Premises Liability
Hold Ohio property owners responsible. Contact our Cleveland law firm about your slip and fall, dog bite, inadequate security or other matter.
Property owners in Ohio have a legal responsibility to maintain property regularly used by the public. When they fail to do so, they can be held liable for injuries sustained by people using their property.
This area of the law is known as premises liability. Such rules and regulations can be extremely confusing. As a result, many property owners often deny wrongdoing – even when it’s clear they failed to take the necessary precautions to protect the public.
That’s why it’s crucial to have someone on your side who thoroughly understands Ohio’s premises liability laws, fighting for your rights. If you need help now, contact Merriman Legal, LLC. We understand the law and consistently win cases for people injured in premises liability accidents in Ohio.
What are common premises liability accidents in Ohio?
Premises liability cases can cover a wide range in Ohio. Swimming pool accidents are a good example of how premises liability laws work in the state. Private and public swimming pools need to be properly secured and supervised in order to prevent accidents from occurring there. If a swimming pool does not have the proper fencing or a lifeguard on duty in the case of a public pool, the owner of the pool could be held responsible for injuries, including a drowning, that happen there.
Other examples of common premises liability cases we regularly handle at our law firm include:
- Slip and Fall Accidents
- Dog Bites
- Inadequate Security
- Negligent Maintenance
- Negligent Supervision
- Elevator Defects
- Defective Construction
Should I file a premises liability lawsuit to resolve my case?
Many people choose to resolve their premises liability claim by filing a lawsuit. This approach can often produce positive results, especially if the property owner appears unwilling to negotiate a settlement for expenses associated with a premises liability accident.
If you are considering filing a premises liability lawsuit in Ohio, we can discuss the pros and cons of this possible solution. Other legal options exist, and we can explore them with you when you contact us.
Why should I hire an Ohio premises liability attorney to handle my case?
If you or a loved one sustained a serious injury or worse in a premises liability accident in Ohio, you will likely have 2 years to take legal action. That’s the time limit under Ohio’s Statute of Limitations for filing a lawsuit or taking other legal action in a personal injury case.
Two years might seem like a long time. But when it comes to building a strong, premises liability case, the sooner you start working on your case, the better. Evidence often disappears. Memories fade.
An experienced premises liability attorney can gather the evidence you need to build a strong legal case. We know how to investigate such accidents. That’s how we consistently obtained sizable settlements and verdicts for premises liability accident victims.
Contact our law firm and find out how Merriman Legal, LLC, can help you. Call 866-823-3332 and schedule a no cost consultation. We’re conveniently located in Cleveland and serve people throughout Ohio.
Slip and fall accidents often occur due to the negligence of property owners. In particular, wet surfaces often result in slip and fall accidents in restaurants, stores, hotels, shopping malls, amusement parts and other public places.
Sometimes, floors and sidewalks are wet or icy because an employee failed to properly clean the surface. Some property owners might try to claim they were unaware of such conditions and should not be held responsible. But ignorance of a hazardous situation is no excuse.
Other causes of slip and fall accidents include uneven floors, poor maintenance and severe neglect. Whatever the reason, slip and fall accidents are serious problem in the United States. Each year, one in three adults over 65 years old falls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of those falls, 20 to 30 percent suffer moderate to severe injuries. Don’t become another statistic. Contact us and get the help you need now.
Dogs bite millions of people each year. Many cases involve young children who may sustain serious, life-threatening injuries and emotional distress lasting a lifetime.
Ohio has strict dog bite laws. Specifically, dog owners can be held liable if their dog injures someone, even if it’s the first time a dog bites someone. There are exceptions to this rule, however. Specifically, the dog’s owner may not be held responsible if the dog bit someone who was trespassing, committing a crime, abusing, tormenting or teasing the dog.
Don’t try to decipher Ohio’s dog bite laws on your own. Contact our experienced Ohio dog bite attorneys and get the legal help you need for your complicated dog attack case. That way, you can focus on what really matters – your recovery.
Public places like shopping malls, amusement parks and parking lots should be reasonably safe and secure places for people to use. This includes having adequate lighting, warning signs and security guards in some instances. Property owners who fail to take such measures put the public at risk.
When physical attacks, muggings, rapes and other crimes occur due to inadequate security, many property owners deny any wrongdoing. They often claim they did not know something bad might happen or that they thought they took steps to protect the public.
As a result, many inadequate security cases often come down to your work versus the property owner’s assessment of the situation.
Some properties pose dangerous risks because the owners or management fail to properly maintain their premises. The hazards related to negligent maintenance cover an array of situations. For example, a landlord may have failed to clear away snow or ice or address sidewalk or parking lot defects. A property owner may have neglected to cut down dangerous limbs from a tree or put a fence around a swimming pool. A failure to repair a week deck or staircase may result in a negligent maintenance lawsuit.
Children sadly are sometimes seriously injured or die because someone entrusted to care for them failed to protect them. Unfortunately, all too often children are harmed because of "negligent supervision." But victims are not always young children. An adult or child may drown or suffer a serious injury at a swimming pool because a lifeguard was not paying attention or was not adequately trained. Examples of negligent supervision cases include caregivers such as babysitters, nannies, teachers, daycare providers, coaches, foster parents, camp counselors and others in charge of supervising someone else. A case may arise out of any number of incidents. A child might drown in a pool; find a loaded gun; get sexually molested by a caregiver; eat or drink a toxic product; get bitten or attacked by an animal; be left alone inside a hot vehicle. These are just a few examples. Call us if you suspect a negligent supervision case.
An elevator defect may lead to a catastrophic or fatal injury. As a result of improper or defective construction, elevators may malfunction. While elevators are required to pass state inspections, they still may malfunction for any number of reasons. Injuries range from electrocution because of faulty wiring to broken bones or death because the elevator falls from an elevated height if the pulley system fails.
Accidents sometimes occur in public stairwells, parking lots, sidewalks and other public places due to defective construction mistakes. In particular, some property owners cut corners and fail to make the necessary repairs or make unauthorized repairs that don’t meet state or federal safety codes.
In either case, you should not have to suffer because you or a loved one sustained a serious injury due to the negligent, reckless or sometimes even illegal behavior of a property owner. You have rights, and we can fight for them as your attorney.
Don’t underestimate the complexity of defective construction accident case. Contact our law firm as soon as possible. We want to learn more about your case, and then explain all the legal options available to you.
