Baldwin Premises Liability Lawyer

All property owners are required to keep visitors safe whenever they let people onto their land. This expectation applies to both private homes and businesses. However, the specific steps that landowners need to take to protect people vary somewhat based on the reason the visitor entered their property.

If a plaintiff is injured because of landowner negligence, they may have the right to demand compensation. This compensation can provide payments for not just medical bills, but also for missed time at work and emotional suffering, among other losses.

A Baldwin premises liability lawyer may be able to help you pursue this compensation from property owners and their insurance companies. Through thorough evidence-gathering and knowledge of the law, a personal injury attorney could work with you to seek a satisfactory settlement without you ever needing to go to court.

Different Responsibilities for Different Visitors

The general rule in New York is that landowners must protect visitors to their property. However, the extent of protection depends on the visitor’s reason for visiting the land.

New York law extends almost no protections to trespassers, which are defined as people who enter land illegally. The law only requires landowners to refrain from intentionally or recklessly injuring these people. Conversely, when a visitor has a right to be present, the amount of protection that a landowner must provide increases significantly.

People may be legally on land for any number of reasons—as invited guests to a private home, workers on otherwise private land, or patrons at a business held open to the public. In these situations, the landowner must remedy any known hazards and, in some cases, take steps to maintain oversight of their property so they are aware of any potential hazards yet to be addressed. A Baldwin premises liability attorney could help determine which classification applies to a plaintiff in their particular case.

Seeking Damages Based on Premises Liability

In the context of a premises liability case, the process of determining negligence takes the entirety of the situation that led to the incident into consideration. Specifically, a court overseeing such a case might examine:

• The state of the land prior to the incident
• Whether the owner knew, or should have known, of any defects in the land
• Any steps taken by the owner to warn people of a defect
• What steps the visitor took prior to becoming injured

In general, a landowner must maintain their land in a reasonably safe condition, a responsibility which includes periodic maintenance as well as dealing with any sudden hazards. However, even the clearest example of liability may fail if the case is not pursued on time.

New York Civil Practice Law and Rules §214 requires that all plaintiffs alleging personal injury due to negligence file their cases in court no more than three years from the date of an injury. If this time passes, a plaintiff in Baldwin may not be able to recover any compensation for their injuries even with assistance from a qualified property liability lawyer.

What a Baldwin Premises Liability Attorney Could Do to Help

All landowners have a legal duty to protect invited visitors on their property. If they fail in this duty and a visitor becomes injured as a result, the landowner may be legally liable. If successful, plaintiffs in these cases can claim compensation for all their injuries and losses, not just medical bills.

A Baldwin premises liability lawyer could help you hold negligent landowners responsible for their actions. Call today to schedule a consultation.