Assaulted – Beaten Up by Store Employee Lawsuit Attorney

A pleasant shopping experience isn’t guaranteed, and we’ve all dealt with rude employees, long lines, and many other inconveniences. However, store owners have a legal duty to keep their customers safe from harm while they are on their premises. This includes being responsible for customers and visitors who are injured by one of their employees. If you’ve been assaulted by an employee while you were inside a store or on store premises, you must seek legal representation right away. Recovering from a physical assault can be a long process, especially if you’re suffering from mental trauma or find it difficult to perform your job duties. Most people cannot cover the costs of recovery without monetary compensation, which is where we can help. Contact us and speak to an experienced assault and battery attorney.

Common Injuries Resulting from an Assault

A physical assault victim can sustain a wide variety of injuries depending on how they were attacked, where the injury occurred, the duration of the attack, and various other factors. Here is a list of the most common injuries we see in personal injury lawsuits:

• Bruises
• Black eyes
• Broken bones
• Cuts
• Scratches
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Lost teeth
• Concussion
• Traumatic brain injury
• Damage to internal organs
• Partial or complete paralysis

If you are beaten up by a store employee, call 911 or the non-emergency police number depending on how badly you are hurt. You can also go to the police station, but it may be more helpful to have the police come to the scene of the incident. This way, they can talk to any witnesses and document evidence of the assault right after it happened. You will receive a copy of this information in a police report, which will serve as a critical piece of evidence in your lawsuit.

It at all possible, take pictures of your injuries while you wait for the police, or ask them to assist you. Some injuries, like bruises and cuts, will change over the time, so it’s best to capture the full extent of the injury right away. You should also take pictures of any property damage resulting from the assault to help stress the level of danger you were in.

Once you’ve talked to the police and received medical treatment, speak with a personal injury lawyer to find out about your legal options. This may be the last thing on your mind when you’re struggling with the pain and trauma of your assault. However, hospital visits and therapy sessions can quickly eat through your savings, so it’s essential to start a compensation claim right away.

Call Normandie Law Firm and speak to a lawyer who can help you file a lawsuit against the store.

Premise Liability

Even if you know you’re entitled to compensation, it may be tough to figure out who you should sue. In most assault cases, the one who’s liable for your injuries is the attacker. But what if you were attacked by a store employee while you were in the store, parking lot, or some other area of store property? In that case, the store may be liable for your injuries under the laws of premise liability.

Under California law, employers are “vicariously” liable if their employees commit an assault within the scope of his or her employment. A common example is a case where an employee and a customer get into a verbal altercation. If the situation escalates and the employee punches the customer, the store may be liable for the customer’s injuries. Stores can also be liable for injuries to visitors, like mail carriers and delivery drivers. For example, a delivery person parks a car in the store parking lot and is told to move the car by an employee. If the argument turns into a physical altercation, the store is liable because the employee was within the scope of their employment during the assault.

As you can imagine, store owners will do anything they can to avoid liability when someone is injured on their premises. They often blame the victim by saying the employee was acting in self-defense, or that the injury was caused by something else. Even if they agree to compensate the injured person, the offer is usually inadequate for the scope of the victim’s losses. These offers are normally made by the store’s insurance provider, whose goal is to pay you as little as possible and bury your case under the rug.

Normandie Law Firm will uphold your rights and fight for the full compensation you’re entitled to. Call us and speak with one of our Los Angeles personal injury attorneys.
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Stores That Are Liable for Employee Assaults

Here is a list of the most common stores where visitors may be assaulted by an employee:

• Shopping malls
• Department stores
• Fast food restaurants
• Cafes and Breweries
• Casual dining restaurants
• Grocery stores/ supermarkets
• Bars and nightclubs
• Hair Salons/ Barber Shops
• Office buildings
• Convenience stores
• Big box stores (Walmart, Target, etc.)
• Drug Stores
• Specialty stores (toy stores, pet stores, electronics stores, etc.)

There injuries typically involve employee and customer disputes. However, many visitors, including truck drivers and food delivery workers may be assaulted while delivering to a place of employment. What matters is that you had a reason to be on the premises, and therefore, had an expectation of safety while you were there. Again, employer liability doesn’t mean that the store was directly responsible for the assault. Rather, the store is “vicariously” responsible if the employee beat you up while they were within the scope of their job duties.

Going after the employer is critical to recovering enough compensation for your losses. If you think about it, an individual employee isn’t likely to have much money. That limits what you can sue them for, so the bigger and more entities you can sue, the greater your chance of receiving compensation. Some people feel guilty about going after the store, but it’s unfair that a victim should go broke or skip out on treatments they can’t afford. That’s why the law entitles you to seek damages from all responsible parties. These damages cover different kinds of economic and emotional losses, which we will go over in the next section.

