Property Owners, Landlords and Leasing Agents in California are responsible to make sure that their property is clean, habitable and without unsafe or hazardous conditions. When a property owner or property manager does not keep their property safe or free of hazardous conditions, or if they fail to warn people on their property of unsafe or dangerous conditions, they can be held liable for falls or other accidents that occur on their property.

Common examples of accidents involving premises liability include: falling down an unsafe stairway; slipping and falling on a wet surface, or an icy surface, or an uneven surface; falling inside a store or other commercial establishment because of failure to clean up spills or fallen merchandise; tripping and falling because of an obstruction in a walkway or because tree roots have made the walkway uneven; falls inside or outside a building because of inadequate lighting.

In any and all of these situations, the property owner may be liable for the victim’s injuries because of their failure to fix or repair the hazardous and dangerous conditions, or otherwise warn people on their property of dangerous conditions.  In order to go forward with a personal injury claim or lawsuit, the injured party will be expected to show a few things.

First, it will be necessary to show that the property owner knew, or reasonably should have known, of the hazardous or dangerous condition that existed on their property.

Second, it will have to be shown that the accident occurred because a property owner failed to remove, remedy, or warn about the hazardous or dangerous condition.

Third, it will have to be shown that the person suffered injury because of the property owner’s negligence.

Being able to prove these elements of the case is important toward the success of a premises liability case.  It is therefore in an injured party’s best interest to seek legal guidance and representation from a lawyer experienced in premises liability cases.

 

Statute of Limitations in Premises Liability Cases

The term Statute of Limitations refers to the amount of time a person has to sue for their injury. In California, the Statute of Limitations, generally, is two years from the date of the accident. This means that if a personal injury claim cannot be resolved without a lawsuit, the lawsuit must be filed within two years of the date of the accident. Otherwise, the opportunity for a recovery is lost altogether.

If a claim or lawsuit is against a public entity (such as a City, the State of California, or a School District), there must be filed a governmental entity claim within six months of the date of the accident. As with the Statute of Limitations discussed above, if such a claim is not filed within six months, it means that the possibility of making a recovery against a governmental entity will be lost.