The Code 1714 expands liability to include a property owner who fails to act when they knew or should have known that a repair was needed or a hazard existed. These requirements imply that a person claiming an injury due to slipping, tripping, or falling on a sidewalk or walkway must prove that the property owner either knew of the hazard's existence or should have been aware of it. Code 1714 also states that a person responsible for property management is not responsible if someone willfully causes injury or fails to take ordinary care to avoid injury.
It is easy to recognize how complex some premises liability cases can become.
Government Liability
Some California municipalities have retained responsibility for maintaining sidewalks, so they are responsible for a pedestrian injury if they fail to repair a known hazard. The keyword is “known.” Determining government liability is only possible if the municipality can be proven to have had notice of the hazard. This means that proving liability will usually require showing that the unsafe condition of the sidewalk or walkway has been apparent for a sufficiently long time that the government should have discovered it. There are numerous legal cases in which a municipality and a private property owner disagree over responsibility for someone’s injury.
The California Tort Claims Act (Claims Against Public Entities) gives citizens injured on sidewalks the right to file liability claims against the relevant government agency. A notice of claim should be filed within six months of the injury. The municipality may have a policy that caps the damages allowed.
Importance of Legal Advice
An injured person should consult an attorney at the earliest opportunity. This ensures the incident remains fresh in the mind of the injured person and that the condition of the sidewalk or walkway at the time of the injury is documented.
Take pictures as soon as possible of the unsafe location and the cause of the slip or fall to provide evidence for the premises liability claim. Also, get witness names and contact information. Proving a liability case requires demonstrating that the property owner or government entity knew the hazard existed and was negligent in failing to make the necessary repairs in a timely manner. An experienced accident injury attorney can provide the legal support injured pedestrians need to get fair compensation in a court of law.
