If you have been injured on someone else’s property, it is important to know your rights. Whether it is a business location or personal property, the owner can be held liable for the injuries that you have suffered if the injuries were due to their negligence.
Premise Liability
The first thing you should do when trying to file a premise liability claim is to identify who owns or possesses the property on which the injury took place. A person is considered to possess property when they:
- Occupy a piece of land with the intention of controlling it
- Previously occupied a piece of property with the intention of controlling it and no other person has afterwards occupied that property with the intention of controlling it
- Is entitled to immediate occupation of the property and no other person is currently in possession of the property
Establishing Fault
The liability of the property owner depends on the status of the person who had entered their property. Depending on the status, the legal impact on the landowner varies.
A person on the property of another is generally classified as a:
- Trespasser – Someone who did not have permission from the landowner to be on their property. If the person injured was trespassing, the only liability on the landowner is for willful injury or entrapment, otherwise they are not responsible for any injuries obtained.
- Licensee – Someone who is an informal guest. In this case the landowner is responsible for exercising reasonable care of a regularly sensible person regarding any and all activates conducted on the property. They are also responsible for warning licensees of all known dangerous or hazardous conditions that could not be reasonably discovered by the guests.
- Invitee – When a person enters the property of another by direct invitation. This is the most common instance in premise liability cases. An invitee is a person who is publically invited onto the premises such as a customer who enters a store. The landowner is still responsible the duty of care for activities conducted on the premises, but has a greater duty of care for any dangerous or hazardous conditions that the landowner already knew about or could have discovered with a reasonable inspection.
Contact a Lawyer
Each premise liability claim is unique and trying to figure out whether you have a case can be complicated depending on the details of the situation. If you have any questions or concerns about premise liability laws in Colorado and need help putting together a premise liability claim, please don’t hesitate to contact the law offices of Jeremy Rosenthal today! Our experienced team of personal injury lawyers have helped numerous people gain the compensation they justly deserved.