when is a property owner liable for injuries?
Under Utah law, property owners are responsible for maintaining their property in a reasonably safe condition. This applies to all property that is kept at an unsafe condition that couldn’t be prevented by you.
To establish that a property owner is liable for injuries you sustained on his or her property, however, you have to prove the following four things.
First. You must establish that the property owner knew or should have known about a dangerous condition on his or her property.
Second. You must establish that the property knew that the dangerous condition posed an unreasonable risk of harm.
Third. You must establish that the property knew or should have known that visitors would not discover the dangerous condition.
Fourth. You must establish that the property owner failed to reasonably protect visitors from the dangerous condition.
The way these requirements are laid out by Utah courts is as follows: A possessor of land is subject to liability for physical harm caused to invitees by a condition on the land if the possessor (a) knows or by the exercise of reasonable care would discover the condition, and should realize that it involves an unreasonable risk of harm to such invitees; (b) should expect that they will not discover or realize the danger, or will fail to protect themselves against it, and (c) fails to exercise reasonable care to protect them against the danger. See Wagoner v. Waterslide, Inc., 744 P.2d 1012 (Utah. Ct. App. 1987).
If you can establish these four things, and if you were injured, you have a premises liability claim against a property owner under Utah law.
If you have questions about your premises liability claim, call an experienced Utah personal injury attorney. The team at Gosdis Law have extensive experience litigating premises liability claims throughout Utah. To schedule a free consultation, call or text 385-429-9960 or email s@gosdis.lawyer today.
