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Understanding Your Rights After an Injury on Someone’s Property
If you were injured on someone else’s property due to unsafe conditions like a wet floor, icy sidewalk, or broken stairway, you may have a premises liability claim. This area of law holds property owners accountable when their negligence causes harm. A premises liability lawyer near me can help you seek compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
Quick Steps to Take After an Injury:
- Document everything: Take photos of the hazard, your injuries, and the surrounding area.
- Seek medical attention: Get immediate treatment and keep all records.
- Contact an attorney: Get a free consultation to understand your legal options.
- Act quickly: Pennsylvania has a two-year statute of limitations for personal injury claims.
Property owners have a legal duty to keep their premises reasonably safe for visitors. This involves inspecting for dangers, making timely repairs, and warning people about known hazards. When they fail in this duty, they can be held liable for resulting injuries. The core principle is simple: if a property owner’s negligence caused your injury, they may owe you compensation.
I’m Jason Fine, a Pennsylvania premises liability lawyer with over 25 years of experience. Our firm has a 98% success rate in helping injury victims secure fair compensation. If you’re searching for a premises liability lawyer near me, contact us for a free consultation to discuss your case.
Finding a Premises Liability Lawyer Near Me: What You Need to Prove
When you’re injured on someone else’s property, you’re dealing with an area of law called premises liability. It holds property owners accountable when their negligence leads to someone getting hurt. The basic idea is that if you own or control a property—whether it’s a private home, retail store, office building, or park—you have a responsibility to keep it reasonably safe for visitors.
The Legal Duty of Property Owners in Pennsylvania and New Jersey
In Pennsylvania and New Jersey, the duty a property owner owes you depends on your legal status on the property.
- Invitees: These individuals receive the highest level of protection. An invitee is on the property for the owner’s benefit, such as a customer in a store or a patient in a clinic. Owners must inspect for hazards, fix dangerous conditions, and warn invitees of non-obvious risks.
- Licensees: These are social guests or others on the property with permission for their own purposes. Owners must warn licensees of known dangers but do not have a duty to inspect for hidden hazards.
- Trespassers: Individuals on the property without permission receive the least protection. Owners cannot intentionally harm them but are generally not liable for unsafe conditions. An important exception is the “attractive nuisance” doctrine, which requires owners to take precautions if something on their property (like a swimming pool) might attract children.
Responsibility for safety doesn’t just fall on the property owner. It can also include landlords (for common areas), property managers, store managers, and even tenants for the areas they control. The key factor is who has control over the property and the ability to fix a hazard.
Common Examples of Premises Liability Claims
If any of these situations sound familiar, you should speak with a premises liability lawyer near me.
- Slip and fall accidents: Caused by wet floors, icy walkways, cracked sidewalks, broken stairs, or loose carpeting.
- Dog bites and animal attacks: Occurring on the owner’s property, especially if the owner knew the animal was aggressive.
- Inadequate security: Lack of proper lighting, working locks, or security personnel in places like apartment buildings or parking garages, leading to assault or robbery. Learn more on our negligent security page.
- Swimming pool accidents: Drownings or injuries from inadequate fencing, lack of supervision, or slippery surfaces.
- Elevator and escalator malfunctions: Injuries from sudden stops or mechanical failures due to poor maintenance.
- Structural failures: Porch or balcony collapses and falling objects like merchandise or construction debris.
- Other hazards: Fires from faulty wiring, exposure to toxic substances, and poor lighting in stairwells or parking lots.
What connects these incidents is a property owner’s failure to maintain a safe environment. We understand the physical and financial strain these injuries cause.
How to Prove Negligence in Your Case
Simply getting hurt on someone’s property isn’t enough to win a case. With the help of an experienced premises liability lawyer near me, you must prove four key elements of negligence.
- Duty: The property owner owed you a legal duty of care based on your status as an invitee, licensee, or trespasser.
