality that in order to eat healthier, you will need to have a higher budget. That being the case, it may not be suitable for all consumers. This leads to people purchasing select products that are healthier, while purchasing general products to complete the remainder of their shopping list. Since not all stores offer the same availability of healthier products, consumers sometimes need to shop at different stores in order to satisfy their shopping needs. These differentiation are what inspired Lucky’s Market to be the first grocery chain to break the norm.

When it comes to home improvement and contractor supplies, the first name that comes to mind is the Home Depot. This company has dominated the market of home improvement superstores for nearly 30 years now and currently has over 2,200 locations across North America. In order to stay at the top of the market for so long, a company must make many business decisions to keep up with the times and consumer needs.

Home Depot Financials

Home Depot was founded in 1978 with its first locations being in the metro Atlanta area of Georgia. The company went public in 1981 and shortly thereafter, they began their venture outside of Georgia by opening 2 more locations in South Florida. Over the course of the next 8 years, Home Depot would increase its foothold on the home improvement market by opening more locations through acquisitions and conversions of smaller named companies in different regions of the country. By 1989 Home Depot had beat out Lowes as the largest home improvement superstore chain.

If you slip and fall in a parking lot in Florida, chances are that it may not be your fault. But you will need to speak with the best Florida parking lot accident lawyer you can call to find out for sure. At Wolfson & Leon, our parking lot accident attorneys have defended the rights of injured victims since 1963 and they are ready to help you too. Call them right now at 305-285-1115 for your free consultation to find out if some person or corporation might be responsible for your parking lot accident in Florida.

Hazardous Parking Lot Issues

Chances are you use a parking lot at least once a day, but you may not have considered just how dangerous they can be. There are of course the obvious issues that you need to watch out for, such as potholes. But there are other, less obvious issues that you need to be aware of.

In this day and age, robots are taking over more and more jobs. Some of the largest stores in the country are developing the technology to put robots in its stores. One of those stores is Walmart.

Walmart has recently been testing out using robots for tasks that people do not enjoy doing. It also has the added benefit of significantly cutting labor costs and being more efficient. The robots could be used to clean the floors, sort inventory, or stock items.

Currently, Walmart has been using robots as floor cleaners. The company expects to have these robots start out at 1,500 stores and then hopefully expand from there. Moreover, Walmart is expecting to add 600 conveyor belts to the stores. These conveyor belts will be able to automatically sort inventory. Walmart is also hoping to bring in 300 robots that will be able to check to see if shelves are running out of a particular item.