Utah’s premises liability law, which is a subset of the state’s personal injury law, kicks in when a person sustains an injury when he is lawfully present on another person’s premises. The law holds property owners responsible for accidents that occur because of any dangerous or unsafe setting on the premises.
These laws are complicated and you need an experienced premises liability lawyer to successfully claim compensation from the property owner and his insurance company. Here are some of the finer points of the law fleshed out by our team:
Common Causes
- Slips, trips, and falls
- Security-related Issues (negligence, inadequacy)
- Unsafe escalators, elevators, and staircases
- Other unsafe conditions (e.g., a ceiling that collapses)
- Animal bites
- Restaurant and retail store liability
- Inadequate maintenance
Types of Visitors and the Property Owner’s Liability towards Them
- Invitees are visitors who are directly or indirectly (by implication) invited by the property owner to visit the premises. For example, a shop lessee, his customers, employees, visitors, interviewees, etc. The property owner is expected to maintain the premises properly in a way that invitees are not harmed.
- Licensees are visitors that are specifically invited to the property for non-commercial reasons. For example, guests for lunch. A licensee is not a lessee, shop owner, customer, servant, or trespasser. The property owner is expected to warn licensees of the risks and dangers that they could face on the premises.
- Trespassers are visitors who are not permitted to visit the property. Though the property owner is not liable for a trespasser’s injuries, premises liability lawyers say that if the property owner is aware that his premises can be trespassed on, then he must post a reasonable warning about the dangers existing on his property.
What Does the Court Examine in a Premises Liability Case?
The law expects the property owner to keep his premises in a good condition. When the premises liability law gets invoked, the court checks any or all of the following:
- Whether the property was safe to use when the accident occurred (e.g., construction work in progress).
- The reason why the victim visited the property.
- How the visitor used the premises.
- The type of visitor (explained in the section above).
- Whether it was easy to foresee that an accident could occur if the visitor used the premises the way he did (e.g., a water body left unsupervised poses a danger to children).
- Whether visitors were warned of potential dangers by the property owner.
- Whether the property owner made efforts to repair an unsafe or risky condition.
- Whether the case falls under the “Open and Obvious Defense” rule (explained below).
Does the Premises Liability Law apply to Homeowners?
Yes, it does. The law applies to property owners as well as homeowners.
The “Open and Obvious Defense” in Utah
Premises liability lawyers in Utah are aware that the state follows the open and obvious rule. Under this rule, if any unsafe condition is openly and obviously noticeable and its dangers can be seen easily by the visitor, then the premises owner is not held liable, at least not fully, for any accident resulting from this unsafe condition.
Utah courts examine whether a regular person could have spotted the risks with a casual look. If he could, the property owner is not at fault.
We will be adding more fine print interpretations in a follow-up to this post soon. In the meanwhile, why not take advantage of our free initial consultation.
FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION
If you or your relation is injured at someone else’s property, we encourage you to set up a free, no-obligation meeting with our team of experienced premises liability lawyers.
Premises Liability Lawyers In Utah Explain The Fine Print
We have years of experience in handling such cases and have helped hundreds of clients get millions of dollars in compensation from erring property owners.
During the meeting, we will estimate the approximate compensation you can expect to receive, and coach you about the finer points of your case and the loopholes you should watch out for.
You will emerge as a more informed and sharper litigant after our meeting – Guaranteed!
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So, go ahead and contact us to set up your free initial discussion.
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