Local office in Bakersfield, CA5100 California Ave, Suite 104Directions

Slip and fall in Bakersfield?Talk to a lawyer for free.

In a Bakersfield store, a key question is what the store knew, or should have known, about the hazard. On a sidewalk, City or Kern County ground decides where the six-month claim goes.

  • No fee unless we winWe only get paid when you get paid.
  • Zero upfront costYour consultation is free, with no obligation.
  • Hablamos españolNative Spanish speakers. No confusion. No delays.
  • Available 24/7We'll meet you at your home or hospital.
Get my free consultation
Call our Bakersfield office(661) 426-817924/7 line: (800) 985-9565

No attorney's fees unless we recover compensation. Clients may be responsible for case costs. Read the disclaimer

Downtown Bakersfield seen from above
They really fought for me and my case. Great law firm to work with.
Sandy M.Valero Law Group clientGoogle review

Results that speak.Millions won for injured clients.

We've won over $500 million in verdicts and settlements for our clients.

Recognized for excellence

Avvo Rating: Excellent, Top Rated Personal InjuryTop Rated by Super Lawyers
  • $6.25MPersonal injuryA confidential personal injury settlement.
  • $5MAuto accidentFor a husband and wife after the husband suffered a brachial plexus injury.
  • $2.34MAccident claimA win for a client injured in an accident.
  • $1.5MAuto accidentA win for a client injured in an auto accident.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes, and each case is different.

View all results

Here to protect your interests, not the store's

Stores and property owners have a team.You should have one too.

Stores, landlords and property managers have insurers with adjusters and lawyers, and the City and Kern County have their own claims staff, rules and deadlines. After a fall in a store on Rosedale Highway or in a parking lot off Stockdale Highway, an adjuster may call within days, and what you say about how you fell can shape the rest of your claim.

Before you sign anything, ask yourself:

  1. Was there a wet-floor sign or other warning, and did the store know about the hazard, or should it have?
  2. Was it City or Kern County property, like a sidewalk, where a six-month claim applies?
  3. Will the settlement cover your treatment and lost income months from now, not just today?

From one of our car accident cases

The insurer's best offer$410,000

What we won for our client$4.4M

A car accident that left our client with a neck injury. Most people would have taken the offer. We won more than ten times as much.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes, and each case is different.

Get my free case review
The Bakersfield sign arching over the road into town under a clear sky

Our office in Bakersfield

Local slip and fall lawyers,right here in Bakersfield.

Not every firm that advertises in Bakersfield has an office here. We do.

Our office is on California Avenue. Claims for falls on public property go to Truxtun Avenue, to the City Clerk or Kern County's Clerk of the Board, and we can prepare and file them for you. Come in, or we'll come to you anywhere in Kern and Tulare Counties.

Nearby officesPalmdaleFresnoWoodland Hills

Why choose Valero Law Group?

We champion every case,big and small.

Whether your case is worth $5,000 or $5 million, we bring the same skill, attention and determination to every client we represent.

So don't let the size of your case keep you from seeking justice: every injury deserves serious representation. Let us fight for the compensation you're owed while you focus on what matters most, your recovery.

They made me feel like a priority, and they put my needs first as a client.

IsabelValero Law Group client

400+five-star Google reviews

Real reviews fromour clients.

  • Samuel M. smiling in the Valero Law Group office with his $881,000 settlement check
    Samuel M.$881,000
  • Victoria M. smiling in front of the Valero Law Group logo wall with her $625,000 settlement check
    Victoria M.$625,000
  • Karina C. smiling in the Valero Law Group office with her $625,000 settlement check
    Karina C.$625,000
  • Angela M. smiling and pointing to her $625,000 settlement check
    Angela M.$625,000
  • Destiny H. smiling with her $500,000 settlement check
    Destiny H.$500,000
  • Javier P. smiling in the Valero Law Group office with his $375,000 settlement check
    Javier P.$375,000
I fell in a commercial establishment due to a wet floor that had no warning signs. I didn't know what to do or if I even had a case, but I decided to contact Valero on the recommendation of a family member, and it was the best decision.
Mia G.Google review
Read all 400+ of our reviews
Thank you to Kyle for helping me with my slip and fall.
Rashidat S.Google review
I fell and couldn't get up! Luckily Valero Law Group had my back, and I'd highly recommend this firm to anyone!
Roy H.Google review

What you can recover aftera slip and fall in California.

