Have you been harmed by a business? If so, you aren’t alone. Businesses, just like people, can be bad actors. A business can break an agreement or contract with you, fail to deliver the product or service you purchased, shipped a faulty product or worse. Businesses, also just like people can be held accountable legally when they cross a line. There is a significant difference however, when dealing with a lawsuit against a business; they often have lawyers on retainers and larger businesses, often employ full-time counsel to protect their interests. This raises the bar of difficulty and you can’t go it alone and expect to prevail.
So, where do you start?
The first thing you have to determine is whether or not you have the “Standing” or right to sue. This may seem absurd especially if you have a strong feeling that you’ve been harmed but nonetheless, standing is an essential first step. Standing, per the California Courts website is described as having the right to sue and means that you must have been directly affected by the matter for which you wish to sue. In other words, if you wish to sue because of a product defect, the defect must have affected you directly. If you sue for an injury that occurred at the business, it must be you that were injured and not a friend or associate that was with you and became injured. While this might seem obvious to you, remember that you are exploring filing a lawsuit against a business and the business will most likely have lawyers already on their payroll, specifically hired to anticipate these types of issues and will put up an aggressive battle.
You may have a legitimate product liability claim, but do not be surprised if when you to reach out to the business to raise your complaint that you get a sterile, aggressive, legal-eased letter in return advising that you must have misused the product, voiding any warranty and with the business skirting its responsibility. Similarly, you might have slipped and fallen on a business’ grounds and gotten hurt. Just like in the example of a product liability, do not be surprised when you get a letter back from the business advising you that there are signs posted at their facility advising any visitors that the business is not liable for any injury on the property, again skirting their responsibility.
So, where do you start if on simple, clear-cut issues like these examples, we are beat down by a corporate attorney who spends his entire day ensuring the business he represents is fully protected? What do you do if your situation is more complex and determining your standing is not clear cut? Bottom line is that if you believe that you have a legitimate claim against a business, going at them alone is a sure way to lose your claim, as you will be dealing with the business’ attorneys, mandating that you have your own.
Leiva Law Firm is here to help you with a team of dedicated and experienced attorneys that will help determine how to approach your case and get you the best outcome. You can contact us online or by calling us today at 818-519-4465 to get a case evaluation and protect your claim.
