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Knowledge, experience, and dedication have brought the lawyers of The Epstein Law Firm to the forefront of their profession. From personal injury to civil litigation, they have built a strong record of success in achieving justice for their clients.
Our practice is diverse and well-established. Recognizing that every case is unique, we always begin by listening to you.
The Epstein Law Firm, P.A. has been successfully representing clients throughout New Jersey since 1973
A fall happens in a second, but the consequences can last for years. One patch of black ice outside an apartment building, one freshly mopped supermarket floor with no warning sign, one broken step in a stairwell — and a Passaic resident is facing surgery, months of physical therapy, missed paychecks, and a property owner who insists the accident was not their fault. If you were hurt in a fall on someone else’s property in Passaic, you do not have to sort out the legal and insurance issues on your own.
The Epstein Law Firm represents people injured in slip and fall and trip and fall accidents throughout Passaic and Passaic County. Our office is in Rochelle Park, a short drive from Passaic, and our attorneys appear regularly in the Passaic County Superior Court in Paterson, where these cases are filed. We investigate how and why the fall happened, identify everyone responsible for the dangerous condition, and pursue the full compensation New Jersey law allows.
This page explains where falls happen in Passaic, what New Jersey premises liability law requires you to prove, the special 90-day deadline that applies when the property is public, and the steps that protect your claim. When you are ready to talk about your own fall, call us at (201) 231-7847 for a free consultation.
Passaic is one of the most densely populated cities in New Jersey, and that density shapes its fall risks. Thousands of residents live in multi-family apartment buildings, shop along busy commercial corridors, and walk to buses, schools, and houses of worship. The conditions that cause serious falls here are the ones our premises liability lawyers see again and again:
Wherever your fall happened, the legal question is the same: did the owner or occupier of the property fail to keep it reasonably safe, or fail to warn you about a danger they knew about — or should have discovered? Our personal injury team answers that question with evidence, not assumptions.
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Slip and fall legal help
The Epstein Law Firm can review your slip and fall claim and explain the evidence, deadlines, and next steps that may apply.
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A slip and fall claim is a negligence claim. To recover compensation in New Jersey, you generally must prove four things: the property owner owed you a duty of care, the owner breached that duty, the breach caused your fall, and you suffered real damages. The duty an owner owes depends on why you were on the property. Customers, tenants, delivery drivers, and other invited visitors are owed the highest duty: owners must inspect their property, fix dangerous conditions, and warn visitors about hazards they cannot fix in time. Social guests are owed a slightly narrower duty, and even trespassers are protected against certain known, hidden dangers.
The hardest element in most fall cases is notice — proof that the owner knew about the dangerous condition, or that it existed long enough that the owner should have discovered it through reasonable inspections. A store that leaves a spill in an aisle for an hour while employees walk past it has constructive notice of the hazard. A landlord who ignores tenants’ complaints about a broken stair rail has actual notice. Our investigation focuses on building this proof: inspection logs, cleaning schedules, surveillance video, incident reports, prior complaints, and maintenance records.
One New Jersey doctrine deserves special attention because it applies to so many Passaic falls: the mode-of-operation rule. When a business’s way of operating creates a regular risk of a hazard — customers serving themselves produce, carrying drinks, or handling merchandise, for example — an injured customer does not have to prove the business had notice of the specific spill or item that caused the fall. The risk itself is foreseeable, and the burden shifts in the customer’s favor. The rule frequently applies in supermarkets, fast-food restaurants, and self-service stores.
Property owners and their insurers routinely argue that the injured person “should have been watching where they were going.” New Jersey’s comparative negligence law, N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1, allows you to recover as long as your share of fault is not greater than the fault of the people you are suing. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault — so if you were 20 percent responsible, you recover 80 percent of your damages. Do not assume a fall was “your fault” and give up; that judgment belongs to the evidence, and insurers exaggerate it because it saves them money.
New Jersey gives you two years from the date of the fall to file a personal injury lawsuit, under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2. That sounds generous, but evidence in fall cases disappears fast — video is overwritten, hazards are repaired, and witnesses move on. Falls on public property carry a far shorter deadline, covered next. Either way, the sooner an attorney can inspect the scene and preserve the evidence, the stronger the claim.
If your fall happened on property owned by a public entity — a City of Passaic sidewalk or municipal building, a Passaic Board of Education school, a county facility, or an NJ Transit location — the New Jersey Tort Claims Act controls your case, and the clock runs much faster. Under N.J.S.A. 59:8-8, you must file a formal notice of claim with the public entity within 90 days of the fall. Miss that deadline and you can lose the right to sue at all, even though the general statute of limitations is two years. Courts grant late notices only in narrow circumstances, so treat 90 days as a hard deadline.
Tort Claims Act cases also carry extra proof requirements. You must show the property was in a dangerous condition, that the condition created a reasonably foreseeable risk of the kind of injury you suffered, and that the public entity had notice of the condition and failed to act — or that its own employee created it. Recovery against a public entity is also subject to the Act’s rules on pain-and-suffering damages. These cases are winnable, and our firm handles them, but they punish delay. If there is any chance your fall involved public property, contact a lawyer immediately.
