Premises Liability Lawyer
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On This Page
- Why We’re the Team You Want on Your Side After a Premises Liability Injury
- How Premises Liability Claims Work
- Who Can You Hold Liable for Unsafe Property Conditions?
- Types of Compensation Available Through a Premises Liability Claim
- How Our Premises Liability Attorneys Can Protect Your Claim
- Premises Liability Advocacy in New York, Vermont, and Massachusetts
- Speak With Our Premises Liability Lawyers Today
Property owners have a legal responsibility to keep their premises reasonably safe for visitors. When they ignore hazards or fail to perform proper maintenance, unsuspecting visitors can suffer serious injuries. For those who’ve been injured, the resulting medical expenses, lost income, and ongoing pain can affect nearly every aspect of life.
If you or a loved one was injured because of unsafe conditions on someone else’s property, Harding Mazzotti, LLP can help you pursue fair compensation. Our premises liability lawyers have represented injured people and their families throughout New York, Vermont, and Massachusetts, and we’re ready to put our decades of experience to work for you.
Why We’re the Team You Want on Your Side After a Premises Liability Injury
Our firm provides big resources, big results, and big relief to people injured by someone else’s negligence. Here’s what you can expect when you choose us to represent you:
- Decades of proven experience: We’ve been standing up for injured people and their families for over 30 years. In that time, our team has recovered over $1 billion for our clients.
- Large-firm resources, small-firm approach: With over 40 attorneys and 120 support staff on our team, we have the resources to stand up to powerful property owners and their insurers. At the same time, we provide the attentive, client-centered service you would expect from a smaller premises liability law firm.
- Aggressive advocacy: We don’t back down when insurance companies try to lowball our clients. We’re prepared to fight for the results you deserve through negotiations or at trial.
- No upfront fees: You pay nothing out of pocket for our representation, and we only get paid if we recover compensation for you.
How Premises Liability Claims Work
When dangerous conditions cause harm, premises liability laws allow those who’ve been injured to hold responsible parties accountable in a personal injury claim. If you were injured by dangerous conditions on someone else’s property, you have the right to seek compensation from the property owner or another party that had control over the premises.
Under premises liability laws, the responsible party must use reasonable care to keep the property safe. They may be liable for your injuries if they knew or should have known about a dangerous condition but failed to repair it or warn visitors.
Whether you have a premises liability claim will depend on the circumstances surrounding your injury and the evidence available. Liability is based on factors such as how the hazard developed, how long it existed, and whether the responsible party had an opportunity to address it.
Dangerous Property Conditions That Can Lead to Premises Liability Claims
Premises liability claims can arise from many different property hazards, including:
- Slip and fall accidents caused by wet floors, snow or ice, or dangerous stairways
- Trip and fall accidents involving uneven pavement, torn carpeting, obstructed walkways, or poor lighting
- Violent crimes resulting from inadequate security
- Dog bites and other animal attacks
- Swimming pool accidents involving inadequate fencing or defective equipment
- Elevator or escalator failures
- Falling merchandise or other unsecured objects
- Parking lot hazards, such as potholes or visual obstructions that prevent drivers from seeing pedestrians
- Fire hazards, such as unsafe wiring or blocked exits
- Exposure to toxic substances
- Construction areas left accessible to visitors due to improper barriers or warning signs
Who Can You Hold Liable for Unsafe Property Conditions?
To recover compensation for a premises liability accident, you must establish that someone else is liable for your injury. Liability depends on:
- Who controlled the area
- Where the accident occurred
- Who was responsible for maintenance
Depending on the circumstances, the liable party may be a commercial property owner, homeowner, landlord, property management company, or government entity. Maintenance contractors, cleaning companies, security companies, or other third parties may also be responsible if their negligence contributed to the hazard.
Multiple parties may share liability for the same accident. This could happen, for example, if an elevator maintenance company performed improper repairs and the building’s owner ignored reports of continued malfunctions.
Types of Compensation Available Through a Premises Liability Claim
If someone else’s negligence caused you harm, our premises liability attorneys can help you seek compensation for the full range of losses you’ve suffered because of the accident. Compensable damages often include:
- Economic damages: Medical expenses, lost wages, and reduced earning capacity
- Non-economic damages: Physical pain and suffering, emotional distress, permanent scarring, and loss of enjoyment of life
Your claim’s value will depend on a wide range of factors, including the severity of your injuries and the available insurance coverage.
