From the sidewalks of Los Angeles to the shops in San Francisco, there are a lot of public places where a person could get hurt. But what is the difference between someone getting hurt and someone having an accident or hurting oneself?
A Sunnyvale shopping center is the premises where a lawsuit is helping to decide when the owners and operators of a public place are liable for injuries suffered there. The plaintiff was attempting to stop a fight that he noticed occurring in the parking lot as he sat inside one of the surrounding businesses. He suffered serious injury after being hit in the side of the head.
The suit claims that the owners have a duty to identify hazardous conditions that could lead to injury, which includes third-party people and entities causing harm. By law, landowners in California must maintain reasonable safety standards when their property is open to the public.
The question here is what exactly “reasonable” means. The plaintiff claimed the center could have required security guards to prevent or mitigate incidents like the fight. However, the court decided that although previous violent incidents had occurred in the same location, the owners were not responsible for the criminal acts of others.
Victims of injuries on a public premises may have a case for help with recovery, especially if those injuries can be tracked back to the actions or negligence of owners or managers. An attorney can help consult on whether or not this is a good idea, as well as prepare a lawsuit if a plaintiff decides to go forward.
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