Premises Liability Attorney

Northwest Louisiana Premises Liability Injury Attorneys

Helping those who have suffered a premises liability injury in Shreveport, Bossier City, and Mansfield due to the fault of another.

If you or a loved one were injured on another person’s property as a result of that person’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation for your losses. To see if you have a valid claim, contact a Northwest Louisiana premises liability attorney at Gordon & Gordon for a free consultation today. If you have a case, we can help you file a premises liability claim to get compensation for your injuries, property damage, and any other financial losses you may have suffered.

The legal premises liability definition encompasses a property owner's lawful duties to others who are inside the bounds of their land or property. These responsibilities require a property owner to fulfill a certain duty of care by maintaining a reasonably safe premises for any persons visiting their land or property. This means taking action to address any hazards that may foreseeably cause injury to another person.

The type of property that falls under a person or entity’s premises varies. The more obvious premises are people’s homes, yards, business properties, and any land they may own. Other less obvious premisses are vehicles, worksites, and rental properties. Basically, if you own the property where an injury took place, you may be held legally responsible for that injury, even if you were not there at the time of the event or had never even visited the place prior.

Many different types of accidents, injuries, and wrongful death claims in Louisiana fall under the umbrella of premises liability. Accidents such as slip and falls and falling merchandise are both considered premises liability claims, of which are typically the more common cases. However, under Louisiana law, injuries involving deliberate acts of violence such as murder, rape, or assault may also constitute a premises liability claim in certain situations. 

Property owners are responsible for any visitor invited onto to their property, and in some rare cases, even those who are not. Visitors are invited to the property by the owner themselves or their relatives, management, or staff. In general, there are three types of visitors in premises liability claims. These are invitees, licensees, and trespassers. 

Invitees are individuals who are invited onto the property for business or commercial reasons or to provide services to the property owner. This might be anyone from a business associate to a plumber, contractor, cleaning service, or groundskeeper. Invitees also include customers, patrons, and clients in a place of business. Invitations are either direct (hiring a cleaning service to come in) or indirect (opening your doors to customers for business). Property owners are liable for any injuries an invitee may sustain on their property. 

Licensees describe individuals who are invited onto a property for social reasons rather than business or commercial. This typically entails friends, family, or neighbors who are welcomed onto the property by the owners. Another example may be someone who was invited into the home as a dinner guest. Licensees can hold property owners liable for any injury they may sustain on their property. 

Finally, there are trespassers. A trespasser is someone who has entered a property without authorization. Because the property owner was unaware of the guest, he or she was unable to prepare the property or warn others. For these reasons, the owner is generally not liable for any injuries sustained by trespassers while on the premises. In rare and extreme circumstances, however, there is a chance that the property owner may still assume responsibility. For example, the owner may be charged under the duty to offer a reasonable warning to avert injury if they had knowledge that the property was being trespassed on.

There are a number of potential hazards that can cause injury on another person’s property. With that, there’s also a variety of injuries that may result. Here, we’ll list the most common types of premises liability accidents we see, as well as the most common injuries.

Common premises liability accidents include, but are not limited to:

  • Slip and fall accidents
  • Falling materials
  • Malfunctioning equipment
  • Foundational problems
    • Missing or uneven steps, lack of railings, crumpling ceilings, hazardous sidewalks/walkways, etc.
  • Fires
  • Animal attacks
  • Drowning in swimming pools
  • Contruction site accidents
  • Inadequate security
    • Criminal attacks and assaults
  • Electrocution
  • Falls from high, unenclosed structures

These are merely a few of the potential accidents that may occur while a visitor is on someone else’s property. All of these accidents can be avoided so long as a property owner takes the necessary precautions to secure his or her property and keep it reasonably safe for visitors. For example, putting a fence and/or locked gate around a swimming pool or ensuring that all fire safety hazards are addressed and building codes are up to standard.

Common injuries that result from premises liability accidents include, but are not limited to:

In order to bring a valid premises liability claim, the victim must be able to show that the property owner in question failed to exercise reasonable care. They must also provide evidence that the condition that caused the injury presented a foreseeable and unreasonable risk of harm, of which the owner had, or should have had, prior knowledge. If this is the case, you may have a valid premises liability claim and may take the necessary steps to file a lawsuit.

One of the first steps for the personal injury claims process is to obtain a Shreveport personal injury attorney like those at Gordon & Gordon. Your attorney will assist you in the claims process and throughout the conclusion of your case. The earlier you equip yourself with skilled legal counsel, the more likely your case is to have a successful outcome. 

Reporting the event to the property owner and their insurance provider is the next step in filing a premises liability claim. Once this is done, your claim procedure will require you to write and submit a demand letter before settlement negotiations can begin. As such, every demand letter should provide the groundwork for settlement negotiation.

Demand letters are documents that explain the events leading up to your accident, the conditions that caused it, proof that the accident and subsequent injuries actually happened, and the presumption of liability on the property owner’s part. Your demand letter not only indicates that you are entitled to compensation but also states how much money you believe you are entitled to and why. Ideally, your demand letter should be compelling enough to assert the strength of your claim and maximize the value of your settlement. 

For more information on demands letters and how to write them, read our blog post: How to Write an Effective Personal Injury Demand Letter.

The scope of premises liability lawsuits varies considerably. As a result, calculating the average premises liability settlement amount without the specifics of your case can be challenging. The amount of compensation available to victims of premises liability is determined by a number of things, such as the nature and extent of the losses you have endured. It is likely that you may be suffering emotionally, physically, and financially as a result of an accident. As such, you may be entitled to compensation for things like:

  • Medical expenses (previous and future bills)
  • Property damage
  • Lost wages or earning capacity
  • Legal fees
  • Pain and suffering
  • Mental distress

It is nearly impossible to guage a proper estimate of your personal injury settlement amount without first investigating the details of your case. However, with an experienced legal team, victims of premises liability injuries frequently receive tens of thousands—even up to hundreds of thousands—of dollars or more from their settlement. To get a better understanding of what your settlement may look like, schedule a consultation with a Shreveport premises liability attorney at Gordon & Gordon today.

Premises Liability Lawyers of Northwest Louisiana

If you have been injured as a result of a property owner’s negligence, you may be entitled to financial compensation for your losses. To find out if you qualify for a premises liability claim, contact a Louisiana premises liability attorney at Gordon & Gordon as soon as possible. At Gordon & Gordon, we operate on a no win, no fee basis. What is a no win no fee case, you may ask? It means we don’t charge our clients anything unless they receive compensation for their injuries. As a result, we are committed to working hard for our clients and ensuring that they receive the maximum amount of compensation for their injuries.

Do you need a premises liability attorney?

If you or a loved one have been injured as a result of a property owner’s negligence, call Northwest Louisiana’s top personal injury attorneys Gordon & Gordon at 318-716-HELP to get them working for you right away!