The first hours and days after a fall shape both your recovery and your claim. These steps protect both:
A serious fall can cost far more than the emergency room bill. New Jersey law allows injured people to pursue compensation for the full measure of their losses, including:
Insurers for property owners are quick with early, low offers — especially before the full extent of an injury is known. Accepting one closes the claim forever. Our job is to document the complete picture, present and future, before any settlement is discussed. You can see the scale of outcomes our firm has achieved on our verdicts and settlements page.
The Epstein Law Firm can review the evidence, insurance issues, and next steps that may matter in your slip and fall claim.
Many Passaic falls happen on the job — in warehouses, restaurants, retail stockrooms, hospitals, and construction sites. A work-related fall usually opens a workers’ compensation claim, which pays medical bills and a portion of lost wages regardless of who was at fault. But workers’ comp is not always the whole story. If someone other than your employer caused the dangerous condition — a cleaning contractor who left a floor wet, a landlord who let a stairwell deteriorate, a delivery company that stacked cargo in a walkway — you may also have a third-party personal injury claim for full damages, including pain and suffering, which workers’ comp does not pay. Our firm evaluates both tracks on every workplace fall, because leaving the third-party claim unexamined leaves real money on the table.
Fall cases are won on evidence gathered early. When The Epstein Law Firm takes a Passaic premises case, we move quickly to:
If your fall happened just outside Passaic, the same principles apply — see our page for neighboring Haledon slip and fall claims and our broader Belleville slip and fall practice for how these cases differ across town lines.
The Epstein Law Firm has represented injured New Jersey clients for decades from our Rochelle Park office, and the firm’s work has drawn recognition at the state and national level. Michael J. Epstein was selected to the New Jersey Super Lawyers Top 100 list for 2026, a distinction reserved for the highest-rated attorneys among those selected to Super Lawyers in the state, and he holds an AV Preeminent peer-review rating from Martindale-Hubbell. The firm’s verdicts and settlements have also been recognized in TopVerdict’s rankings, including the Number 1 Medical Malpractice Settlement in New Jersey in 2024 and a Top 10 New Jersey Personal Injury Settlement ranking that year. See the firm’s post on Michael Epstein’s 2026 Personal Injury Lawyer of the Year recognition.
Recognition matters because insurance companies keep score. Carriers know which firms prepare cases for trial and which firms settle everything quickly, and they price their offers accordingly. When a Passaic property owner’s insurer sees a firm with a documented record of substantial verdicts and settlements, the negotiation starts from a different place.
Our attorneys have recovered substantial verdicts and settlements for injured clients across New Jersey. Results in premises and negligent-care cases handled by our firm include:
Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. What they do show is the level of preparation and persistence our firm brings to serious injury claims. Read more about our case results, or call (201) 231-7847 to talk about what your own claim may involve.
Client reviews describe the responsiveness and care our team aims to deliver in every case:
“Very happy with our experience with The Epstein Law Firm! Michael Epstein did everything possible to ensure we got the best possible outcome. He was there during a very difficult time in our lives when our daughter was injured.” — Courtney, Google review
“I not only recommend attorney Michael Epstein and his firm, but I guarantee once you have used his services you too will look no further. Michael responds in an extremely timely matter, he is a very knowledgeable and trustworthy person. There is no other attorney that will work as hard for you.” — Mike, Google review
Read more from our clients on our Google reviews for the Rochelle Park office.
Tell The Epstein Law Firm what happened and get clear guidance about your injury claim and legal options.
Recognition applies to the named attorneys and selection years. See the linked profiles for details.
No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey. Rating methodology
Below are answers to common questions about slip and fall accident claims in Passaic, New Jersey. This information is general and not legal advice — contact our office for guidance about your specific situation.
New Jersey’s statute of limitations for personal injury, N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2, gives you two years from the date of the fall to file a lawsuit against a private property owner. If you miss that deadline, the court will almost always dismiss the case, no matter how strong the claim is.
Two exceptions demand faster action. Falls on public property require a Tort Claims notice within 90 days, and claims for injured children follow different timing rules. Because evidence in fall cases disappears quickly, most people are better served by starting the process within weeks, not years.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 – two-year limitations period (New Jersey Legislature); New Jersey Courts – Civil Division overview
Falls on property owned by the City of Passaic, Passaic County, a public school, or another government entity are governed by the New Jersey Tort Claims Act. The Act requires you to file a formal notice of claim with the entity within 90 days of the fall under N.J.S.A. 59:8-8 — far sooner than the two-year deadline for private owners.
