Owners assume great responsibility when they adopt a dog. State and local laws outline the duties dog owners must follow, and owners who fail to uphold them can be sued in civil court if their dog bites someone. Even minor dog bites can easily become infected, and serious bites can lead to crushed bones, ripped skin, emotional trauma, or sometimes even death.
If a dog bites you in California, it does not matter whether the dog has been aggressive before, as owners are strictly liable for their pet’s behavior. This means that you can sue the owner even if they had no idea before the attack that the dog might be aggressive. An experienced personal injury attorney can help you recover compensation for the time and money you lose due to a dog bite. To review your specific case, contact a Sacramento dog bite lawyer from Erkel Law, P.C.
California Civil Code § 3342 covers the strict liability rule that applies when a dog bites someone in a public space or when the person bitten has a legal right to be on private property. The following are exceptions to the strict liability rules:
If an exception applies, you may be able to make a claim due to the owner’s negligence, even though you cannot recover based on strict liability. To succeed in a negligence claim, you must show that the owner acted below the standard of a reasonable dog owner and that those actions led to the dog biting you.
One way to do this is to show that the dog had bitten someone before. This is known as the one-bite rule, which states owners should be more careful when they know their dog is a biter.
Another way to demonstrate owner negligence is if the dog was unleashed in public. Under the Sacramento County Code, dogs that are not on the owner’s property must be restrained by an eight-foot leash (with some exceptions); if an unleashed dog on public property bites you, an Erkel Law, P.C. lawyer can use that fact to prove the owner’s negligence.
While dog owners have no duty of care toward adult trespassers other than to not intentionally hurt them, they do have such a duty to child trespassers under the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine. Children are the largest group of people injured by dogs since they often approach animals to pet them, even on other people’s property. They often do not understand the potential danger of an unknown dog—or even a familiar dog, as most cases involve children who know the dog that bites them.
Property owners have a duty to make reasonable adjustments to their surroundings to protect children, such as keeping a yard gate locked so children cannot enter the fenced property to interact with the dog. Let a Sacramento dog bite attorney from Erkel Law, P.C. assess your case and advise whether a homeowners’ insurance claim or lawsuit is your best option.
The Centers for Disease Control report that the most common injuries resulting from dog bites include facial disfigurement, torn scalps, arms, and legs, broken bones, infections, and blindness. Your compensation can address your medical bills, including rehabilitation and plastic surgery, your lost wages, the pain suffered, and emotional trauma related to the attack.
An Erkel Law, P.C. attorney will take your financial needs and emotional trauma seriously and can help you get the compensation you need to rebuild your life or your child’s after a dog attack. For compassionate and skilled representation, call a Sacramento dog bite lawyer now.
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