Premises Liability Legal Questions

It depends heavily on the language of your lease agreement and the particular facts and circumstances of your case.  In particular, does your complex say that it is providing security or security cameras, or does your lease say that the complex is not liable for lost or stolen items?  Who stole your vehicle?  Why?  Was the open gate a material factor in the theif's decision to steal your car?  How many othe vehicles have been stolen from the complex recently?  Was an employee of the complex involved in the theft?  There are far too many specific facts which impact whether your complex owed you a duty, whether it breached any duty owed, and whether any such breach was a proximate cause of the theft of your vehicle.... Read More

You may have a good faith claim against the owner of the apartment complex if you can show it was foreseeable that your car would be stolen because the gate is constantly left open.  The most effective way to show foreseeability in this type of situation is to prove that the owner knew of several other similar thefts which occurred before the theft of your car.You should check your lease agreement first, however, as most lease agreements contain language exculpating the property owner, landlord, and management company of any responsibility for theft or damage to your personal property and for any loss caused by the acts of other parties.Even if your lease does not contain such language, a judge or jury can consider the responsibility of the unknown person who actually stole your car in comparison to any negligence by the property owner that contributed to the theft.  Usually, the unknown person will be apportioned the majority of legal responsibility in such situations.Your own auto insurance company probably covers the theft under its comprehensive coverage provisions.... Read More

My sincerest condolences on the loss of your son. Your sister's homeowners/Rental Insurance would be one source of recovery if you can make the case that she or an insured in her home was derelict in their supervision of your son. Their duty(ies) would depend on the ages of the individuals. There may be other potential theories of liability/sources of recovery, but more facts would be needed to know. What state did this tragedy take place? ... Read More

This sounds like a serious slip and fall.  And, it sounds that you have a number of injuries from this fall.  What helps your lawsuit is that the sidewalk was unattended for two days.  A few hours would be enough, but 2 days helps your case. With regards to your family, how were they injured?   If they were with you when you fell and saw your being injuried, there might be claim for negligent infliction of emotional distress.  In order to qualify for such a claim, your family must have been at the scene of the accident and must be aware that you suffered from the injuries.  Your family must be able to show emotional distress beyond that likely to be suffered by an unrelated bystander who sees the accident.   If they were not with you at the time of the fall, their case for emotional distress would fail.... Read More

You don't. This should have either been addressed by the original divorce paperwork OR its a matter of you being on the home paperwork until its paid off or refinancned into the exwifes name only. If you are stil on the deed youmay still have an interest in the property if not disposed of by the divorce.... Read More

Hello Valerie, I am sorry to hear about your son's awful injury and hope that he is able to make as good a medical recovery as possible under the circumstances. A Personal Injury attorney can investigate this matter on your behalf and determine all possible responsible parties (there may be multiple) and all available insurance coverage. Choose an experienced professional to guide and advise you and evaluate your son's claim. However, if you are interested in consulting with one of us, you will have to reach out, as attorneys are unable to directly solicit on this forum. There are deadlines and requirements for pursuing claims, so do not delay.... Read More

Yes, under Louisiana law you can sue a property owner for injuries you sustain as a result of their negligence. Here, the retail store left cardboard on the floor which posed a risk of someone stepping or tripping upon it.  Under Louisiana Civil Code Articles 2317.1 and Article 2322, slip and fall claims are governed by the principle of constructive notice. Under constructive notice, property owners will be liable for the damages caused by the "ruin, vice or defect" of their property if a victim can show that the owner knew or should have known about the problem with their property through the exercise of reasonable care. Typical situations where there can be liability will be where the property owner created the dangerous situation, where the hazardous situation has occurred there more than once, where the dangerous situation was in a high traffic area of the property, and/or where the hazard could have been discovered by the property owner had they conducted a routine walkthrough. A claim for slip and fall must be brought within one year from the date of injury, so depending on when this injury occurred you may not have very much time to bring suit. If your case is not timely filed, you may be barred forever from pursuing your claim, so time is of the essence. I would be more than happy to provide you with a free case evaluation to review the specifics of your claim and determine if you have a valid claim. Please feel free to give my office a call at (337)237-0492 to set up your consultation.... Read More

I am sorry to hear about your mother's injuries. Premises liability typically deals with a business and their reasonable care towards certain individuals including guests. In order to determine what action to take it would be necessary to evaulate your case in more detail and see if there would be any liability to the business where your mom fell. In addition, you would need to determine the liability from the man who knocked her down. I would contact an attorney to discuss this in more detail.... Read More

This is a great question.  In today's marketing climate, lawyers are pushed just like other businesses to cultivate client reviews on their websites because reviews are one marker search engines use to push a business to top spot listings.  Many law firms are shameless self-promoters with hundreds of reviews; others (myself included) take a more cautious approach to online reviews, particularly from current clients due to concerns about confidentiality or attorney-client privilege.  To avoid these issues, I do not ask current clients to review me or my firm, and because my business is only 1 year old, I do not have reviews on my main website.  Nevertheless, I have successfully argued premises cases before numerous trial courts, the California Courts of Appeal, and the California Supreme Court.  If you have access to a local law library, you might want to go down and ask the law librarian to run a Westlaw or Lexis search on the attorney's name, and see if you get any hits for cases, verdicts, appeals, etc.  But, in my opinion, the most important factors in choosing an attorney are his/her experience in the particular type of case you have, "sticktoitiveness," your trust and comfort level, and the attorneys' commitment to ethical integrity, not whether they have 2, 10, 100, or 1000 reviews online.  I realize my 2 cents bucks current "marketing wisdom," but I don't necessarily think the same marketing rules apply to lawyers.  Good luck with your case.... Read More

These types of premises liability cases are extremely fact-intensive and usually hard-fought by the defense. It's vital that your friend has someone representing him who has experience with these types of premises liability cases. They are not the same as an ordinary slip and fall on a wet grocery store floor. The law that applies is more complex. I have substantial experience with bar injuries caused by assailants. I have successfully represented several plaintiffs injured in or outside of bars/taverns by others, both at the trial and appellate level. Most significant, I represented the plaintiff in a case called Delgado v. Trax Bar & Grill, which involved a man who was assaulted and seriously injured by a gang outside a bar. I fought the bar all the way to the California Supreme Court and won when no one thought the case stood a chance of prevailing. These are not easy cases. That said, I would be interested in learning more details about your friend's case and also where it occurred. My office is in Northern California, but I have represented clients all over the state. Have your friend contact me to set up a free evaluation of his case.... Read More