You must also prove the property was in a dangerous condition and that the entity knew about it and failed to act, or that its employee created the condition. These cases are very winnable with the right help, but the 90-day notice is unforgiving, so contact a lawyer immediately if a public sidewalk, building, or school may be involved.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 59:8-8 – 90-day notice of claim (New Jersey Legislature); N.J.S.A. 59:4-2 – dangerous condition liability (New Jersey Legislature)
In most cases you must prove the owner had notice of the dangerous condition — either actual notice, meaning they knew about it, or constructive notice, meaning it existed long enough that reasonable inspections would have found it. Cleaning logs, inspection records, and surveillance video often supply that proof.
New Jersey’s mode-of-operation rule is the major exception. When a business’s self-service way of operating makes a hazard foreseeable — produce aisles, drink stations, self-serve merchandise — you do not have to prove notice of the specific item or spill. This rule helps many supermarket and restaurant fall victims in Passaic.
Sources: OSHA – walking and working surfaces standards; New Jersey Courts – Civil Division overview
You can still recover. New Jersey follows a modified comparative negligence rule under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1: your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault, and you are barred only if your fault is greater than the combined fault of the defendants.
Property owners and insurers raise the victim’s fault in nearly every fall case — footwear, phone use, lighting, eyesight. Treat those arguments as negotiation tactics, not verdicts. An experienced attorney tests them against the evidence, including whether the hazard was visible at all from where you fell.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1 – comparative negligence (New Jersey Legislature); New Jersey Courts – Civil Division overview
A New Jersey slip and fall claim can include past and future medical expenses, lost wages and reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, and out-of-pocket costs the injury causes. Falls that fracture hips, damage joints, or injure the head or spine often justify substantial claims because the treatment and life changes are substantial.
The value of any case depends on the severity of the injury, the clarity of the owner’s fault, and the insurance available. Beware of early settlement offers made before your doctors can say what your recovery will look like — accepting one ends the claim permanently.
Sources: National Institute on Aging – falls and fractures in older adults; New Jersey Courts – Civil Division overview
Yes. Adrenaline masks pain, and several serious fall injuries — concussions, internal injuries, hairline fractures, and soft-tissue damage that stiffens over days — are not obvious at the scene. Older adults face particular risk: falls are the leading cause of injury death for Americans over 65, and hip fractures often begin as “just a fall.”
Prompt treatment also protects your claim. Medical records created near the date of the fall document the injury and connect it to the accident, which is exactly the evidence insurers look for when they evaluate a case.
Sources: National Institute on Aging – falls and fall prevention; CDC – facts and statistics about older adult falls
At The Epstein Law Firm, slip and fall consultations are free, and cases are handled on a contingency fee: you pay no legal fee unless we recover compensation for you. The fee is a percentage of the recovery, set by New Jersey’s court rules for personal injury matters, and it is explained in writing before you sign anything.
Contingency representation means the firm advances the costs of investigation, records, and experts, and our interests are aligned with yours — we do better only when you do better. Ask any lawyer you interview exactly how their fee works; you should never have to guess.
Sources: New Jersey Courts – Rules of Court (including contingency fee rules); N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 – two-year limitations period (New Jersey Legislature)
Often, yes. Landlords in New Jersey must keep common areas — stairs, handrails, hallways, laundry rooms, entrances, and sidewalks they control — in reasonably safe condition, and they must respond to known hazards and tenant complaints within a reasonable time. A landlord who ignores a broken stair or a dead hallway light can be liable for the resulting fall.
Document everything: photograph the condition, keep copies of any complaints you made, and note whether other tenants reported the same problem. Prior complaints are powerful evidence of notice. If the fall happened inside your own unit, different rules may apply, so describe the location carefully when you call.
Sources: New Jersey Courts – landlord and tenant information; N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 – two-year limitations period (New Jersey Legislature)
Timelines vary. A well-documented claim against a clearly negligent owner can settle within months. Cases that require a lawsuit, extensive medical treatment, or a dispute about fault can take a year or more, and cases that go to trial in Passaic County Superior Court take longer still.
The biggest driver is your medical course: settling before your doctors understand your long-term prognosis risks undervaluing the claim. Our firm pushes cases forward aggressively — early investigation, early demands — while timing settlement to your treatment, not the insurer’s convenience.
Sources: New Jersey Courts – Civil Division overview; N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 – two-year limitations period (New Jersey Legislature)
Photographs and video of the exact condition that caused the fall are the single most valuable evidence, because hazards get cleaned, repaired, and plowed quickly. Close behind are the incident report, witness names, the property’s inspection and cleaning logs, and your medical records from the first days after the fall.
Preserve what you can: the shoes and clothing you wore, any photographs from the scene, and notes about who you spoke with. Then let your lawyer demand the rest — especially surveillance video, which businesses routinely overwrite within days or weeks unless they receive a preservation demand.
Sources: OSHA – walking and working surfaces standards; National Weather Service – winter weather safety
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340 West Passaic Street Rochelle Park, NJ 07662
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560 Sylvan Avenue, Suite 1000-A Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 (By Appointment Only)
201-734-3763
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18-20 Lackawanna Plaza, Suite 200 Montclair, NJ 07042 (By Appointment Only)
973-381-8410
