Little is under your control when you are on private property, either as a licensee or business invitee-labels that the law places on you depending on why you are on someone else’s property. You are putting your trust in the person possessing and managing the land not to cause you harm or unreasonably expose you to anything that could.
When a dangerous condition on private property causes you or a loved one harm, a Waterbury premises liability lawyer can help you file a personal injury claim to hold the negligent landowner accountable. Call our team at D’Amico & Pettinicchi, LLC, today to learn more about your legal rights and options for recovery.
In Connecticut, there are legal protections afforded to someone who is hurt while on property belonging to another. Whether a person can bring a personal injury lawsuit for monetary compensation because the landowner breached their duty of care can be a complicated legal question and requires a lawyer to analyze the facts.
As such, persons of adult age who trespass onto land usually cannot file a legal claim for damages. But the owner must practice due care if they know the trespasser is on their land. They cannot intentionally harm the person or lay a trap for suspected trespassers.
There are some greater expectations for children because they are under the age of majority. An owner must avoid exposing children to dangerous conditions that are accessible to children by remedying the situation or placing a fence around the hazard with a warning sign. Swimming pools are an example.
Licensees are visitors who are either invited or permitted to be on land. For licensees, the owner must:
However, property owners are not responsible for harm to licensees by open and obvious dangerous conditions. And due care to hazardous conditions is not required when the owner is not aware of the licensee’s presence. An owner would be liable for injuries to the licensee if they knew of their presence, knew of the dangerous condition and its risk to the licensee, but still allowed entrance without giving a warning or implementing preventative safety measures.
Invitees have the most protection against harm on another person’s property. Typically, these are folks that are on someone’s property by invitation. Landowners must exercise due care for safety. Usually, a business relationship exists between the owner and invitee, such as company and client. For example, a fan at a professional basketball game is an invitee, just as someone shopping for a vehicle at a car dealership is.
Concerning invitees, the landowner must engage in safety measures to ensure the property is reasonably safe and warn of hazards. However, if an invitee does not exercise reasonable care and is hurt by something that could ordinarily be discovered and avoided, the owner is likely not liable.
Premises liability cases are very fact-dependent; a person who was a licensee, invitee, or even a trespasser should contact a Waterbury premises liability attorney to see if they might have a legal cause of action for their injuries.
Premises liability is an umbrella term consisting of many different types of harm that can happen on private or public property, such as:
Nine times out of ten, these harmful situations result in injuries requiring medical care. When you are injured due to a hazardous condition on another person’s property, you should find medical help and report what happened. Then, take photos of the dangerous condition, and get the names of any witnesses. Bringing this information to a one-on-one meeting with one of our premises liability lawyers in Waterbury can help determine liability and damage amounts.
Falls on property owned or maintained by a city or the State have very different rules of law that apply. And the time to give notice before any claim is barred is very short. These types of injuries require an immediate call to a Waterbury premises liability lawyer at D’Amico & Pettinicchi, LLC.
Many premises liability cases involve an owner knowingly letting a dangerous condition linger and failing to adequately warn of the risks. Still, to win a lawsuit, an injured person must show the owner’s responsibility for their harm is more than their own to collect any monetary damages.
While you focus on your physical recovery, allow a Waterbury premises liability lawyer at D’Amico & Pettinicchi, LLC, to take the lead in your legal case. Schedule your free remote or in-person case review today.
