Premises Liability Claims

Personal Injury

California Premises Liability Law

Premises liability is the area of law that holds property owners and occupiers responsible when unsafe conditions on their property cause injury to others. California applies one of the broadest premises liability standards in the country, requiring property owners to exercise reasonable care to protect everyone who enters their property. At The Law Offices of Farris Ain, we hold negligent property owners accountable and fight to secure the compensation our clients need to recover.

The Rowland v. Christian Standard

California’s premises liability framework is defined by the landmark California Supreme Court decision in Rowland v. Christian (1968) 69 Cal.2d 108. Before Rowland, most states (and California) used a three-tiered classification system that gave property owners different duties depending on whether the injured person was an invitee (customer), licensee (social guest), or trespasser.

Rowland abolished these rigid classifications in California. Instead, the court held that property owners owe a general duty of ordinary care to all persons on their property under Civil Code § 1714. Whether the property owner breached that duty depends on the totality of the circumstances, including:

• The foreseeability of harm to the injured person
• The degree of certainty that the person suffered injury
• The closeness of the connection between the owner’s conduct and the injury
• The moral blame attached to the owner’s conduct
• The policy of preventing future harm
• The extent of the burden on the owner and the consequences to the community of imposing a duty
• The availability, cost, and prevalence of insurance for the risk

Types of Premises Liability Claims

Premises liability encompasses a broad range of dangerous conditions and negligent property management:

Negligent Security

Property owners—particularly owners of apartments, hotels, parking garages, shopping centers, and nightclubs—have a duty to provide reasonable security measures to protect visitors from foreseeable criminal activity. When inadequate security (broken locks, missing lighting, absent security guards, non-functioning cameras) leads to assaults, robberies, or other violent crimes, the property owner may be held liable.

Proving a negligent security claim requires demonstrating that criminal activity was foreseeable—typically by showing a history of similar crimes on or near the property—and that reasonable security measures would have prevented or deterred the crime.

Swimming Pool Accidents

Swimming pool accidents are a significant source of premises liability claims in Southern California, particularly involving children. Property owners with pools have heightened duties, including compliance with California’s pool safety requirements under Health & Safety Code § 115920 et seq., which mandate barriers such as fences, self-closing gates, pool covers, or alarms.

California also applies the attractive nuisance doctrine to swimming pools, recognizing that children may be drawn to pools and are unable to appreciate the danger. This imposes additional duties on property owners to secure their pools against unauthorized access by children.

Construction Site Injuries

Construction sites present numerous hazards: falling objects, open excavations, scaffolding collapses, electrical hazards, and heavy equipment accidents. While workers’ compensation typically covers injured construction workers, third parties injured at or near construction sites may bring premises liability claims against the property owner, general contractor, or other responsible parties. Additionally, workers injured due to the negligence of a party other than their employer may have a third-party claim.

Amusement Park and Recreational Facility Injuries

Operators of amusement parks, water parks, trampoline parks, and other recreational facilities owe a heightened duty of care to their patrons. Injuries caused by defective rides, inadequate supervision, improper maintenance, or failure to enforce safety rules can give rise to substantial premises liability claims.

Retail Store and Commercial Property Injuries

Slip and fall accidents in stores, restaurants, and commercial properties are the most common form of premises liability claim. Property owners must maintain their premises, conduct regular inspections, and promptly address hazardous conditions or provide adequate warnings.

Residential Property Hazards

Landlords have a duty to maintain rental properties in habitable and safe condition. Common residential premises liability claims involve defective stairways, mold and toxic exposure, lead paint, inadequate fire safety measures, and structural defects.

Proving a Premises Liability Claim

To prevail in a California premises liability case, the plaintiff must establish:

• Ownership, lease, or control: The defendant owned, leased, occupied, or controlled the property
• Negligent maintenance or use: The defendant was negligent in the use or maintenance of the property
• Causation: The defendant’s negligence was a substantial factor in causing the plaintiff’s injury
• Damages: The plaintiff suffered actual harm as a result

The key battleground in most premises liability cases is whether the property owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition. This can be established through actual notice (the owner was aware of the hazard) or constructive notice (the hazard existed long enough that a reasonable owner would have discovered it through proper inspection).

Comparative Negligence

California’s pure comparative negligence system applies to premises liability cases. The defense will frequently argue that the injured person was partially at fault—for not paying attention, ignoring warnings, or engaging in risky behavior. Even if you are found partially at fault, you can still recover damages reduced by your percentage of responsibility.

Available Damages

Victims of premises liability injuries may recover compensation for medical expenses (past and future), lost wages and loss of earning capacity, pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, property damage, and disfigurement or permanent disability. In cases involving particularly egregious conduct, punitive damages may also be available. In wrongful death cases, surviving family members may bring a claim for loss of financial support, companionship, and funeral expenses.

Statute of Limitations

The statute of limitations for premises liability claims is two years from the date of injury under CCP § 335.1. For claims against government entities (public property), a government tort claim must be filed within six months under Government Code § 911.2.

“Property owners have one job when it comes to safety: maintain conditions that don’t put people at risk. When they fail, we make sure they answer for it.”