While you do have to accept some degree of risk whenever you set foot on someone else’s land, that does not mean landowners in New Jersey have no obligation at all to keep their property in reasonably safe condition. Even if you signed a waiver or release form that seems to absolve a property owner of all liability for injuries on their land, you may still have grounds for civil litigation if you were hurt specifically because of the landowner’s negligence.
No matter what, though, navigating “premises liability” law effectively and efficiently is not something you want to try doing without a seasoned personal injury attorney’s support. By retaining and working closely with a Piscataway premises liability lawyer from Fredson Statmore Bitterman, LLC, you could give yourself the best possible chances of success with your civil claim while also minimizing additional stress on you and your family.
Building a Strong Claim Against a Private Landowner
Successfully filing suit over an injury caused by a dangerous condition on another person’s property requires proving that the defendant landowner violated their “duty of care” towards the injured person filing suit. In a nutshell, this means the injured person must show they were hurt specifically by a hazard that the landowner had a legal obligation to address in a certain way and that the landowner’s failure to do that was the direct and primary cause of the injured person’s accident.
Broadly speaking, landowners in New Jersey have a “duty” to provide advance warning to all lawful property visitors about all hazards they already know about and cordon off or fix those hazards reasonably quickly after discovering them. For “invitees,” in particular, who are visiting property lawfully for the landowner’s financial benefit, landowners must also regularly inspect their property either personally or through an employee so that they become aware of new hazards relatively quickly after they first appear. During a comprehensive case evaluation, a Piscataway premises liability attorney can explain a landowner’s level of responsibility towards a specific visitor.
Recovering Fairly Within Filing Deadlines
If a property owner is found liable for a visitor’s injuries based on the “premises liability” rules outlined above, that property owner may be held financially accountable for every short-term and long-term harm the visitor’s injuries will cause them to experience. This means that, for example, it is possible to recover both for the costs of emergency medical treatment received immediately after an accident and for the expected future costs of physical therapy and other long-term medical treatment.
Regardless of how serious the injuries caused by a landowner’s negligence are, though, the injured “plaintiff” intending to file suit over them has a maximum of two years to do so under New Jersey Revised Statutes § 2A:14-2. This filing period generally starts from the moment an injury first occurs, so contacting a premises liability lawyer in Piscataway should be a top priority after any accident on someone else’s land.
Talk to a Piscataway Premises Liability Attorney About Legal Options
Property liability law works very much like standard personal injury law in some ways and extremely differently in others. Understanding those unique aspects of premises liability litigation and effectively demanding compensation for your damages will be much easier with guidance from capable legal counsel.
A Piscataway premises liability lawyer from Fredson Statmore Bitterman, LLC can be the steadfast ally you need to obtain the restitution you deserve. Call today for your free consultation.