How Our Premises Liability Attorneys Can Protect Your Claim
Premises liability claims rely on detailed analyses of what caused the accident, who was responsible for the hazard, and whether they reasonably could have prevented it. Multiple at-fault parties can add another layer of complexity.
Property owners and insurers often dispute liability or shift blame onto the victim in these cases, and substantial evidence may be necessary to challenge them. However, evidence can disappear quickly if the dangerous condition is repaired or surveillance footage is overwritten.
Having our attorneys on your side from the start allows us to address these challenges before they can weaken your claim. When you turn to us for help, we’ll immediately begin investigating the accident, preserving evidence, interviewing witnesses, and working with experts to determine how safety failures caused you harm. We’ll also identify your damages, calculate a fair case value, and negotiate with insurers on your behalf. If the defense refuses to settle for what your damages are worth, we’ll prepare your case for trial.
Premises Liability Advocacy in New York, Vermont, and Massachusetts
Our attorneys represent injured clients from office locations throughout New York, Vermont, and Massachusetts, giving us deep insight into the distinct factors that influence cases in each state. In all three states, property owners and others who control the premises must use reasonable care to protect lawful visitors from dangerous conditions. However, the laws governing shared fault and filing deadlines differ by location.
New York Premises Liability Laws
Under New York’s personal injury statute of limitations, you typically have three years from the date of the accident to file a premises liability lawsuit. If a government entity is responsible for the accident, you may have only 90 days to file a notice of claim and one year and 90 days to file a lawsuit.
The state’s pure comparative negligence rule allows you to recover compensation if you are partially responsible for your premises liability accident. If you share responsibility, your compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault. This rule can affect claims involving a wide range of property hazards throughout New York, including malfunctioning elevators and escalators, inadequate security, icy walkways, fire code violations, and construction hazards.
New York Law Offices & Appointment Centers
Our law offices and appointment centers throughout New York State make it convenient to meet with our team:
- Albany
- Buffalo
- Saratoga Springs
- Schenectady
- Syracuse
- Troy
- Utica
- Rochester
- Binghamton
- Corning
- New York City
- White Plains
Vermont Premises Liability Laws
Vermont’s personal injury statute of limitations is three years, meaning you generally have three years from the date of the accident to file a premises liability lawsuit. In cases involving government liability, you must file a notice of claim within 90 days and file a lawsuit within three years and 90 days.
Questions about liability often arise in Vermont premises liability claims involving icy entrances or snow-covered walkways. A property owner or their insurer may argue that the injured person should have noticed or avoided the winter weather hazard, but Vermont’s modified comparative negligence law can protect your right to compensation. Under this law, you can recover compensation if you’re less than 51% at fault for the accident, and your award will be reduced in proportion to your percentage of responsibility.
Vermont Law Offices & Appointment Centers
We serve clients injured on someone else’s property from these locations in Vermont:
- Burlington
- Manchester
Massachusetts Premises Liability Laws
Whether you were injured because of a property owner’s negligence at an apartment complex in Boston or a grocery store in Tewksbury, the Massachusetts personal injury statute of limitations restricts how long you have to take legal action. In most cases, you have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit, but you’ll need to file a written notice within two years if a government agency is at fault. If the accident involved a dangerous sidewalk, you may have only 30 days to give notice.
Under the commonwealth’s modified comparative negligence law, you can recover compensation if you’re less than 51% responsible for your premises liability accident. Your compensation will be reduced by your percentage of fault. For example, if your damages are worth $100,000 and you’re 20% responsible, you’d recover $80,000.
Massachusetts Law Offices & Appointment Centers
Our attorneys are here to help from this location if you were injured on someone else’s property in Massachusetts:
- Tewksbury
Speak With Our Premises Liability Lawyers Today
If you or someone you love suffered harm because of a dangerous property condition, our legal team at Harding Mazzotti, LLP can help you understand your rights. Call 800-529-1010 or complete our online contact form for a free consultation. There are no upfront fees, and we’re available 24/7 to start fighting for the compensation you deserve.