Whoever owned, leased, occupied or controlled the property, whether a store, a landlord, a property manager, the City or Kern County, can be held responsible for what the fall cost you.

Economic damages

The costs you can add up

  • Emergency care, surgery and hospital bills
  • Physical therapy and rehabilitation
  • Lost wages and lost earning capacity
  • Crutches, braces and other medical equipment

Non-economic damages

The harm that has no receipt

  • Pain and physical suffering
  • Scarring and disfigurement
  • Loss of companionship
  • Lost enjoyment of life
  • 6 monthsTo file a claim with the City or Kern CountyThe City's claim form says a claim “must be filed with the City Clerk … within six (6) months after the accident, event or incident occurred.” Kern County claims go to its Clerk of the Board at 1115 Truxtun Avenue.
  • 2 yearsTo sue a store or other private ownerAfter a fall in a store, a parking lot or an apartment complex, you generally have two years to file a lawsuit.
  • 80%What you keep if you were 20% at faultLooking at your phone when you fell doesn't end a claim: California's pure comparative fault rule reduces an award by your share of the fault instead of erasing it.

After a fall in Bakersfield,what comes next.

Photos, reports, the claim and its deadlines, explained.

Valero Law Group attorneys meeting around a conference table
  • Photograph the spot first
    Before anyone cleans or repairs it, photograph the spill, the crack or the broken step, close up and from a few steps back, with a coin, a ruler or your shoe for scale. A court can rule a small defect too minor to count, so the photo matters.
  • Ask for an incident report and names
    Ask the manager to write an incident report, and ask for a copy or the report number. Write down the names of the employees who helped you and of anyone who saw the fall. Say what happened, but don't guess about how you fell or how badly you're injured.
  • Ask for the video and sweep records quickly
    Many security systems record over old footage. Stores must make reasonable inspections, and the lack of a recent one can show a hazard was there long enough, so a lawyer can ask the store to keep its video and its inspection or sweep records.
  • Get checked, and keep your shoes
    See a doctor soon, even if the injury seems minor, and keep the shoes you were wearing. Wherever you're treated, from Kern Medical, the county's only Level II trauma center, to your own doctor, you have a right to copies of your medical and billing records.
  • City or Kern County?
    City claims go to the City Clerk, 1600 Truxtun Avenue. In Oildale, Rosedale, Lamont and other unincorporated areas, public property is usually the County's: claims go to the Clerk of the Board, 1115 Truxtun Avenue, 5th Floor. Both are usually due within six months, and the City's form itself says to make sure the claim is against the City and not another agency.
  • Report the hazard
    Call the City's Street Division at (661) 326-3111, weekdays from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., to report a hazardous sidewalk; freeways and ramps are Caltrans's, at (661) 391-3810. Earlier reports about the same spot can matter, because the City generally must have known about the hazard, or should have found it, in time to act.
A man and a boy in traditional Colombian hats and jerseys holding Valero Law Group signs at a community event

Al Barro Foundation: supporting over 400 orphans in Mexico

From the community, for the community.

Hablamos español.

We're a Hispanic-focused firm with native Spanish-speaking attorneys. We understand your family's needs, walk you through every step in your language, and fight to get you every dollar you deserve.

