If you have been injured on someone else’s property, our Atlanta premises liability lawyers can help you get the compensation you deserve.
If you have been were injured on someone else’s property, we our Atlanta premises liability lawyers can help you get the compensation you deserve.
Many victims of violent crime who are attacked at a business are not aware of their legal rights. Under Georgia law, tenants at an apartment complex, guests of a hotel, and customers at a store, restaurant or other business have the right to expect the business to keep their property safe from dangerous conditions, including criminal activity.
Simply put, a business owner cannot “look the other way” when criminals are committing crimes at their property and putting innocent people in danger of being attacked. This includes business owners in Atlanta, GA and the rest of the State. In addition, if a property owner fails to exercise ordinary care to keep the property safe, Georgia premises liability law (O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1.) provides a cause of action for victims to hold the owner liable for the injuries suffered and resulting damages caused by the owner’s failure.
When a property owner fails in this duty — whether as a result of inadequate or negligent security, failure to warn tenants or customers of the danger, negligent employee training, etc. — crimes like murder, aggravated assault, armed robbery, and rape/sexual assault are more likely to occur, often resulting in lifelong suffering and sometimes even wrongful death.
Although many premises liability claims involve slip and fall injuries, others are brought by victims of crimes at unsafe places. These claims are often based on the negligent failure by the property owners to keep their premises safe.
Under the law, the property owner or landlord may be responsible for paying money damages to the victim of a criminal assault committed on their property. This is called premises liability. With the help of an Atlanta premises liability lawyer, victims and their families may be entitled to compensation for physical, emotional, and financial injuries.
As a trusted group of legal professionals who are dedicated to representing crime victims across Atlanta and the state of Georgia, the Crime Victim Law Group of Deitch & Rogers, LLC has extensive experience helping people who have been attacked on properties such as hotels, apartment complexes, restaurants, convenience stores, and other businesses. If you think you might have a premises liability claim, we will work tirelessly for you to get the compensation you deserve and need to fully recover from your injuries.
If a property owner is aware that crimes are being committed on their property, they must take reasonable steps to prevent crime and make the property safer. Below are some examples of actions property owners can take to deter crime.
Knowing how to sue a hotel, apartment complex or other business for negligence begins with understanding what negligence means in a premises liability case. Conditions at certain apartment complexes and hotels, as well as other establishments such as malls, restaurants, gas stations, nursing homes, and healthcare facilities, may attract criminals if the criminals see little chance of being detected during the crime or being caught after the crime.
Four elements have to be proven by the victim and their Atlanta premises liability attorneys to have successful a premises liability claim: duty, breach, causation, and harm (damages). So, the victim must prove that the defendant property owner or operator owed the victim a legal duty and breached that duty. For example, if a property owner knew that there had been violent crime on their property and therefore there was a risk of a violent crime occurring again, but the owner failed to take reasonable steps to address that known danger, then the property owner may have breached their duty to the victim of a criminal attack at the property.
However, the victim must prove that the property owner’s breach of their duty caused the victim’s injury and damages.
It’s important to know that Georgia law sets time limits within which all personal injury claims much be filed in Court, including premises liability lawsuits. That is why it is crucial to act immediately and contact an experienced premises liability attorney as soon as possible. Criminal attack premises liability cases can be confusing, complex, and difficult, but the experienced attorneys at Deitch & Rogers in Atlanta GA can guide you through the process. We have specialized in these kinds of cases for decades.
These “crimes of opportunity” often happen because the business or property owner has failed to make the property safe. For example, violent crimes are often committed in unsafe apartments or hotels with unmonitored or poorly patrolled parking lots, missing or broken access gates, inadequate lighting, faulty or defective door locks or window locks and improperly secured buildings. Many of these crimes could have been prevented if adequate security measures had been in place.
Additionally, when an assault is committed by a company’s employee who has access to potential victims while on the property, the company may be legally responsible for injuries caused by its employee. This is especially true if the company failed to conduct a proper background check or failed to respond to complaints or warnings about the employee.
Not every serious violent injury falls under premises liability, but failure to take proper steps to prevent a crime might render the business or property owner liable for the injuries to the victim. If your injuries were the result of a business or property owner’s negligence, you may be able to sue the owner for damages with the help of an Atlanta premises liability lawyer.
More than 250 Successful Premises Liability Cases
Our lawyers have successfully pursued very difficult cases against some of the largest companies in Georgia and across the US, including FedEx, Walmart, Extended Stay America Hotels, Six Flags, Motel 6, Quality Inn, Red Roof Inns, Waffle House, Kroger, Devereux Behavioral Health, MARTA, First Communities, Greystar, and many others.
Even when the liability of the premises owner seems clear, a premises liability case is far from simple. A negligent business or property owner will have an experienced and well-funded legal team that will deny responsibility for the attack. They might try to blame you for your injuries or even accuse you of fraud. You should never try to stand up to them alone.
At Deitch + Rogers, we know how important it is for you to choose the right lawyer to represent you. Compassion, dedication, integrity, honesty, and transparency are all vital qualities in a good premises liability lawyer. You can find those qualities and more at Deitch + Rogers.
With more than 250 successful cases over 30+ years, our team of skilled and experienced trial lawyers focuses solely on representing crime victims. Our firm is uniquely qualified to win your case.
Please call (770) 394-9000 to schedule a free initial consultation, or contact our lawyers directly through the email form.
