Maison Law is ready to help all victims of an injury incident that falls under premises liability. If you or a loved one recently sustained injuries at a store, office building, or hotel because the facility was not in proper and safe condition, reach out to Maison Law to discuss the incident and injuries with a Los Banos premises liability lawyer at a free consultation.
Do I Need a Premises Liability Lawyer
It can be very alarming to slip and fall on a stairway, have a bookcase fall on you, or suffer a burn using the BBQ grill at an Airbnb you rented in Los Banos. In some of these instances, you will feel shaken up and a little achy. But other times, you will immediately know that you have been seriously hurt by an accident on another person's or entity’s property. The decision to secure a premises liability lawyer will most often be based on the significance of the injuries you sustained in the accident.
While the legal system does not require an injury victim to have a lawyer or legal representation when filing a premises liability lawsuit, there can be advantages to hiring a Maison Law premises liability lawyer. The first reason to consider a legal professional is that premises liability law can be more complex than you would expect. It is often more difficult to determine liability than in a simple car-versus-pedestrian accident in Los Banos or a Los Banos dog bite lawsuit.
Second, you might not understand how much time will be required to reach a settlement or complete a lawsuit related to a premises liability incident. At a time when your focus should be on healing and your recovery process, learning about duty of care and the proper way to maintain a rental property might be more than you want to undertake. Finally, as with most personal injury cases, when victims hire a premises liability lawyer, their case tends to be resolved with a larger settlement or award than if they had handled the case on their own.
Request Your Free Consultation
At Maison Law, we know that premises liability law can be complex and confusing. You know that you were hurt while on someone else’s property. But you might not fully grasp what the property owner’s obligation is regarding your safety. All of your questions and concerns can be addressed when you attend a free consultation with a Maison Law premises liability lawyer. Our goal is to offer all injury victims the opportunity to seek legal guidance and understand the laws that will impact their ability to pursue a lawsuit to secure compensation for losses and expenses incurred because of someone else’s negligence. After this meeting, you will be prepared to make well-informed choices about legal action that could significantly impact your future.
What Is My Los Banos Premises Liability Case Worth
The arena of premises liability law is broad in scope and covers many kinds of accidents and injuries that can occur at private and public venues and locations. With that in mind, you will understand that it can take time and work to establish the approximate value of your premises liability case. However, the team at Maison Law can provide categories of damages that will help you calculate the amount of your losses and expenses, which are primary factors in the value of your premises liability case.
As with most personal injury lawsuits, there are economic and non-economic damages that can be included in the compensation you seek. The economic damages are more recognizable and easily tabulated as they are generally monetary losses or expenses that include:
- All current and future medical expenses related to the treatment and rehabilitation of the injuries suffered in the accident at another person or entity’s property
- Your lost wages if you are unable to work while you are healing and recovering from your injuries caused by the accident
- Your future decrease in earning potential if the harm suffered in the accident results in permanent limitations that will negatively impact your career path or earnings
The losses that you suffer because of your accident injuries that are not as closely associated with a dollar value are called non-economic damages and can be more challenging to evaluate. The team at Maison Law has helped many clients evaluate the life changes and place a dollar value on what has been taken from them as the result of an accident caused by someone else’s negligence. These losses can include but are not always limited to:
- Your pain and suffering because of the injuries you sustained
- Emotional and psychological trauma resulting from the injuries you suffered
- Loss of enjoyment of activities from your daily life like sports, family activities, and hobbies
- Loss of consortium and negative impact on your marriage
- Permanent disfigurement such as scarring, burns, or loss of limbs
The Statute of Limitations for Premises Liability Cases
As the victim of personal injuries caused by another person’s negligence, you have the right to seek compensation for the damages you suffered. The legal system allows you two years from the date of the accident that caused your injuries to file your case with the court. This time limit is strictly enforced, and once it has expired, you will no longer have the right to pursue legal action related to that specific accident and injuries. Keep in mind that the time limit is considerably shorter when the liable party in your premises liability case is a government entity, such as the City of Los Banos. In these cases, you have only six months to prepare and file a lawsuit with the court to seek any compensation that is owed to you for your injuries.
Common Types and Locations of Premises Liability Cases in Los Banos
As you might imagine, there are many kinds of premises liability cases. There are also a wide array of locations that these accidents can occur. The common factor among all of them is that they were caused when someone failed to meet their legal obligation for the care and safety of a property. Then that failure caused an injury accident that could include:
- Slip or trip and fall
- Dog bite or other kind of animal attack
- Assaults due to a lack of proper security
- Swimming pool accidents
- Injuries from falling objects
- Elevator or escalator malfunctions
- Fire
- Toxic chemical exposure
When you think about all of the places you visit on a weekly basis that are owned by someone other than yourself, the list can be daunting. We all take a great deal of comfort from premises liability when we consider that each day you might visit a dozen or more properties that are counting on to be well-maintained and safe, such as:
- Stores like Marshalls, Village Sports, dd’s Discounts or Target
- Canal Farms Shopping Center, Stonecreek Plaza, Conti Plaza or other malls
- The Los Banos Post Office or Library
- Los Banos Elementary School, Miano Elementary, Los Banos High School or other schools in the area
- U.S. Bank, Chase Bank, Wells Fargo or other banking establishments
Other common venues that could pose a safety hazard include local restaurants, coffee shops, taverns, movie theaters, and other entertainment venues.
Who is Liable for my Injuries in Los Banos
When you are visiting a property and suffer an injury, you are sure to have questions about whom to hold accountable when you begin to see medical bills mounting and other expenses rolling in. As you recount the accident that caused your injuries, you need to understand that there could be several liable parties in this incident, including:
For the general legal duty of care, see California Civil Code section 1714(a).
- The property owner
- Tenants of the property
- Property managers
- Contractors who are hired to maintain the space
- Pet owners in bite injury cases
Frequently Asked Questions About Premises Liability Lawsuits
What is duty of care?
Duty of care is the legal obligation of a property owner to provide a safe and hazard-free space for guests to the property.
What is needed to prove duty of care?
To prove someone was negligent in their duty of care, your legal team will need to:
- Establish that the person had the legal obligation to provide a safe setting
- Show they failed to meet prudent standards for safety
- Connect the failure to meet the duty of care obligation with your injuries
- Show proof of damages
Who is protected by premises liability law?
Any legal guest of a property is protected by premises liability law. If a person is trespassing on a property or has no legal right to be on the property, premises liability laws do not apply to them.
Contact a Premises Liability Lawyer in Los Banos
If you suffered injuries on someone else’s property that you feel was unsafe or poorly maintained, contact Maison Law to speak to a premises liability lawyer at a free consultation. You will learn all that you need to know to decide whether you wish to move forward with your claim and file a lawsuit, or if you are not interested in pursuing legal action after this no-obligation evaluation of your case.
If you choose to hire Maison Law to move forward with a lawsuit, you will never be asked to pay any upfront legal fees or expenses as we work only on contingency. That means the compensation sought by your lawsuit will include the funds needed to cover your legal expenses, so you are never out of pocket for the cost of the lawsuit to secure the compensation that is owed to you for your injuries.
