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Ah, summertime in Tennessee! Warm temperatures, sunny skies, and the lure of the outdoors. We’re having a great time, and then, OUCH! Someone got hurt. (Hey, whose fault was that? Can I sue for my injuries?)
This type of injury law is called premises liability. This area of injury law deals with harm caused by unsafe or defective property conditions. Owners of property have a legal duty to use reasonable care to prevent injuries to those visiting. However, this is not ironclad: the liability is dependent on whether or not they were negligent in maintaining the property.
Our referral counselors frequently speak to those who have sustained injuries at amusement parks, tourists visiting the area, slip-and-fall type accidents, dog bites, and the like. It’s important for residents and visitors to understand that injured persons have one year from the date of the accident to file suit. It’s important to speak to an attorney well before that date should the injuries be severe or life altering enough to consider filing a suit. Elements that must be proven to show that the property owner was negligent include:
A real-life example of how complicated this can be is a case of a woman who slipped in a Publix grocery store on some clear liquid. This injured lady filed suit. The store’s video footage showed that a toddler dropped their sippy cup into the shopping cart just 2 minutes before the injured plaintiff arrived at that spot. The case was dismissed after the court ruled there was no evidence that Publix knew (or should have known) about the dangerous condition because the liquid on the floor was only present for 2 minutes and was difficult to see. Other defenses that can be brought include plaintiff’s assumption of risk. Examples of this can include visitors to an attraction such as a mountain slide or zipline which requires visitors to sign a waiver expressly assuming the risk; a visitor seeing an “open and obvious” dangerous condition and not avoiding it; and plaintiff having more than 50% of the fault of an accident (e.g. running through a store and tripping over something in the way.) The takeaway for anyone injured should be to consider the severity and permanence of their injury, the type of property on which they were injured, and whether or not they were more than half at fault, and contact an attorney for evaluation of these factors for an opinion on their potential case.
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This article is not written by an attorney, and is intended for information only. It is not to be considered legal advice. If you’re looking for a lawyer and just don’t know where to start, the Knoxville Bar Association’s LRIS is a great place to begin. We match you with a lawyer that suits your needs. Our trusted attorneys provide you with a free consultation so that you can decide if it’s the right fit. Want to learn more? Call us at (865) 522-7501 or visit knoxbar.org/findalawyer.
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