Nashville Premises Liability Lawyer
Property owners in and around Nashville have a duty to ensure that their premises are safe. If property owners fail to uphold their basic duty of care, individuals can sustain severe injuries. At Larry R. Williams, PLLC, we are here to help if you need a Nashville premises liability attorney by your side. We have the resources necessary to fully investigate your claim and help you recover total compensation for your losses.
Why Choose Larry R. Williams, PLLC?
• At Larry R. Williams, PLLC, we have built our foundation and success on hard work, dedicated personal attention, and preparation for every case.
• We have obtained significant settlements and jury verdicts on behalf of personal injury victims in Nashville and throughout the state of Tennessee.
• We firmly believe in taking a client-centered approach to every case, which means we take the time to listen to your goals and needs so you can focus on recovering from your injuries.
What is Premises Liability?
Premises liability is a legal concept that revolves around personal injury claims where an individual sustains an injury due to a defective or unsafe condition on another person’s property. These are essentially personal injury claims in civil court brought against a property owner.
Property owners have a duty to ensure the safety of their purpose is for those who have a right to be there. This includes performing regular inspections and maintenance on the property and taking steps to promptly remedy any known hazards.
It is important to note that just because an individual sustains an injury on another person’s property does not automatically mean that the property owner was negligent. It is crucial to show that the property owner knew or reasonably should have known that their premises were in an unsafe condition, and they failed to take the steps necessary to fix the problem.
Proving Negligence in a Nashville Premises Liability Case
Determining negligence in a premises liability case can be challenging. As mentioned above, it is necessary to show that the property owner knew or should have known about the hazard on their premises and that they failed to take the steps necessary to promptly remedy the situation.
A skilled premises liability lawyer in Nashville will fully examine the claim and gather any evidence necessary to prove liability. The evidence commonly gathered to prove premises liability claims can include:
- Statements from my witnesses to the incident
- Photographs taken at the scene of the incident
- Video surveillance captured on nearby cameras
- Property owner safety records
- Any incident reports about previous accidents on the property
An attorney will likely go to the scene of the incident to gain a full understanding of how the injury occurred. While thoroughly investigating what happened, an attorney will also ensure that they gather all medical records and proof of expenses the client sustained as a result of the injury.
Types of Premises Liability Cases We Handle/Examples of Premises Liability
Premises liability claims arise in various ways in and around the Nashville area. At Larry R. Williams, PLLC, our team has experience helping clients who have sustained injuries as a result of the following:
- Inadequate maintenance on a premises
- Premises conditions
- Inadequate security on the premises leading to an injury or assault
- Amusement park accidents
- Swimming pool accidents
- Construction site accidents
- Accidental fires
- Snow or ice accidents
- Slip and fall incidents
- Elevator or escalator accidents
- Injuries on stairways
- Toxic fumes or chemical exposure
- Dog bite incidents
How Our Nashville Premises Liability Lawyers Can Help
A skilled premises liability lawyer in Nashville is going to be essential for a successful case. The reality is that injured individuals are often left going up against well-funded property owners and their insurance carriers. Our attorneys can step in and take over every aspect of the claim on your behalf. We will:
- Conduct a complete investigation into the incident and gather the evidence needed to prove liability
- Ensure you are evaluated by a trusted medical professional who can treat your injuries
- Work with trusted financial and economic experts to help calculate your expected losses
- Handle all negotiations with aggressive insurance carriers
- Fully prepare your claim for trial if necessary
What Damages Can Be Recovered in a Premises Liability Case?
The Nashville, TN personal injury attorneys at Larry R. Williams, PLLC work diligently to recover maximum compensation on behalf of our clients. For a premises liability claim in Nashville, we strive to recover both economic and non-economic damages on behalf of every client. This includes, but is not limited to, the following types of compensation:
- Coverage of emergency medical bills
- The cost of any hospital stay
- Compensation for prescription medications or medical devices
- Coverage of physical therapy or rehabilitation
- Lost wages if a premises liability victim cannot work
- Household out-of-pocket expense reimbursement
- Loss of quality of life damages
- Pain and suffering damages
The total amount of compensation available to premises liability victims in Nashville will vary depending on factors surrounding their particular cases. Some of the main factors that can influence these settlements or jury verdicts include the severity of the injuries, how long a person is unable to work, insurance limitations of the property owner, overall assets of the property owner, and whether or not there was any shared liability.
Can Partial Fault Affect the Outcome of a Claim?
One of the most common tactics that insurance carriers and property owners will use to limit how much compensation they payout for a premises liability claim is placing some or all of the blame on the injury victim. These other parties think that by shifting the blame, they may be able to pay less or no compensation at all.
However, Tennessee operates under a modified comparative negligence rule. This means that individuals can still recover compensation so long as they are 49% or less at fault for causing their own injuries. Any person 50% or more responsible for an incident will be unable to recover compensation for their losses.
When a person is found to be partially responsible, they will receive reduced compensation that is allocated depending on their percentage of fault for the incident. For example, let us suppose a person sustains $1 million in medical bills, pain and suffering losses, and lost wages as a result of a slip and fall incident that causes a spinal cord injury. However, if a jury determines that the victim was 20% responsible for the incident because of their actions, they would receive $800,000 instead of the full $1 million.
Because shared liability can have such a major impact on the outcome of a claim, particularly how much compensation a person receives, we strongly encourage you to work with a skilled Nashville premises liability attorney can handle your claim. An attorney will be able to push back against any allegations of shared fault put forth by the other side and help ensure that you recover the compensation you are entitled to.
Will Your Nashville Premises Liability Claim go to Court?
Understanding whether or not your case will go to court is important because going to court is serious, and it can be nerve-wracking as well. The good news is that the vast majority of Tennessee premises liability and personal injury claims do not make it to the courtroom. Most cases are resolved through settlements with insurance carriers. However, insurance carriers are notoriously difficult to deal with, and they may put up a fight. In some cases, an insurance carrier will not offer an adequate settlement amount, or they could deny the claim completely.
In the event the insurance carrier denies the claim or refuses to offer a fair settlement, it may be necessary to file a personal injury lawsuit in the Tennessee civil court system. However, even after a lawsuit is filed, it is unlikely that you will have to go to court. Most claims are still settled before they go before a jury, and this happens during the discovery process as both sides continue to uncover evidence and exchange this evidence with one another. Only if the two sides are unable to come to an agreement will you have to go to court to have your case heard in front of a jury.
The time frames for how long it takes these claims to settle very widely. Claims that are resolved through settlements with insurance carriers could conclude within a few weeks or a few months after the incident occurs. However, if the case does have to go all the way to a jury trial, it could take years after the original incident for this to happen.
Contact Our Experienced Nashville Premises Liability Attorneys Today
If you or somebody you love has sustained an injury caused by the negligence of a property owner in Nashville, you need to reach out to an experienced attorney immediately. At Larry R. Williams, PLLC, we will not hesitate to handle every aspect of your case on your behalf. Our team has the resources necessary to investigate every aspect of your claim, negotiate with insurance carriers, and prepare your case for trial. When you need a Nashville premises liability attorney, you can contact us for a free consultation of your case by clicking here or calling (615) 237-8619.