Los Angeles Premises Liability Attorney

Were You Injured on Someone Else’s Property?

If so, you may be able to recover monetary compensation under a premises liability claim. Premises liability is a form of negligence that allows people to recover for their injuries that they suffered on the property of another if the injury was caused by some type of unsafe or defective condition on someone else’s property. That means that owners and occupiers of land have a duty of care to keep their property in a reasonably safe condition. As such, if an owner or occupier of land is negligent in the maintenance of their property and someone is injured as a result, the injured person may have a right to recover for the damages they sustained.

What You Need to Prove for a Successful Premises Liability Claim

In California, a successful premises liability claim requires you to establish four elements, (CACI section 1000):

1. that the defendant owned, leased, occupied, or controlled the property;
2. the defendant was negligent in the use or maintenance of the property;
3. you were harmed; and
4. the defendant’s negligence was a substantial factor in causing your harm.

However, even though you meet the elemental criterion, not every case may be successful. That is why you need an experienced attorney to advocate for your injuries.

Examples of Premises Liability Claims

Certain examples of premises liability claims include “slip and fall” cases, construction site accidents, accidents at amusements parks and water parks, robbery in parking lots, falling down unkept stairs, dog bites, swimming pool accidents, etc.

For example, if you sustained injuries from a robbery in a parking lot that is known to be unsafe due to criminal activity and the owner of land is aware of that fact and failed to take safety measures, the landowner may be liable as they have a duty to keep the property in a reasonably safe condition such as hiring a security guard or installing cameras.

Another example of premises liability is getting injured at someone’s home. If the owner has a stairwell that is old and rotted and one of the stairs falls through and you get injured as a result, the owner may liable for your damages if they knew about the unsafe stairwell and failed to take any safety measures such as getting the stairs repaired or blocking off the area.

Types of Damages in Premises Liability

Plaintiffs can seek economic and non-economic damages as a result of their injuries. Economic damages include loss of wages, loss of future earnings, medical expenses, physical therapy and the like. Non-economic damages would apply to pain and suffering, disfigurement, loss of limbs, etc.

Moreover, California allows punitive damages to be awarded in addition to economic and non-economic damages. The jury may award punitive damages to deter the defendant from engaging in similar behavior in the future.

Call Now If You Have Been Injured

California has a statute of limitations as to how long you may file a claim. Therefore, time is of the essence! If you have been injured on the property of another, whether it was at someone’s home or in the public, call us now to speak to an experienced Premises Liability Attorney about your case. No consultation fees are charged. In fact, if we do not win the case for you, you do not have to pay us.