River Falls Premises Liability FAQs

Premises Liability refers to the liability of employers and/or business owners to provide a safe environment for employees and other visitors to their property. If an owner or manager fails to properly protect visitors to their property, they could bear liability for any injuries these visitors may have suffered.

An owner or employer owes a duty of care to everyone on the property, although his level of responsibility differs depending on the status of a visitor.

• An invitee, someone invited on the premises, is owed a full duty of care.
• A licensee, someone allowed on the property for their own purposes (such as contract work or solicitation), is owed a full duty of care in most cases, though they may be held more responsible for injuries that occurred during their course of business.
• A trespasser, someone not allowed on the property, is rarely covered by a duty of care, though in some situations, you can hold an owner liable for blatant neglect of the property.

Premises liability is a term lawyers and judges use to refer to the legal obligation of property owners, occupants, and managers to pay damages to someone who suffers harm because of an unreasonably dangerous condition on a property. Simply put, if you get hurt because of a hazard on someone else’s property that the owner, occupant, or manager of that property should have fixed or at least warned you about, Wisconsin’s premises liability laws may give you the right to receive compensation for the harm you suffered.

Yes and no. What lawyers refer to as slip and fall cases constitute one type of premises liability claim. A slip and fall consists of any incident in which someone falls and gets hurt on property they do not own. Wisconsin premises liability law dictates the rights of individuals who suffer harm in slip and fall incidents.

Slip and falls constitute just one type of premises liability incident, however. The law of premises liability also governs a wide range of other mishaps and tragedies that can occur on property the victim does not own, such as drownings and near-drownings in backyard swimming pools, some types of domestic animal attacks, and building fires.

That all depends on what happened to you.

As a general proposition, however, your rights as the victim of an unreasonably dangerous condition on someone else’s property in River Falls may entitle you to receive payment for:

• Your medical expenses in treating your injuries;
• Other expenses you have incurred because of your injuries;
• The wages and income you lost because of your injuries; and
• Your pain, suffering, and diminished quality of life because of your injuries.

To learn about the types and amounts of damages you may have the right to receive as compensation in your River Falls premises liability case, contact a skilled attorney today.

Again, that depends largely on what happened in your case. In general, however, any River Falls property owner, occupant, or manager may owe you damages for the harm you suffered because of an unreasonably dangerous condition on their properties. In addition, other parties may also owe you compensation. For example, if you suffer injuries in an incident caused by a defective filtering system in your neighbor’s backyard pool, the manufacturer of the filtering system may owe you compensation in addition to (or instead of) your neighbor.

Not necessarily. An experienced River Falls premises liability lawyer can advise you on your rights, but oftentimes you may have the option of settling with your friend’s homeowner’s or renter’s insurance company without having to file suit. Even if you do have to take legal action to obtain the compensation you need to pay for your care and expenses after an injury, a skilled attorney can help you navigate the legal process with compassion, so that you do not have to choose between your friendship and your legal rights.

Again, not necessarily. Most River Falls premises liability cases settle before they reach a courtroom. Skilled attorneys for premises liability victims like you prepare cases as if they will go to trial, only to end up using that preparation to their advantage in negotiating settlements with insurance companies and defense lawyers.

If your lawyer takes legal action on your behalf to get your compensation for your premises liability injuries, chances are greater that you may have to give sworn testimony with a defense lawyer called a deposition. A skilled attorney can help you prepare for that interview, and accompanies you to the interview to protect your rights and advocate on your behalf.

You can meet for free, with no obligation, with an experienced River Falls premises liability lawyer. If you and the lawyer decide to work together on your case, the lawyer will also most likely represent you on a contingent fee basis. That means the lawyer does not charge you any money up-front, and you do not get billed by the hour. Instead, the lawyer keeps a percentage of any money recovered on your behalf. This arrangement makes the lawyer affordable for you.

First and foremost, you should seek medical attention, even if you think your injuries are minor. Some serious injuries do not show symptoms right away, but could get worse and threaten your health (and even your life) if you do not treat them immediately.

Go to the emergency room or an urgent care clinic and let a medical professional check you over. Not only will this protect your health, it will also ensure proper documentation of your injuries, which a lawyer may use later in seeking compensation on your behalf.

Then, contact an experienced River Falls premises liability attorney at Nicolet Law Accident & Injury Lawyers for a free consultation to learn about your rights. The sooner you have a skilled lawyer on your side, the better your chances of receiving the compensation you deserve.

Premises liability cases in River Falls include any situation in which a person was injured on another person’s property due to careless actions.

For example, they might include:

• Slip and fall accidents, usually caused by improperly marked wet floors.
• Poor property maintenance, including broken stairs or floors, cupboards left open, or cords and other tripping hazards left out in the open.
• Negligence at construction sites, which usually consists of a failure by construction managers to properly warn the public of potential construction hazards.
• Dog or animal bites, caused when you enter someone’s property and an animal known to be dangerous bites you.
• Slipping on ice or snow, caused when a business fails to put out salt or other equipment to limit the slippage of ice and snow outside their business.
• Parking lot accidents, which could include injury or assault due to lack of proper lighting or security and may also cover slipping and falling on icy parking lots.

If you were at a River Falls business or on someone else’s land as a visitor, you could have the opportunity to sue for damages that you suffered from an injury on the property. However, there are a few things you have to prove to make a premises liability claim.

You must prove:

• The owner/employer knew of the danger posed on the property or caused the danger through their actions.
• The owner/employer failed to warn you of the danger.
• The danger on the property injured you.
• The owner/employer’s failure to notify you of the danger was a direct cause of your injury.

As you can imagine, proving these conditions isn't easy. Evidence is necessary, and you will likely also need to speak with a premises liability lawyer who can guide you through the process and help you understand the legal aspects of the case.

In general, the owner of a business or property is held liable for premises liability claims. However, you can hold a manager or proprietor responsible if they were in charge of keeping the business safe. You can hold landlords responsible if they fail to warn of dangers on a property when a person rented or purchased it.