My friend slipped on an icy, sloping sidewalk with enough speed to crash through the lobby window.

[qb]

The broken glass severed tendons and an artery and crushed a nerve in his wrist.
The building's owner wants him to pay to replace the window and blood-soaked carpet.
Am I wrong to say the owner is completely fucked in the head?
(I told my friend to contact a personal injury lawyer. This was not some kind of reckless stunt... he was merely trying to enter the building.)

[TrogL]

1. Most snow cities require you to maintain your entranceway

He should sue the building owner for not sanding and salting.

Check your local bylaws.

[Captain Hilts]

7. BINGO. nt

[ThomCat]

16. Exactly. The building is responsible because they had a

walkway so slippery that this could happen. Your friend should contact a lawyer and should sue.

That building shouldn't be demanding anything from him. His injuries are their fault. They should be paying him medical bills.

[pitohui]

2. the owner is trying to protect himself but yeah he's fucked in the head

if yr friend gives this dude any money it could be interpreted that he feels guilty/at fault

yr friend needs to contact a personal injury lawyer NOW and see if he's entitled to sue/countersue this fucktard -- it could be a case that the icy sidewalk should have been cleared and the owner is himself at fault and knows it -- NO ONE gets on your case and shits on you like somebody w. has a secret guilt

[raccoon]

20. This need to be shouted from the rooftops:

"NO ONE gets on your case and shits on you like somebody w. has a secret guilt"

[supernova]

3. The property owner is off his rocker

especially if he didn't put down sand or salt on the entrance to de-ice it. Your friend's tumble was waiting to happen.

Hope your friend heals quickly. Ouchie. :-(

Lawyer would be good, he can get the building owner to at least pay his medical bills from the accident.

[GreenPartyVoter]

4. OMG! He needs a lawyer ASAP. Someone dropped the ball on keeping that

sidewalk clear.

[RebelOne]

5. I slipped on the sidewalk on ice in front of a building where I was working

a temporary job. I got a lawyer and collected for pain and suffering.

[Haole Girl]

6. You gave good advice

Don't let the business owner push around your friend. Hope your friend heals quickly. :hug:

[dugaresa]

8. tell your friend to sign nothing and to get a lawyer

the building owner should be issuing him an apology and paying for his injuries plus pain/suffering and lost time off.

the owner is trying the "if i bully you, you will not sue me because you will assume this is your fault" response and that is where he is completely fucked in the head.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

9. I actually work for a personal injury atty

Your friend should contact a lawyer immediately. Depending on what state he's in, he's probably got a pretty good case.

[Blue_In_AK]

10. The owner is out of line.

I've worked in the legal biz for three decades. The person with the claim here is your friend. Maybe the owner thought he could scare your friend out of filing suit by striking first, but the proprietor is clearly liable for not maintaining his premises.

[Mojambo]

11. Your friend could OWN that building if he wants.

He should soak that owner for everything he owns simply for acting like a prick.

[mnhtnbb]

12. This is the reason building owners carry insurance. The owner

sounds like a cheapskate who doesn't want to make a claim on his insurance.

If I were your friend, I'd try to reason with the owner first before giving away
a % of any settlement to a personal injury lawyer.

[Orrex]

13. Agreed, because "a %" can easily mean 35% or 40%

I hope that the friend recovers quickly and fully!

[Wapsie B]

14. The owner must not want to clear ice and snow off the sidewalks and entrances either.

That's what really gets me. In the snow belt, clean off your sidewalks if you have a building. I don't care if it's an office building, a school or a church.

[distantearlywarning]

15. Holy shit!

I smell an expensive lawsuit, and it's not coming from the direction of the building owner.

The owner is probably threatening your friend with a lawsuit to try to scare him into admitting fault or taking the blame, because he knows that he's completely fucked if your friend gets his own attorney. (Which I absolutely think your friend should do, like tomorrow morning when the law office opens for business...)

[Odin2005]

17. The OWNER should be paying your friend, the ass!

:grr:

[dysfunctional press]

18. did the owner put that request in writing...?

juries love that kind of callous attitude.

[elleng]

19. Sounds like the property owner would be liable,

especially if they did anything like shovel/plow/sand the area, and they should be covered for such injuries.

[raccoon]

21. Your friend should contact a lawyer IMMEDIATELY, and sue the bastard. nt

[grace0418]

22. How dare your friend get blood on that poor man's carpet! I mean, really, the least

he could've done after breaking the man's window was quickly get up and bleed outside where it could be cleaned up more easily.

:sarcasm:, naturally

P.S. That building owner is a fuckhead. And while I'm not someone who things everyone should be suing everyone else, this dude brought karma down on himself IMHO.

[TommyO]

23. Hummina, hummina, wha?

Your friend was injured because the property owner neglected to remedy a dangerous situation and they want him to pay for their neglect?