Organizations we support

Sponsor of the 2024 Share the Road Scholarship

Our community outreach
  • Al Barro Foundation
  • EUNIME por Tijuana, A.C.
…they speak excellent Spanish, know how to help, and look out for their clients' best interests.
Yesica H.Google review
Ver esta página en español

Organizations we support

Sponsor of the 2024 Share the Road Scholarship

Our community outreach
  • Al Barro Foundation
  • EUNIME por Tijuana, A.C.

Common questionsafter a Bakersfield slip and fall.

How long do I have after a slip and fall in Bakersfield?
Against a store, landlord or other private owner, you generally have two years to file a lawsuit. If the City, Kern County, a school district or another public agency owns the spot, a written claim is usually due within six months, and if it's rejected in writing, a lawsuit usually has to follow within six months of the notice. Call us early so no deadline slips by.
How do I file a claim against the City of Bakersfield?
It's filed with the City Clerk at City Hall, 1600 Truxtun Avenue, 1st Floor, by mail or in person, on the City's Liability Claim form. The form says a claim can be released as a public record, so we can prepare it to include what the law requires and keep medical details to what the form asks for. We can file it for you.
What if I fell in Oildale or another area outside city limits?
Parts of greater Bakersfield, like Oildale, Rosedale and Lamont, are unincorporated Kern County, not the City. A fall on public property there usually means a claim to the County, at its Clerk of the Board, 1115 Truxtun Avenue, 5th Floor. Not sure who owns the spot? We can find out.
Do I have a case if there was no wet-floor sign?
It can matter. California law asks whether the store knew, or should have known, about the hazard and failed to fix it, guard against it or warn people, so a missing warning is one of the failures it looks at. If an employee mopped or spilled something and left no sign, the store is treated as knowing about it.
I tripped on a broken sidewalk. Who is responsible?
It depends on who caused the problem and who controlled the sidewalk. California law makes property owners keep the sidewalk in front of their property in safe condition, and a city can be responsible for a dangerous condition of its property that its employee created, or that it knew or should have known about in time to fix it or warn people. So the City, the property owner or both may be responsible, and a lawyer can work out who. A claim to the City comes first.
Does a small crack count?
Not always. A court can decide that a defect was too minor to create a substantial risk of injury, looking at the surrounding circumstances. That's why photos with something for scale, taken before any repair, matter.
Do you have an office in Bakersfield?
Yes. Our office is at 5100 California Ave, Suite 104, Bakersfield, CA 93309. Come in if you like, or we'll come to you, at home or in the hospital. Call (800) 985-9565 any time, 24/7.
What does a slip and fall lawyer cost?
Nothing upfront. Your consultation is free, and no attorney's fees are owed unless we recover compensation for you. You may be responsible for case-related costs and expenses; we'll explain them before you sign.
Attorney Kyle Valero
Kyle ValeroAttorney, Valero Law Group

Our easy 3-stepcase review process.

We make getting legal help simple.

  1. Free consultationCall us 24/7 or fill out our form. We'll review your case at no cost.
  2. Review your caseOur experienced attorneys investigate and evaluate your case to build the strongest claim possible.
  3. Injury litigationWe fight for maximum compensation, in negotiation or in court.
Start my free case review

Don't wait. There are legal deadlines.

A Valero Law Group team member smiling beside a firm car with the VLG logo on the door

Have a question about a potential case?Talk to a Bakersfield slip and fall lawyer today.

Your consultation is always free, with no obligation. We're happy to answer any questions and walk you through your options. No pressure, just honest answers.

(661) 426-8179

24/7 line: (800) 985-9565

  • Available 24/7, including weekends
  • Hablamos español
  • Free and confidential, no obligation

Get your free case review

Free and confidential. Sending this form does not create an attorney-client relationship.

Thank you. We'll call you shortly.

If it's urgent, call us now at (661) 426-8179. We're available 24/7.

This is a design preview, so nothing was sent.

Slip and fall lawyers at our nearest offices

Other cases we handle in Bakersfield

Bakersfield Personal Injury Lawyer
(661) 426-8179Free review