New Richmond Premises Liability Attorneys
New Richmond is on the Western edge of Wisconsin, not far from the Twin Cities area. From the large airport to the beautiful farms, to the multiple delicious restaurants and the endless options for hearing live music, New Richmond is a lively and exciting city.
The citizens of New Richmond are proud of our town, but there’s no question that the busy atmosphere, extensive farmland, and dozens of businesses can also lead to danger. And when the snow flies in for several months in the winter, the chance of citizens slipping on ice and snow makes the danger even greater.
Premises liability cases are quite common in the United States; they are some of the most common civil trials to be tried before juries. While premises liability cases are relatively common, they are difficult to pursue.
Our team of New Richmond premises liability lawyers at Nicolet Accident & Injury Lawyers protects victims of premises liability. We are passionate about seeing justice done for our clients and helping them gain the compensation they need. We know accidents can devastate people, but earning well-deserved compensation can help victims get back on their feet.
Injured in New Richmond? Get Nicolet.
What is a New Richmond Premises Liability Case?
In Wisconsin, the law requires all or owners to provide a safe environment for visitors. If owners fail in their duty to provide a safe working environment, you can sue them for any injury or damage that a person suffers because of their failure.
A business owner must care for all people who enter the business, depending on the type of person.
The three main business premises users include:
- Invitees. These are guests who are invited to the property and owed all possible care by the owner.
- Licensees. These are independently licensed visitors with permission to enter a business property (such as independent contractors and solicitors). Business owners owe them all possible care, except for some accidents that occur within the licensee’s active performance of duty.
- Trespassers. These are people who enter the property without permission or legal right. The owner does not owe them all possible care, although injured parties might file a claim if the danger was extreme and well-known to the owner.
An example of a premises liability case could be:
- A slip and fall accident.
- A dog/animal bite incident (in which the owner knew the dog/animal was dangerous and failed to warn visitors).
- A construction site accident, usually occurring if a manager fails to warn the public of construction hazards.
- An accident at a water park or amusement park.
How To Prove a Premises Liability Case in New Richmond
To prove a premises liability case, you need a few things. First, you need to have evidence of what happened, in the form of photographs, witness testimonies, video footage, etc. You’ll also likely need some medical records and bills to help explain your injuries and how they are related to your accident.
It’s not entirely simple to prove that premises liability caused your injury.
If you are injured on a New Richmond premises, you must prove:
- The owner knew of or caused the hazard that led to their injury.
- The owner did not properly warn them of the hazard.
- The hazard caused the injury.
- The owner’s neglect to warn of the hazard led to the circumstances of the injury.
If you can prove these accusations through gathered evidence, a jury or judge may award you compensation.
New Richmond Premises Liability FAQ
New Richmond is a beautiful, small, family-friendly town, but it is just as exciting as any big city. The business community offers a variety of local services, shops, and entertainment venues. Residents enjoy shopping, sporting competitions, dining, and special events. As with any modern community, you also encounter a few inherent risks.
Whether you are out dining, dancing, or simply walking, safety issues arise, usually when you least expect them. Hidden hazards and poor maintenance cause slip and fall accidents. When dog owners do not restrain their animals, they sometimes attack without provocation. Many other premises-related circumstances, operations, and situations cause unanticipated injuries.
Injuries sometimes occur wherever people work, gather, or walk through publicly accessible spaces. That is why we created our New Richmond Premises Liability FAQ. We believe it is important to understand your personal and legal rights before an incident occurs. For more information, contact a personal injury attorney today.
What Does Premises Liability Include?
Premises liability incidents occur when a negligent condition or situation causes or contributes to an injury or property damage. Incidents happen when property owners negligently maintain, clean, or repair their property. They also happen when inadequate safety or security measures fail to protect guests from hazards, dangers, or unsafe operations.
Slip and fall accidents usually come to mind, as they occur quite frequently.
The premises liability designation also includes many other types of incidents.
- Falls from elevations due to defective handrails and poorly maintained stairways, landings, and scaffolding.
- Amusement park accidents caused by poorly maintained rides and attractions.
- Drowning/near-drowning incidents in poorly secured pools.
- Injuries from unsafe diving boards and pool slides.
- Accidents caused by inappropriately maintained elevators and escalators.
- Injuries due to precarious merchandise displays.
- Electrical injuries and burns due to improper equipment installations and grounding.
- Falls caused by poorly maintained parking lots, landscapes, sports surfaces, and walkways.
- Attack injuries caused by improperly restrained dogs.
- Falls due to poorly maintained and cleaned floors.
- Violence due to inadequate safety and security measures.
What Injuries Do Premises Liability Incidents Cause?
Premises liability incidents involve many types of occurrences, so injuries vary significantly.
Due to physical frailties, older people and young children sustain serious and fatal injuries more frequently.
- Spinal cord injuries: The National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center determined that falls caused 32.3 percent of 34,734 recorded SCI injuries. Other potential premises liability SCI injury categories include violence 14.3 percent (often a premises safety issue) and sports 7.8 percent. Sports injuries sometimes occur due to playing surface defects.
