What is required for a slip and fall case in Georgia?

When a customer slips and falls on the floor of a store due to a foreign substance like water, the liability of the store is based on the property owner’s superior knowledge of the defect. If the substance was just spilled from the cart in front of you, the property owner did not have time to discover it and therefore did not have superior knowledge to you. However, if the spill had been there for awhile and the store did not exercise reasonable care in cleaning it up, then they probably did have superior knowledge and the store might be liable. The injured person must show the property owner (1) had actual or constructive knowledge of the foreign substance and (2) that you did not know about the substance despite the exercise of ordinary care on your part. Property owners frequently ask courts to throw these types of cases out because of a lack of superior knowledge. Full and complete discovery including depositions are necessary in these cases to fight the motions that the defense will likely file.

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