Like most states in the U.S., Minnesota holds property owners responsible for the safety of their visitors – including both residential home owners and commercial business owners. This means that they must take reasonable steps to ensure that the premises will be kept free of potentially hazardous conditions. If they fail to do so, and someone is subsequently injured, they may he held accountable for providing the victim with the appropriate level of compensation. What is important to understand, however, is that this only applies to those are actually invited onto the property. If, for example, an individual unlawfully enters onto another person's private property, the owner cannot be held accountable for failing to remedy the dangerous conditions that have resulted in the trespasser's harm.
For this reason, the amount of accountability that a property owner must accept after a negligently caused accident ultimately depends on their relationship to the victim. As mentioned earlier, they are only responsible for the safety of "invitees" and "licensees" – which would be anyone who has been invited onto the premises for non-commercial reasons. Those who are referred to as "invitees" are usually visitors who have been allowed onto the property for commercial or business reason – i.e. customers at a retail store. "Trespassers" would be a category of people who have entered onto a property without the owner's permission, regardless of the circumstances in which they ended up there. Legally, a property owner would not owe them a duty of care.
When an owner and/or manager accepts the responsibility of inviting guests onto their property, they have also accepted the responsibility of providing them with a reasonably safe and secure environment. This means that they are required to post necessary warning signs, adhere to the proper building codes and remedy any dangerous conditions that should arise. If they notice a potential tripping or slipping hazard, for example, and fail to do anything about it, they may be liable for providing any subsequently injured victims with compensation. It will be the responsibility of the victim to prove that the owner had previous knowledge of the hazard, however, or that another reasonable person in the same situation would have noticed the hazard.
If you or someone you care for has been injured by the actions, or inactions, of a negligent property owner, you should not hesitate to explore your legal options. With the help of a St. Paul premises liability lawyer from Rob Roe Law, LLC, you will have the opportunity to fight for the damages that you deserve. Whether you were seriously injured in a slip and fall accident or your child was harmed in a near-drowning swimming pool accident, our firm would like to ensure that you are fairly compensated for the pain and suffering you have endured. All you have to do is take the first step by picking up the phone and giving us a call today. From there, our experienced legal team will be able to relieve some of the stress that you have been forced to endure.
For a quick and easy way to get in touch with a St. Paul injury attorney at the firm, you can also submit a free case evaluation form online.