Were you injured on the property of someone else in Metairie, Louisiana? If negligence by a person, business, or building owner caused your injuries, you could seek financial compensation for your losses. An experienced Metairie premises liability lawyer with Santana & Blanchard Personal Injury Lawyers can help you understand your legal rights. Contact us at (504) 323-6000 to schedule a free consultation today.
Unlike other personal injury claims, premises liability cases can depend on where the accident happened and a defendant’s relationship to the property. Our Louisiana premises liability attorneys will investigate the facts of your accident and help identify who is at fault.
How Santana & Blanchard Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help After a Premises Liability Accident in Metairie, LA
The Metairie injury attorneys at Santana & Blanchard Personal Injury Lawyers know that an unexpected accident in Metairie, LA, can lead to medical bills, lost income, emotional distress, and other serious losses caused by someone else’s negligence. We will work hard to help you understand your options and move forward.
Our dedicated premises liability lawyers will:
- Investigate your case and collect evidence such as video footage, photos, physical evidence, eyewitness statements, police reports, and medical records
- Work with insurance companies to fight for a fair settlement when possible
- File a personal injury lawsuit to take legal action on your behalf
- Handle every step of your legal case all the way to trial when justice demands it.
Our Metairie premises liability attorneys pledge to stand by your side and fight relentlessly for the financial compensation you deserve after suffering an accident caused by negligence. Call our law office to learn more about how we can help and how you can start your claim today.
What Does It Cost To Hire a Metairie Premises Liability Lawyer?
When you already face surprise medical bills, lost pay, and out-of-pocket costs after an accident, the last thing you want to pay is legal fees on top of all else. The good news is that our attorneys will represent you on a contingency fee basis in a premises liability case. Through this approach, you only pay attorney fees if you win your case. If your case does not prevail, you owe nothing.
This way, you can retain skilled and experienced Metairie personal injury lawyers to fight for you without paying out of your own pocket. To learn more about how a contingency fee agreement can work to your advantage, contact our legal team and set up your free consultation. You risk nothing financially by meeting with a proven premises liability lawyer in Metairie.
What is Premises Liability?
Premises liability is a legal theory that provides recourse when a visitor on someone’s property is injured due to a hazard on the property. When a property owner fails to fix or prevent a hazardous condition they knew or should have known about, that property owner can be legally liable to anyone hurt as a result.
Premises liability law in Louisiana covers publicly accessible properties such as commercial buildings, grocery stores, malls, museums, sports arenas, theaters, and the like. The classic example of a slip and fall is when an object or spill on the floor causes someone to fall. However, a broad range of situations and areas fall within premises liability law.
Where Do Most Premises Liability Accidents Happen?
Unexpected injuries can happen in any of the following areas and more:
- Sidewalks
- Parking areas
- Stairways
- Escalators and elevators
- Walkways
Almost any area open to the public or to invited guests can be subject to a premises liability claim. Only where someone trespasses without any legal authority can a premises liability claim be barred, generally.
What Are Common Causes of Premises Liability Accidents?
Common causes of premises liability accidents can include:
- Inadequate maintenance and repair
- Elevator and escalator defects
- Falling objects
- Debris on floors and stairways
- Negligent security
- Unattended spills
- Loose cables and wires
- Construction debris
How Do You Prove a Premises Liability Claim in Louisiana?
To prove a premises liability claim in Louisiana, you will need to explain:
- Exactly where you were at the time of the accident
- Whether you had a legal right to be there
- What happened when you were injured
- What you were doing when the accident happened
- Why the property owner is responsible for the cause of the accident
Premises liability cases can be complex and highly contested. If you are going after a business, municipality, or other entity with deep pockets, they will fight hard to disprove your claim. A battle-tested Louisiana premises liability lawyer will help you build your legal strategy and do everything possible to prove your case.
Common Injuries In Premises Liability Claims
Premises liability accidents are dangerous because they happen so quickly, often with no warning. The results can be serious and even catastrophic. A slip and fall accident can lead to any of the injuries below:
- Broken bones
- Lacerations
- Sprained ligaments and torn ligaments
- Concussions
- Neck injuries
- Back injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Nerve damage
- Soft tissue injuries
- Internal bleeding
- Loss of vision or hearing
- Loss of limbs
- Paralysis
- Wrongful death
When a premises liability accident causes serious injury, a victim can experience reduced quality of life, the need for ongoing therapy and rehab, career impacts including disability, loss of companionship, and more. Through a premises liability claim, you can recover financially while focusing on your physical and emotional recovery from the accident.
What Damages Can I Recover in My Premises Liability Case?
Not all cases are the same. Your case’s worth will depend on the facts involved. Damages in a premises liability claim will typically include both economic damages and non-economic damages.
Economic damages include financial costs like:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income due to injuries
- Out-of-pocket expenses
Economic damages translate more easily to dollar figures you can see on paper.
Non-economic damages are the “intangible” losses from the accident. They might include:
- Emotional distress
- Mental anguish
- Depression and anxiety
- Loss of companionship
These damages may not be immediately visible, but they are just as significant as economic damages.
What Is Negligence in a Premises Liability Case, and How Can I Prove It?
Negligence is the legal theory behind the majority of premises liability cases. To prove negligence, you’ll need to show four basic elements:
- Duty of care owed by a property owner to visitors and others with legal access;
- Breach of duty by the property owner;
- Causation between the property owner’s breach of duty and your injuries;
- Damages, such as physical injury and financial losses.
Property owners in Louisiana are expected to make reasonable efforts to keep visitors safe. If a hazard existed due to neglect or some fault of the property owner, they can be responsible for damages. To show breach of duty in a premises liability case, claimants need to show:
- The property owner knew about the dangerous condition but did not take steps to fix it.
- The hazard and potential injuries were reasonably foreseeable to a property owner.
- The property owner’s actions or failure to act directly led to the accident and injuries.
Your personal injury lawyer will use evidence to prove all elements to support your claim for damages.
Can I Collect Damages if I Was Partially to Blame for the Accident?
Even if you shared a percentage of fault in a premises liability accident, you can still file a personal injury claim and collect damages in Louisiana. Louisiana follows a pure comparative negligence law, allowing you to recover financially even if you were partly at fault.
For example, if you were found 20% at fault for a slip and fall due to your own behavior, your financial compensation would simply be lowered in connection with your share of fault. If you would have been entitled to $100,000, for example, you would only collect $80,000 if you were 20% at fault.
A proven Louisiana personal injury lawyer will use evidence in your case to minimize your potential share of liability while maximizing your potential financial payment.
What Is the Statute of Limitations in Louisiana in a Premises Liability Case?
Louisiana now follows a two-year statute of limitations in personal injury claims, including premises liability. The two-year statute of limitations applies to accidents after July 1, 2024. Accidents from before July 1, 2024, are subject to Louisiana’s former one-year statute of limitations.
The deadline typically starts running from the date of your accident. A skilled Metairie premises liability lawyer will help you understand when to file and make sure you have a strong case when you do file.
Contact a Metairie Premises Liability Lawyer for a Free Case Evaluation
If you were hurt unexpectedly on someone else’s property in Metairie, Louisiana, you could pursue a premises liability claim. You will need to prove negligence by the property owner led to your injuries and damages. The experienced Metairie premises liability lawyers at Santana & Blanchard Personal Injury Lawyers will work hard on your behalf to seek the financial recovery you deserve. Contact our law office today to schedule your free consultation.