Connecticut Premises Liability Lawyers

Premises liability is a broad area of law. Many different incidents on a dangerous property may lead to injuries for which the victim can bring a claim against the owner and/or occupier of the premises. Examples of claims our Connecticut premises liability attorneys handle include:

• Slip and fall accidents
• Accidents on stairs and in stairways
• Dog bites
• Sidewalk and parking lot accidents
• Accidents caused by inadequate lighting
• Objects falling from heights
• Injuries sustained as a result of negligent security
• Elevator and escalator accidents
• Structural defects and failures
• Dram shop law claims (i.e., liability of an establishment that serves alcohol to an intoxicated person)
• Swimming pool accidents
• Fires
• Construction accidents

Ultimately, liability can be imposed on the property owner and/or an occupier on the premises if their negligence causes injury to a lawful visitor. If you believe that a dangerous condition on a property belonging to someone else caused you harm, it is in your best interest to speak to a lawyer promptly.

A Connecticut premises liability attorneys at The Flood Law Firm will review your case for free and ensure that your rights and interests are protected. Premises liability claims are often vigorously defended by insurance companies. Our lawyers will handle all communications with the insurer on your behalf and strive to reach a fair settlement. If necessary, we will not hesitate to file a lawsuit and take your case to trial.

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Premises liability claims are subject to the same statute of limitations as other types of personal injury cases in Connecticut. Any action to recover damages for injuries sustained as a result of negligence or misconduct must be brought no later than 2 years after the injury occurs (see Connecticut General Statutes § 52-584).

Two years is not a lot of time. What’s more, the evidence of a dangerous condition on the premises may not last long. Once the property owner or occupier becomes aware of the hazard, they are very likely to take steps to clean up, repair, or otherwise address the issue in an effort to avoid liability.

In addition, shorter time limits and special procedural rules apply to claims against government entities. For example, you have just 90 days to provide a notice of claim to the appropriate agency if you are injured “by means of a defective road or bridge” (see Connecticut General Statutes § 13a-149).

For all of these reasons, it is crucial to contact a Connecticut premises liability attorney as soon as possible if you are hurt on another’s property. Attorneys at The Flood Law Firm will act quickly to obtain all of the available evidence and ensure that your claim is filed on time.

Negligence is at the core of almost all premises liability claims. To recover compensation for an injury or the wrongful death of a loved one, you need to prove that the property owner and/or an occupier was negligent.

Broadly speaking, the elements that must be proved in a premises liability claim are:

1. The property owner owed you a duty of care. “Duty of care” is a legal term for the obligations one party has to avoid harming another party. The applicable duty of care in a premises liability claim depends on the visitor’s legal status (see below).
2. The owner breached the duty of care. Evidence must be presented of negligence on the part of the owner or occupier (such as errors in maintaining and monitoring the property, failure to warn of hazards, etc.).
3. The breach caused injury. Evidence must show that the claimant suffered injury as a result of the property owner or occupier’s negligence.
4. The claimant's injuries have resulted in damages. Finally, the claimant must present evidence of economic and non-economic loss stemming from injuries sustained on the premises.

A person entering the premises may be classified as an invitee, a licensee, or a trespasser. What constitutes due care on the part of an owner or occupier (and whether or the owner or occupier can be held liable) depends on the status of the visitor in the eyes of the law.

Insurance companies commonly try to argue that property owners and occupiers met the duty of care and the injury occurred as a result of the claimant’s own carelessness. They may also try to argue that you were trespassing and therefore responsible for your own injuries.

A Connecticut premises liability attorney will know how to counter these arguments and fight for the compensation you deserve. Crucially, your lawyer can present evidence establishing what the owner or occupier’s duty of care entailed based on your reasons for entering the premises.

Invitees

Invitees have an express or implied invitation to enter the premises. Customers of a business, invited social guests, and people who enter and remain on public land for its intended purpose are all invitees. The party or parties in possession of the premises have the following duties toward invitees:

• Owners and occupiers must inspect the premises and “erect safeguards, if necessary, to render the premises reasonably safe.”
• The owner or occupier is required to warn invitees of dangers or defects on the premises that the owner or occupier knows about, as well as hazards “that would ordinarily be discoverable by a reasonable inspection.”
• Owners and occupiers are responsible for remedying any “obvious condition” on the premises that may harm an invitee.
• The owner or occupier is required to watch out for invitees engaging in potentially dangerous behavior.
• Invitees may not be intentionally harmed by the owner.

Licensees

Licensees are individuals who are legally allowed to enter the premises for their own purposes (e.g., an unannounced social visitor, a salesperson, etc.). The owner and/or occupier of the premises is required to exercise reasonable care toward licensees (i.e., remedying obvious hazards on the premises, watching for dangerous behavior, and avoiding intentional harm). However, unlike with invitees, owners and occupiers are not required to inspect the premises, establish safeguards, or warn licensees of known or readily discoverable dangers.

Trespassers

A trespasser is someone who enters the premises without the owner or occupier’s knowledge or permission. Trespassers are owed a limited duty of care.

Property owners and occupiers are not allowed to cause intentional harm to a trespasser. There is no duty respecting the condition of the premises or an obligation to warn trespassers of potential hazards.

The steps you should take immediately following an accident on premises belonging to someone else include:

1. Seek medical attention. You or someone in the vicinity should call 911 if you are seriously injured (i.e., you have broken a bone, it hurts to move, you lose consciousness, etc.). If your injuries do not appear to be serious (i.e., you feel steady on your feet, you don’t feel disoriented, etc.), it is in your best interest to stay on the premises and move on to the next steps.
2. Take pictures. Use the camera on your cell phone to take pictures of the premises, paying close attention to any conditions that caused your injury (e.g., a slippery floor, an icy sidewalk, cracked or broken pavement, etc.).
3. Speak to witnesses. If anyone saw you get hurt, ask for their contact information and basic details about what they witnessed. Their testimony can provide crucial support for your premises liability claim.
4. Look for video cameras. Property owners and occupiers may install cameras on the premises for security purposes. If the incident that caused your injury was caught on tape, a premises liability lawyer can work to obtain the footage in preparing your case.
5. Report the incident. An incident that results in injury on someone else’s property should be reported promptly to the owner and/or occupier responsible for the premises. It is best to report the injury in writing so there is a record of the event.

Finally, you should speak to a premises liability attorney as soon as possible. The Flood Law Firm will get started on your case right away to prove that the negligence of the property owner or an occupier caused your injuries and that you are entitled to compensation for your losses.

Evidence of negligence is critical for proving that the property owner or an occupier on the premises was at fault for the injuries you have sustained. Dangerous conditions on the premises need to be documented – the sooner the better. You will also need to prove that the owner or occupier knew or should have known about the hazard and failed to take the appropriate action (such as making repairs, erecting safeguards, and/or posting warning signs).

Photos, witness statements, and video evidence can all help to establish the existence of a dangerous condition. Whether or not the property owner or occupier failed to act, however, can be more difficult to prove.

In addition to inspecting the premises for hazards and defects, a Connecticut premises liability attorney can examine cleaning and maintenance records, property inspection reports, and other documentation. The property owner or occupier cannot argue that a dangerous condition was “hidden” if the hazard was previously documented.