Nashville Premises Liability Lawyer

People visit other’s properties frequently. Whether visiting a friend or shopping at a store, you expect the premise to be free of hazards so you may visit safely.

If an owner or agent fails to maintain property so it is safe or fails to warn you about known hazards and you are harmed, you should consider calling a Nashville premises liability lawyer. A well-practiced attorney in the area could review your case to determine if you are eligible for financial recourse. If so, a lawyer could guide you through the litigation process and help you reach a favorable resolution.

Premises Liability Claims in Tennessee

Premises liability is a broad area of law that covers a variety of accidents that could occur on private, public, and commercial properties. The most common accidents that could give rise to an unsafe property claim include:

• Slips and falls
• Burns
• Assaults due to negligent security
• Drowning or swimming pool accidents
• Dog bites

People injured on another person’s property should reach out to an experienced premises liability attorney in Nashville to determine if they have grounds for civil action.

How Could the Type of Visitor Impact a Civil Case?

Tennessee law says that property owners or agents have different duties to different visitors, depending on why they are on the property. Visitors can be:

• Invitees — people who are invited to a property for the benefit of the owner, such as customers or clients
• Social guests — people who are welcomed to a property for no monetary benefit, such as friends or house guests
• Licensees — people who visit a property lawfully or with consent of the owner, such as a paramedic or police officer
• Trespassers — anyone who enters a premises without permission from the property owner

Owners and agents owe invitees the highest duty of care. They must reasonably protect invitees against known dangers or hazards they should reasonably know about. Owners must use reasonable care to warn licensees about known dangers, whether the dangers were created by the owner or are on the premises naturally.

The only duty owners and agents have to adult trespassers, according to Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-34-208, is to refrain from willfully or wantonly harming them. However, the state recognizes some exceptions to this rule.

Child Trespassers

T.C.A. § 29-34-208 (a), (c) & (d) makes a property owner or agent liable for any harm, including death, sustained by a child trespasser if five elements are met. The plaintiff in a personal injury lawsuit must show that the owner allowed a dangerous human-made condition to exist, although they reasonably should have known children would trespass and would not comprehend the danger. The owner’s interest outweighed fixing the threat, and the owner did not fix it or protect the child trespassers. A local premises liability attorney could help people whose child was injured on another’s property due to an attractive nuisance.

Work with a Nashville Premises Liability Attorney Today

Premises liability is a complicated subset of negligence law. In addition to there being multiple potential defendants, the visitor status of the plaintiff could drastically impact their chances at restitution.

If you have been injured on property owned or managed by someone else, you may be eligible for financial recourse. Call today to speak with a reliable Nashville premises liability lawyer to discuss your legal options.