- Breach of Duty: The owner failed to meet that duty. This could mean they didn’t fix a known hazard or failed to find a danger they should have known about through reasonable inspection. For example, a spill that was left for hours constitutes a breach, as a reasonable owner would have found and cleaned it.
- Causation: The owner’s breach of duty directly caused your injuries. You must show a clear link between their negligence and the harm you suffered.
- Damages: You suffered actual harm, such as medical bills, lost income, or pain and suffering.
Pennsylvania and New Jersey use a “modified comparative negligence” rule. This means your compensation can be reduced if you were partially at fault. For example, if you were found 20% at fault, your award is reduced by 20%. However, if you are found 51% or more at fault, you cannot recover any compensation. This makes a thorough investigation critical.
At J. Fine Law, we conduct the detective work needed to build a strong case—gathering reports, interviewing witnesses, and analyzing evidence. With a 98% success rate, we know how to prove negligence and fight for you. You can learn more about the legal framework on the Illinois State Bar Association’s premises liability resource page.
Securing Compensation and How an Attorney Can Help
After an injury on someone else’s property, you’re likely facing physical pain, mounting medical bills, and lost time from work. At J. Fine Law, our goal is to lift that burden and fight for the full compensation you deserve. With over 25 years of experience and a 98% success rate, we have a proven track record of helping injury victims in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
What Damages Can You Recover in a Claim?
We pursue compensation for every way the injury has impacted your life. Damages fall into two main categories:
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Economic Damages: These are your calculable financial losses.
- Current and future medical bills (hospital stays, surgery, physical therapy).
- Lost wages and loss of future earning capacity.
- Out-of-pocket costs like transportation or home modifications.
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Non-Economic Damages: These compensate for non-financial harm.
- Pain and suffering.
- Emotional distress, such as anxiety or depression.
- Loss of enjoyment of life (inability to pursue hobbies or activities).
- Permanent disfigurement or disability.
In fatal accidents, family members may file a wrongful death claim for funeral costs, lost financial support, and their emotional loss. Our team works with experts to accurately calculate the full value of your claim.
When a Property Owner Might Not Be Liable
Not every injury on another’s property guarantees compensation. Property owners and their insurers will use several defenses to avoid liability.
- Assumption of Risk: They may argue you knowingly accepted an obvious danger, like ignoring a “Wet Floor” sign.
- Trespasser Status: It is much harder to win a claim if you were on the property without permission.
- Open and Obvious Hazard: If a danger was so obvious that a reasonable person would have avoided it, the owner might not be liable.
- No Knowledge of the Hazard: The owner may claim they did not know, and could not have reasonably known, about the dangerous condition.
- Governmental Immunity: Claims against government entities (e.g., injuries in a public park) have stricter rules, shorter deadlines, and often require proving “gross negligence.”
An experienced premises liability lawyer near me can anticipate these defenses and build a strong case to counter them.
Learn about premises liability law
Why You Need a Premises Liability Lawyer Near Me
Facing a property owner’s insurance company alone is a losing battle. Their goal is to pay as little as possible. Hiring a dedicated premises liability lawyer near me levels the playing field and is essential for a successful claim.
Here’s how J. Fine Law helps:
- Thorough Investigation: We dig deep to prove negligence by gathering evidence like surveillance footage, maintenance logs, and witness statements.
- Expert Legal Knowledge: We have mastered the complexities of Pennsylvania and New Jersey premises liability law over 25 years.
- Aggressive Negotiation: We handle all communications with insurance adjusters, protecting you from lowball offers and fighting for a fair settlement.
- Expert Resources: We work with medical, engineering, and economic experts to build a powerful case and accurately calculate your total damages.
- Trial Readiness: While most cases settle, insurance companies know we are prepared to win in court. Our trial experience gives your claim leverage.
- Peace of Mind: We manage the entire legal process so you can focus on your recovery. We offer free consultations and work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we win.
Our 98% success rate and over $50 million recovered for clients demonstrate our commitment. If you’ve been injured due to a property owner’s negligence, we are here to fight for you.