Slip and Fall at a Big Store in California: Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Lowe's

What you have to prove in California

A store in California is not an insurer of its customers’ safety, but it must use reasonable care to keep the store reasonably safe (Ortega v. Kmart Corp. (2001) 26 Cal.4th 1200, 1205). To hold the store responsible for a hazard it did not create, the customer generally has to show the store knew about it or should have known about it (id. at p. 1206).

The California Supreme Court held that proof the store did not inspect the area within a reasonable period of time is enough to let a jury infer the hazard was there long enough for the store to find and fix it (Ortega, at pp. 1203, 1212-1213). In a self-service store, ordinary care may require more frequent inspections (id. at p. 1205). California’s jury instructions say the same (CACI No. 1011), and when the store or its employee created the hazard, the customer does not need separate proof of notice (CACI No. 1012).

How long you have

Generally two years from the fall to file a lawsuit (Code of Civil Procedure 335.1); minors can have more time. If a public entity is responsible, for example for a city sidewalk or a city parking lot outside the store, a written claim generally must be presented within six months (Government Code 911.2). Your own carelessness reduces what you recover but does not bar it (Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) 13 Cal.3d 804).

The four chains in California

Why your case may end up in federal court

Walmart, Target, The Home Depot and Lowe’s are all incorporated and headquartered outside California, so they can move an injury case worth more than $75,000 from state court to federal court (28 U.S.C. 1332; 28 U.S.C. 1441). CourtListener’s free federal docket archive shows at least 626 personal-injury lawsuits against these four companies in California federal courts from January 2021 through October 2026, and at least 79% list removal from state court (CourtListener).

The company has 30 days after formal service of the complaint to remove the case (28 U.S.C. 1446(b); Murphy Bros. v. Michetti Pipe Stringing, 526 U.S. 344 (1999)), and a case can be sent back to state court on a timely motion or when the federal court lacks jurisdiction (28 U.S.C. 1447(c)). If, after removal, a plaintiff asks to add a local defendant such as a store manager, the court may deny it or allow it and send the case back (28 U.S.C. 1447(e)). Where and how the case is filed is a decision to make with a lawyer before the complaint goes out.

The evidence that disappears first

• Surveillance video of the aisle, the entrance or the parking lot, from before and after the fall.
• The incident report the manager filled out and any photos employees took.
• Floor inspection, “safety sweep” or “safety walk” records for that area and that day.
• Spill and cleanup records, and the name of the employee responsible for the area.
• For falling merchandise: how the product was stacked, the shelf height, and any stocking or overhead-storage policy.
• Names of employees and other customers who saw it.

How a store injury case works

1. Free review. We listen, look at your photos and the incident report number, and tell you whether there is a case.
2. Preservation. A written demand goes to the store and its insurer to keep the video, the incident report, the sweep or safety-walk logs and the names of employees on duty.
3. Medical care and records. We collect your records and bills; the amount and type of care drive the value of the claim.
4. The claim. Large retailers handle injury claims through their own claims staff or a claims administrator. Many cases resolve at this stage.
5. The lawsuit. If the claim does not resolve, we file. Expect the company to try to move the case to federal court, and expect a fight over where it belongs.
6. Discovery. We get the store’s written safety, inspection and stocking policies and question its person most knowledgeable about them under oath, then compare what the policy required with what happened that day.
7. Mediation or trial. Most cases settle; the ones that don’t are tried to a jury.

What you can recover

You can recover your medical bills (past and future), lost earnings and lost ability to earn, and compensation for pain, physical limits and loss of enjoyment of life. Common injuries in store falls include broken wrists and hips, knee and shoulder tears, back and neck injuries and head injuries; older shoppers are often hurt worse by the same fall.

California has no cap on damages in a store injury case; the MICRA limit applies only to medical malpractice (Civil Code 3333.2). Punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence of oppression, fraud or malice (Civil Code 3294).

Falls in the parking lot or on the sidewalk

Falls in the parking lot or on the sidewalk outside are handled differently. The store may not control the lot: a shopping-center landlord or a property manager often does, and a city or county may own the sidewalk, which brings shorter claim deadlines for a public entity. Photograph the spot and note the exact location so the right owner can be identified.

Real store-injury cases from California

These are other people’s cases, taken from public federal court records, not Beverly Law cases. The descriptions are the shoppers’ allegations and what the courts decided; an allegation is not proof.

What these cases show:

• Naming a local manager or employee can affect whether the case stays in state court, but the claim against that person has to be real.
• The amount you claim matters: a company that cannot show more than $75,000 is at stake cannot keep the case in federal court, and the 30 days to remove can start when medical bills are produced.
• Scooters, carts, cords and spilled food are the hazards that show up again and again.

Stores by city

Cities not linked have one or two of these stores; you will find each of them, with maps, on the chain’s page above.

What to do after a fall in a store

• Report the fall to a manager before you leave and ask for the incident report number.
• Photograph what you fell on, the area, any warning sign (or the lack of one) and your shoes and injuries.
• Get names and phone numbers of witnesses.
• Get medical care the same day and keep every record.
• Do not give a recorded statement to the store’s insurance company or sign anything before talking to a lawyer.
• Call a lawyer quickly so the store is asked in writing to keep the video.

Who handles your case

Michael Shemtoub founded Beverly Law in 2008 and has been licensed to practice law in California since 2007; he is also licensed in Washington. He earned his law degree at UC Hastings, is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California, and has tried cases to verdict. The firm handles premises cases against national retailers in state and federal court.

Common questions

Related pages

Texas · Washington · All store falls

Important: This page is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Beverly Law is not affiliated with Walmart, Target, The Home Depot or Lowe’s; store names are used only to identify where an injury happened. Store locations come from each retailer’s online store directory (Target, The Home Depot, Lowe’s) and from OpenStreetMap (Walmart, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), checked November 2026; confirm a store’s address with the retailer. Federal court counts are a floor from CourtListener’s RECAP archive, which does not hold every docket. Last reviewed: November 3, 2026.