Compensation in a Lawsuit if You Are Assaulted by a Store Employee

As a victim of physical assault by a store employee, you can recover damages for the following losses:

• Medical bills for the cost of care associated with the assault, from the time of the incident and into the future.
• Pain and suffering to deal with PTSD, anxiety, and other forms of emotional trauma.
• Lost wages from job loss or time off from work.

Depending on the degree of injury, you may be able to seek damages for loss of enjoyment of life. This refers to the way a serious injury takes away from the quality of one’s life. For example, a victim who suffers a spinal cord injury or traumatic brain damage may have trouble bathing, walking, and many other basic, but essential tasks. They may also lose the ability to participate in hobbies like sports and playing an instrument, which they enjoyed prior to the assault. To prove a case for loss of enjoyment, you will need to show that you regularly engaged in certain activities prior to your injuries. Then, you must prove that you can no longer do those things because of the harm you suffered during the assault.

There is also a type of compensation known as punitive damages. This amount is awarded on top of a settlement package when the defendant’s actions cause severe levels of harm to the victim. Stores in California can be sued for punitive damages in premise liability cases, but it’s very difficult to win this form of compensation. For one thing, punitive damages are meant as punishment for intentional conduct. So you would have to prove that the liable entity deliberately ignored or caused a situation that led to your injury, or should have known you would be injured. In the case of an employee beating up a customer, it’s challenging to prove that a store’s negligence put the customer in harm’s way.

However, that does not mean you should give up on the idea of punitive damages. Our lawyers have the experience to guide you in this area, as well as any other compensation that you’re eligible for. Speak to a California store lawsuit attorney for more information.

Statute of Limitations

We’ve impressed upon you the need to speak with a lawyer right away, and there’s an important reason why. In California, you have two years from the date of your injuries to sue a store for employee assault. Many victims hear of this and think they have plenty of time. But the days go by very quickly when you’re going to the doctor’s, physical therapy, and whatever else is needed for your recovery. At the same time, you may be stressing about your finances because you’re unable to work. Before you know it, those two years have gone by and you are unable to sue the store for damages.

There are cases where an extension may be granted. For example, if you were a minor at the time of the assault or you were physically/ mentally incapacitated following the injury. You could also be given more time if the injury did not manifest itself until a later time, such as an injury that did not seem serious at the time of the incident. However, many victims do not qualify for these exemptions, so it’s best to act immediately if you have been beaten up by a store employee.

To start your claim for compensation, call Normandie Law Firm and speak with one of our knowledgeable attorneys.

Average Case Value

This is one of the most pressing questions for clients when they come to see us. Some of them have never filed a lawsuit before, while others are working with a lawyer but are not satisfied with their services. Either way, there is no universal settlement amount that applies to each case. Some factors that will affect the amount you receive are:

• How serious are your injuries?
• Will these injuries affect your well-being for the rest of your life?
• What kinds of evidence do you have to support your claim?

As a general rule, assault cases at stores or hotels are worth over $100,000. Depending on the severity of your injuries, we may be able to ask for punitive damages of $250,000 or more. However, it all depends on the type of evidence you have. Lawsuits without ample proof could settle for less than $50,000, which is why it’s essential to take pictures, get a police report, and any other documentation of the incident.

It’s important to note that these amounts are based on the average of our previous cases and do not dictate what you could receive in your own settlement. For that, you would need to come in for a consultation so that we can hear your story and determine which types of compensation apply to you. This is extremely important since asking for damages you are not entitle to can delay you case or cause it to be dismissed outright. We can also help you file your claim in a timely manner so that you can recover your losses as quickly as possible.

Choosing Normandie

The law is clearly on your side if you have been beaten up by a store employee. Yet, so many victims fail to recover their losses while businesses and perpetrators get away with their crimes. Sadly, many of these victims wait to speak to an attorney, or try to file a lawsuit on their own. But going after a business for damages is a complicated process, and even the slightest error can sabotage your case. That’s why it’s in your best interest to work with the experienced assault and battery lawyers of Normandie Law Firm.

As for why people file lawsuits without help from an attorney, cost is usually the biggest factor. We absolutely agree, which is why we offer a Zero fee guarantee. Whether you just come in for legal advice or choose to file a lawsuit, you will never be charged for any of our services. All the work we do for your lawsuit will be paid for by the store once we win your case. That means if we don’t win your case, we walk away with nothing and you are still never charged for our services. We do this because victims of assault and battery should not have to pay in order to recover the damages they’re legally entitled to.

Our Zero fee policy applies to second opinions as well. Are you currently working with a lawyer you’re not happy with? Have you received a settlement calculation from another law firm but feel that it’s too low? We can help with that as well during a free, no-obligations consultation. Our lawyers have been winning store employee assault cases for many years, so we know if another lawyers isn’t being straight with you. If you’re wondering whether you’re getting the attention and honesty you deserve from your attorney, please call us and schedule a free review of your case.

The lawyers of Normandie look forward to meeting you and helping you in your journey to recovery.

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