Spokane’s snow clearing ordinance sets a clear expectation for property owners, but violating it doesn’t automatically mean they’re liable for a fall. Spokane Municipal Code Section 12.02.010 requires owners and occupants to keep sidewalk areas adjoining their property, including corners, clear of snow and ice. Whether that obligation translates into legal responsibility after a winter injury depends on several additional factors. The evidence that matters most often disappears before anyone thinks to look for it.
Since 1980, Maxey Law Office has served people facing difficult legal issues in Spokane and surrounding communities. We know that a fall claim often turns on details that vanish quickly after the snow melts or someone else clears the walkway.
Who Must Clear a Spokane Sidewalk
Under Section 12.02.010, owners and occupants must keep the sidewalk adjoining their property free and clear of snow and ice accumulation. The City also asks residents to clear a 36-inch pedestrian path by 9 a.m. after a snowfall. Snow can’t be placed where it creates another hazard. A mound across a curb ramp, for example, or a pile that forces pedestrians into traffic. A narrow, cleared strip may still be inadequate if packed snow, ice ridges, or runoff make it genuinely unsafe to use.
An ordinance violation is relevant evidence, but it doesn’t automatically establish liability. A civil claim also requires proof that the condition caused the injury and that the responsible party had a legal duty and a reasonable opportunity to address it.
When an Unshoveled Sidewalk May Support a Claim
Premises liability governs unsafe conditions on property. In winter cases, the question usually isn’t just whether ice existed. It’s whether the condition was unreasonably dangerous and whether someone responsible for the area should have corrected or warned about it.
Natural Snow & Ice
Washington applies the same reasonable care standard to snow and ice as it does to any other dangerous property condition. Unlike some states, Washington doesn’t immunize property owners simply because snow or ice accumulated naturally. The question is whether the responsible party knew or should have known the condition posed an unreasonable risk of harm and failed to take reasonable steps to address it. That analysis can shift when packed snow creates deep ruts, ice forms in a concealed depression, or a walkway becomes impassable.
Created or Aggravated Hazards
Human activity can change the picture significantly. Water discharged from a downspout onto a sidewalk may freeze repeatedly; snow piled in the walking path may force pedestrians into traffic; incomplete shoveling may leave a slick, irregular route that’s more dangerous than the surrounding snowfall. In those situations, the source, shape, and duration of the hazard often matter more than whether the ice formed “naturally.”
Notice & Time to Respond
Actual notice means the responsible party knew about the dangerous condition. Constructive notice means it existed long enough, or was obvious enough, that a reasonable inspection should have revealed it. Proving either can depend on photos, weather records, witness accounts, maintenance logs, and evidence of how long the snow or ice had been present.
Responsibility may involve a property owner, occupant, business, landlord, snow removal contractor, or another party with control over the walkway. A careful review looks at who controlled the area, who agreed to maintain it, and what each party knew.
Private Property & Public Sidewalk Claims Aren’t the Same
A sidewalk beside a private home or business involves different facts and procedures than one controlled by the City of Spokane, Spokane County, or another government body. An adjacent owner may have a snow clearing obligation even when the public owns the underlying sidewalk. That doesn’t automatically make either the owner or the government legally responsible for every injury.
Claims against public entities can require a Washington tort claim, which is a formal notice process that must be completed before filing a lawsuit. Because deadlines and procedural requirements can affect these cases, an injured person shouldn’t treat a government-related fall like an ordinary dispute with a private property owner.
Spokane 311 provides a practical way to report uncleared snow and ice through MySpokane 311. A report can alert the City to an ongoing hazard and may create a record of the concern, but it isn’t proof that any particular party is liable for a prior injury. Save confirmation numbers, screenshots, dates, and descriptions from any report you submit.
Evidence to Gather After a Winter Sidewalk Fall
Winter conditions change fast. Sun, foot traffic, additional snowfall, salt, and a shovel can alter a sidewalk within hours, so the most useful evidence is the kind that records the scene before anything changes.
Useful evidence to preserve:
- Scene Photos & Video: Capture the ice or snow, the full sidewalk route, nearby drainage, slope, lighting, snowbanks, footprints, and any cleared or untreated areas.
- Location Details: Record the street address, closest intersection, side of the street, and the precise spot where the fall occurred.
- Timing Information: Note the time of the fall, recent snowfall, thawing and refreezing conditions, and how long the hazard appeared to have been present.
- Witness Information: Get names and contact details for anyone who saw the fall, observed the sidewalk earlier, or knew of prior complaints.
- Reports & Communications: Keep incident reports, 311 submissions, messages to a property owner or manager, and any responses received.
- Footwear & Clothing: Preserve the shoes and clothing worn during the fall rather than cleaning, repairing, or discarding them.
Medical documentation is equally important. Prompt records connect the fall to the injury, identify treatment needs, and show how symptoms developed over time. Keep bills, discharge instructions, therapy records, prescriptions, and work loss documentation, along with a written account of what happened while the details are still fresh.
Washington also uses comparative fault, meaning responsibility can be divided among more than one party. An insurer may point to footwear, visibility, an alternate route, or your actions before the fall. That doesn’t end the inquiry, but it makes accurate photographs and a detailed account especially important.
What to Do After a Spokane Sidewalk Injury
Get medical care, particularly for a head injury, severe pain, numbness, inability to bear weight, or symptoms that worsen after the fall. If returning to the scene isn’t safe, ask a companion or witness to photograph it instead.
Don’t make definitive statements about fault before the location, condition, control of the property, notice, and medical consequences have been reviewed. A report can be factual without speculating about legal responsibility: identify where the fall happened, describe the snow or ice, state the time, and note any visible features such as runoff or uneven packed snow.
Preserve what you have, even if it seems minor. A photo taken from the wrong angle may still show a snowbank, drainage source, or lack of a cleared path. A witness who didn’t see the fall may still be able to explain that the sidewalk had been uncleared for days.
The Ordinance Is a Starting Point, Not an Answer
Spokane’s sidewalk clearing requirement establishes a clear expectation for owners and occupants, but it isn’t an automatic path to liability. The condition of the walkway, how it formed, who controlled it, what notice existed, and the injuries that resulted all shape whether a viable claim exists.
If you were hurt on an icy or unshoveled sidewalk, preserve the evidence before it disappears. Maxey Law Office can discuss the specific location, condition, and injuries involved in your situation. Call us at (509) 652-3330.