Premises liability is the area of law that governs the property owner’s obligation to ensure the location is safe for those who have the legal right to use it. When the property owner fails to do so, how is negligence proven in a premises liability claim?
To prove negligence, you must show the property owner knew of or should have known of the risk and failed to warn or resolve it, thus causing your accident and losses, and this can be done with the help of a Las Vegas premises liability lawyer.
Proving Negligence in a Premises Liability Claim
To prove negligence in a premises liability claim, the victim must demonstrate, with evidence, what occurred, how it happened, and why. As with all negligence claims, the burden of proof lies on your shoulders as the victim to demonstrate this. Four elements must be considered in this legal process:
- Duty of care: Demonstrate that the property owner had a duty of care for you.
- Breach of duty of care: Show that the property owner breached or failed that duty of care in some way.
- Caused the accident: That breach of the duty of care is what directly caused the accident you had.
- Caused the injuries: The accident directly caused the injuries and other losses you have.
If you cannot prove any of these four elements, it is not possible to demonstrate that the owner (or the manager of the property) owed you any duty of care. Remember that this burden falls on your shoulders. Consider these four points and what they mean to your premises liability case and our prior case results:
Duty of Care
In a premises liability claim, a duty of care applies to the general assumption that property owners must ensure their property is safe or warn the public about that risk.
If a property owner posts do not trespass signs and the victim violates, the owner may not be responsible for the injuries. However, the person visiting the property does not have to have a specific invitation to do so (dropping off the misdelivered mail gives that person the right to be there).
Breaching of the Duty of Care
The second element is breaching the duty of care or demonstrating that the person’s negligence of a problem or failure to repair a problem occurred.
You must demonstrate, for example, that the property owner knew about the risk or should have known about that risk and did not do anything or not enough to protect you when visiting that property. The details of this situation will ultimately determine if the breaching occurred.
Caused the Accident
The breaching of the action must have directly caused the accident. For example, if a property owner fails to maintain a safe handrail and you grab the handrail to support yourself as you climb the stairs, leading to the handrail to loosen causing you to fall, that property owner could be responsible for your losses.
You must demonstrate that the cause of the accident was a breach of duty when looking at how negligence is proven in a premises liability claim.
The Accident Caused Your Injuries
The next step is to show that the accident caused the injuries you have and are filing a claim for nothing else. In this example, the broken hip from the fall down the steps could be directly linked to the failure of the handrail.
Demonstrate that there is an injury that requires medical care and demonstrate financial loss related to that accident.
Types of Premises Liability Cases
Most premises liability cases involve proving negligence in some way, according to NRS 41.515. With the help of an experienced attorney, it may be possible to build a strong case that outlines your losses fully and allows you to recover your damages. Some of the most common types of premises liability accidents involve the following:
- Poor property maintenance
- Slip and fall accidents
- Poor building security
- Lack of lighting
- Damaged parking lots or sidewalk
- Snow or ice on walkways
- Elevator-related accidents
- Amusement park accidents
- Swimming pool accidents
With years of experience, our legal team knows how to hold property owners accountable for the losses they cause to others. Proving negligence in a premises liability claim is critical to helping you recover the losses you are owed. Do not wait to let us go to work on your case.
How Our Premises Liability Attorney Can Help You with Your Case
To build a claim for you, our premises liability attorneys in Las Vegas will talk to you to learn what happened and why you believe the property owner should pay for the losses you have. Our legal team will then provide transparent insight into your rights and the type and amount of compensation you may be owed. Take a look at a few of the ways our legal team supports our clients in this process:
- Document evidence of the failure of the property owner to establish a safe location, including evidence of knowledge of the risk and failure to improve it.
- Outline evidence of the claim losses, including medical bills and other losses suffered as a direct result of this case.
- Build your case with evidence, negotiate with the insurance companies, and handle any questions or disagreements that arise.
- Go to court when we need to do so to pursue full and fair compensation for your losses.
- Provide you with ongoing legal guidance about any additional parties that could be at fault as well.
Working with a premises liability attorney ensures you always have access to the information and resources you need in challenging situations like this. Our team knows that you need to recover from your losses.
We fight tirelessly to recover those losses for you. You are not facing this accident on your own when you work with our Las Vegas personal injury lawyer.
Turn to Our Premises Liability Attorney for Guidance on Negligence
To prove negligence in a premises liability claim, hire an attorney who is ready and capable of fighting for your right to full compensation. Schedule a free consultation with our premises accident attorney in Las Vegas to discuss your rights.
At H&P Law, we take your claim seriously and fight for your full recovery of any and all damages.
