The Elements Of A Premises Liability Case

Premises liability lawsuits are more commonly known as slip and fall cases to most laypersons and even attorneys. A premises liability case in its simplest form is someone suffering an injury on the property of another.

In order to prevail in a premises liability lawsuit, the injured person must prove all the following elements:

• The property owner owed a duty of care to the injured person;
• The property owner breached this duty of care because it knew about or should have known about the dangerous property condition;
• The property owner failed to remedy the dangerous condition if it knew about it, which caused the plaintiff’s injuries; and
• The injuries suffered by the plaintiff resulted in actual damages.

Because a premises liability case is in a civil forum, a lesser standard of proof is required than in a criminal case. Plaintiffs must only prove each of the above elements by a preponderance of the evidence. A preponderance means that something was more likely than not to have happened. In this case, plaintiffs would be required to prove that it is more likely than not that the property owner owed a duty of care, breached this duty, the breach caused injuries, and these injuries resulted in actual damage.

In a premises liability case based on negligence, it is important that the defendant had notice of the dangerous condition and the opportunity to correct it.

Premise liability may be based on many types of events, such as the following:

• Slip and fall accidents
• Trip and fall accidents
• Sidewalk or roadway defects
• Poorly lit steps, stairs, or parking areas
• Failure to maintain by allowing the accumulation of liquid, debris or ice in public areas
• Dog bites and animal attacks
• Unsafe elevators & escalators
• Falling debris or hanging hazards
• Negligent security or maintenance
• Amusement park accidents
• Construction site accidents
• Carbon monoxide leaks
• Asbestos poisoning

Establishing the elements of a premises liability case may require an experienced premises liability attorney. If you or a loved one has been injured in any type of slip and fall, trip and fall, or other accident on the property of another, contact Powell Law at (570) 961-0777. Our decades of experience have made us the clear and obvious choice for all types of legal representation in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and surrounding areas for 115 years.