Under certain circumstances, a property owner may be responsible for injuries you suffer. Premises liability is the area of law addressing these injuries. An experienced attorney determines if a property owner or other party is liable for the harm that befell you. The attorney then seeks maximum compensation on your behalf.
What is Premises Liability?
“Premises liability” is a legal term. It is most often applied to personal injury cases. Premises liability is a concept that is relevant if your injury was caused by unsafe or inadequately maintained properties or premises.
It takes an experienced attorney to apply this legal concept. Your case won’t rise to the standard of premises liability simply because you were injured at someone else’s house or at a shop. Other elements must be proven, such as showing that the unsafe conditions should have been addressed and weren’t. Your lawyer must also show your relationship to the property, and thereby prove that the property owner or other responsible party owed you a duty of care while you were present.
Trespassers who were injured will not be able to file a premises liability lawsuit. You must have been present lawfully. An attorney can determine if you are eligible.
Common Premises Liability Cases
Examples of common lawsuits include:
- Slip and fall
- Negligent security
- Wet floors
- Uneven flooring
- Flooring or sidewalks in disrepair
- Broken hand railings
- Inadequate lighting
- Injuries at construction sites or other work sites
- Dangerous stairways or stairs in disrepair
- Assault
- Pool drownings
- Pool drain injuries
- Injuries at hotels, casinos, theme parks, etc.
Of course, it’s not always someone’s fault when you get hurt outside of your home. It could be an understandable maintenance issue that is being addressed. It could be a result of bad weather. It could have occurred before the responsible party had a reasonable amount of time to respond to the problem or unsafe conditions. That’s why it takes an experienced attorney to determine if liability is present. If you try to go it alone, you may have difficulty dealing with insurance companies and other involved parties. Having a competent attorney on your side – one who knows local building codes, laws and ordinances – means the insurance company will have to negotiate with the attorney.
Catastrophic Injuries
Because premises liability often involves trips, falls, objects falling onto you and other serious trauma, the injuries can be really serious:
- Broken bones
- Scars
- Disfigurement
- Broken or dislodged teeth
- Spinal cord injuries
- Back, neck and shoulder injuries
- Torn ligaments
- Soft tissue injuries
- Internal injuries
- Brain and head injuries
Costs of treating the injuries can be astronomical. You could require future treatment, as well as physical rehabilitation and other expenses. All of these costs ought to be accounted for in a claim handled by an experienced attorney.
Compensation Possible in Your Case
The lawsuit should seek maximum compensatory damages for each and every way your life has been impacted. Talk to your attorney about how much the injury is costing you, as well as how it has affected you on a more personal level. In the event of successful monetary recovery, compensation may be awarded for:
- Emergency room bills
- Hospital bills
- Bills for medical treatment, current and future
- Loss of wages
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional trauma
- Mental anguish
- Diminished earning capacity
- Job re-training
- Reduced quality of life
The attorney first wants to get to know you so they can move forward with a claim, with confidence that they can accurately demonstrate to insurance companies exactly how seriously you were injured. Your attorney will fight for what is in your best interest.
Determining if You are Eligible to Pursue Compensation
The only way to know if you have a case is to contact an attorney for a consultation. The lawyer will ask you questions about the injury and the incident that caused it. He or she will inform you of all of your options going forward. This may include a lawsuit filed against the liable property owner or other party.
