ORANGE COUNTY PREMISES LIABILITY ATTORNEY

Premises liability laws assign responsibility to property owners for certain personal injuries. For premises liability to apply, the accident must have occurred because of negligence on the owner’s part. Negligence results from the owner failing to fix a dangerous situation, taking proper action to protect people or issuing an adequate warning.

For instance, a supermarket must ensure that no hazards exist that could cause shoppers to slip and fall. If a hazard is created, it must issue a proper warning. A floor wet from mopping serves as a common example. Leaving the floor wet in the path of customers results in liability for the owner. Accordingly, businesses have policies requiring employees to post wet floor signs around recently mopped areas.

On the other hand, a property owner is not liable for an injury if there is no negligence. For example, a slip and fall on a wet floor is negligence, but, barring some other factor, a person tripping on their shoelace establishes no premises liability.

In some cases, injuries occurring off-premises may apply. For example, pet owners are responsible for dog bites, whether the incident occurred on their property or elsewhere. Additionally, California dog owners are responsible for a bite regardless of whether the dog bit before or has a history of viciousness. Finally, the law assumes neglect on the part of the owner if the animal bites.

However, defendants can overcome an accusation or assumption of neglect in certain circumstances. For example, in the case of a dog bite, the owner avoids liability if the injured party provoked the dog. In addition, people bitten by a dog during the commission of most crimes are barred from bringing a dog bite case against the owner. Typically, these exceptions apply to trespassing, burglary, or assault cases.

Damages Are Based on Comparative Negligence

In California, personal injury cases usually result in a settlement or award based on splitting the liability pie between the parties. This occurs because California is a pure comparative negligence state. Pure comparative negligence assigns each party a percentage of the liability. Accordingly, courts award the injured parties their damages minus their percentage of the liability. 

Plaintiffs receive a portion of the liability from 0% to 100%. A 0% finding means the plaintiff receives 100% of the damages. However, each percentage of increased liability decreases the award proportionately, so if a plaintiff is 25% responsible, the award is reduced by 25%. Because California law is pure comparative negligence, the plaintiff receives an award even if 99% liable, though the amount is just 1% of damages.

For instance, in a premises liability case where a customer slipped at a store, comparative negligence hinges on how much the court believes the store’s negligence played in the accident and how much the plaintiff’s negligence resulted in the fall. On the other hand, a case where someone slips on unattended liquid usually results in most or all of the liability rests with the store. 

However, if the defense can show that the plaintiff contributed to the accident by not noticing a warning sign, it may convince the court to reduce the damages. On the other hand, if the defendant fails to prove any negligence on the part of the store, the court will dismiss the case.

Proving Negligence in Premises Liability Claims

California law holds the owner of premises, whether a business, residence or government facility, is responsible for personal injuries occurring on the property. But liability is inapplicable in some instances. No presumption of liability exists. Therefore, the plaintiff must prove negligence for a court to award damages.

California property owners must foresee, recognize and resolve potential safety hazards. When they cannot be resolved immediately, owners must provide sufficient warnings. Anyone legitimately on the premises is covered by premises liability, including visitors, tenants, and guests. 

In personal injury law, ” premises ” refers to a place, parcel of land, or structure owned, leased, or legally occupied. Ultimate responsibility falls on the owner of a property, including landlords, business owners, homeowners, and governments. To win a premises liability claim, the injured party must prove three key elements:

• The owner’s actions resulted in the injury (intentional or unintentional)
• The owner knew or should have known that the dangerous condition existed and failed to take action the prevent an accident.
• The eligible dangerous condition resulted in the injury.

It is an insufficient defense for property owners to claim that they were unaware of a hazardous condition. California law presupposes that property owners must regularly inspect their premises. Failure to do so constitutes an act of negligence. 

For instance, a homeowner must inspect an unattached garage, even if unused. However, should a defect in the door cause it to injure someone, the homeowner cannot evade liability by claiming he was unaware of the problem because the garage was in disuse.