What Is Premises Liability?

If you get hurt on someone else’s property, who’s responsible? It depends on how you were injured, and whether the acts of a tenant or property owner were negligent—that general area of the law is often referred to as “premises liability.” If you’ve been the victim of property owner negligence in Santa Rosa, CA, be sure to call a personal injury lawyer right away. They can help you recover damages for any physical, emotional or financial injuries you suffered.

What is negligence?
The legal definition of negligence is when a person had a duty to exercise reasonable care, failed to do so and that failure caused harm to another person. Each element of that definition must be met before a court can award damages to the injured party. So, for example, if your landlord failed to exercise their reasonable duty of care in fixing the front door lock, but nothing happened as a result, you probably wouldn’t be able to sue them for negligence.

The “duty of care” element is often hotly debated in negligence cases. Many negligence claims hinge on whether a person had that duty and fulfilled it. This is especially true in premises liability negligence claims, where defendants will often claim that a person is responsible for their own injuries.

Who’s responsible if I get hurt on someone else’s property?
Premises liability cases require the plaintiff to prove that they suffered damages as a result of a defendant (usually a tenant or a property owner) failing to keep a property in a reasonably safe condition. Not every injury on another person’s property will count, as it isn’t enough merely to prove that a condition on another’s property caused injury—proving that the defendant failed to properly observe their duty is key. Common types of premises liability cases include slip and fall incidents, dog bites, and defective conditions on a residential or commercial property.

Premises liability laws and precedent vary by state, so it’s important that you talk with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible—if you have a case, you’ll need to file it before the statute of limitations runs out.

Premises liability lawyers in Santa Rosa, CA
When you have a premises liability case in Santa Rosa, CA, you need an experienced attorney to help recover damages. Call the Law Offices of Max G. Arnold, Inc. to get help from a skilled personal injury lawyer. We’ll fight to recover damages for your injury. With 35 years of experience in personal injury cases, we’re confident we can help. Call us today for a free case evaluation. We look forward to learning more about your situation.

Categorised in: Personal Injury Lawyer