If you have been injured on the property of another, you may be able to file a premises liability lawsuit. Here, you will be entitled to financial compensation when the property owner has failed to uphold the duty of care that they owe you. In some cases, the property owner may have taken some steps to ensure adequate security by hiring a company, but it may not have been enough to protect you. When you file a lawsuit, there may be issues about who is liable and must pay for your injuries.
What Is Negligent Security?
The property owner has a duty to keep you safe. They must take action when there are foreseeable criminal events that could occur on their property. To be clear, a property owner is not the complete guarantor of your safety. Instead, they must act reasonably under the circumstances.
If the property is located in a high-crime area or if there is the potential for criminal activity, the owner must take steps to increase safety. For example, they may restrict access to the property or check identification when people enter. One common step that property owners take is to hire a security company to monitor or be present on the property.
Joint and Several Liability May Apply to Your Case in Harris County
In personal injury cases with multiple defendants, the legal principle of joint and several liability could apply. The policy of the law aims to be fair to you as the plaintiff. When there are several people who may be responsible for what happened, you should not have to play guessing games about who bears what proportion of the liability.
When defendants are jointly and severally liable, they are each obligated to pay you the full amount of your damages. This does not mean that you get more than you deserve because two people are paying fully. Instead, it means that there is an overall obligation to pay you, and it is up to the defendants to figure out who pays what. If they are not able to agree, a court would apportion liability between all the defendants. The court’s calculation would be based on its opinion of who was responsible and how much fault each party bears. This ensures that you get all the money that you deserve. All you need to do is name all responsible parties in your lawsuit after your premises liability attorney has conducted a full investigation of your case.
The Defendant May Be Liable for Negligent Hiring and Retention
Even if the security company was to blame for what happened to you, there is still a possibility that you can hold the property owner legally responsible. The property owner does not get to completely shirk responsibility just because they have hired someone else to do a job. Who they have hired, and how they screened and selected the company, matters in your case.
You may still name the property owner in your lawsuit for negligent hiring and retention. The property owner must exercise reasonable care during the hiring process and not bring on a security company that cannot do the job. The property owner must do their due diligence on security companies before they are hired. If the security company is not doing the job well, the property owner has an obligation to terminate them and find someone else to do the job. Therefore, a business owner or landlord would not be able to completely get away with it in many cases if the security company’s lapse was the cause of the incident.
Harris County Premises Liability Lawyer at the Law Office of Todd E. Webb Will Provide the Legal Help You Need
If you have been injured in an incident that occurred on the property of another, and you believe that someone else was to blame, get legal help from the Harris County premises liability lawyer at the Law Office of Todd E. Webb. Our team will make it easy for you to get the advocacy that you need. Call us today at 832-529-4410 or fill out our online form for a free consultation. Our office is in Houston, Texas.