- Traumatic brain injuries: Of the National Data and Statistical Center’s 18,557 TBI patients, 29 percent sustained brain damage in falls, 11 percent occurred due to violence.
- Fractures: Broken bones often occur due to falls and driving accidents.
- Anoxic brain damage: Resuscitated drowning victims often suffer brain and organ damage due to oxygen deprivation.
- Internal organ damage: Premises falls and chemical deprivation due to near-drownings often cause internal damage.
- Burns: Electrical problems and chemical accidents cause severe and fatal burns and scarring.
- Lacerations, puncture wounds, bite marks, and infections: When dogs attack, they cause a variety of severe and sometimes fatal injuries.
- Fatal injuries: Many types of premises incidents cause fatal injuries.
Should I photograph the accident scene after I am injured?
You must do whatever you can to protect your legal rights. As property owners do not always agree that they are liable, it is often up to you to prove it. When a property owner learns that an injury occurred on their property, they sometimes correct the negligent situation before anyone has a chance to investigate.
If possible, you must document the facts immediately following your injury before everything changes.
- Use your cell camera and take photos of the defect or maintenance issue that caused your injuries.
- If the owner did not warn of a hazard, your photos should demonstrate that.
- Get witnesses’ names before they get away. Record their contact information on your phone.
- If your incident involves a fall, take a photo of the tops and bottoms of your shoes.
- Get immediate medical attention for your injuries.
- Immediately report your accident to the property owner.
Is a property owner always liable for my injuries?
When a property owner reports a claim to their liability carrier, the insurer usually determines if they should pay you.
Claim departments investigate the circumstances and determine if their insured is negligent based on a traditional negligence assessment.
- Duty Owed: Should the property owner have protected you by maintaining the property?
- Duty Breached: Did the property owner fail to comply with this duty?
- Proximate Cause: Did this breach cause your accident?
- Damages: Did the incident injure you?
Wisconsin statutes include additional tests for assessing premises liability issues. Any liability evaluation examines your legal status on the property. If you are a guest or a child, a property owner owes a higher degree of care. If you are a trespasser, Wisconsin Statutes, §895.529, waives a property owner’s liability except for certain incidences of intentional harm.
Do I have to prove an owner’s negligence when their dog attacks me?
When a dog attacks you, Chapter 174 Dogs, holds dog owners strictly liable. An owner cannot avoid liability even if they have no prior notice of their dog’s aggressive or violent behavior. The statutes also hold non-owners who “harbor” or “keep” dogs to the same standard.
How long do I have to settle my premises liability claim?
If your accident occurred in Wisconsin, you have a three-year statute of limitations. The clock begins counting down on the day you sustain injuries. You must settle your injury claim or file a lawsuit before the three-year time frame expires.
Do I have to file a lawsuit to get a settlement?
When liability is clear, insurers often settle claims based on your injuries, damages, and recovery. You must still protect your legal and personal interests. Insurance claim representatives will not necessarily offer a fair settlement for your claim. They also will not explain any statute of limitations issues. To avoid discussing claim deadlines, some insurers simply withdraw from active negotiations months before a statute of limitations expires.
Do I Need an Attorney to Handle My Slip and Fall Claim?
Yes. You have too much at stake. Premises liability attorneys work on your behalf while you focus on getting better. They deal with responsible parties, insurance companies, and their lawyers, so you do not have to. They resolve liability and damage issues and negotiate your injury claim to produce the best results possible.
When you arrange a free consultation, you discuss your claim with an attorney and learn more about your legal options.
We Can Handle the Legal Process of Your New Richmond Premises Liability Case
The process of a premises liability case can be a long one. Lawyers do their best to make things run smoothly for their clients, but many factors go into proving a premises liability claim.
Here’s how the process usually works:
- You call a New Richmond personal injury lawyer for a free consultation and decide whether or not your case is worth pursuing.
- You set up an in-person meeting with the lawyers to go over the details and—if you both agree to work with one another—to sign a contract.
- Your lawyer gathers evidence to support your case.
- Your lawyers file suit against the other party.
- Your lawyers and the lawyers on the other side continue to gather evidence in a process called discovery. They usually send out written questionnaires for each party to complete, talk to witnesses and experts, and gather records relevant to the injury claim.
- The lawyers attempt a settlement through mediation, arbitration, or another similar manner.
- If you cannot settle, the case may go to court for a trial before a jury and judge.
- The court hands down the decision—hopefully in your favor—and you may go on with your life.
This endeavor can take a while, so reach out to a premises liability lawyer in New Richmond as soon as possible.
The Nicolet lawyers can work with you to gather the evidence you need as quickly and painlessly as possible. We do our best to take the stress from your shoulders, so you can get on with your recovery.
If you have questions about your New Richmond premises liability claim, reach out to Nicolet Accident & Injury Lawyers online or call at (715) 200-3626 for a free case evaluation.
Injured? Get Nicolet.
New Richmond Office
Address: 1500 Madison Ave Suite 220 ,New Richmond, WI 54017
Phone: (715) 260-4764