California Premises Liability Attorney

California abolished the historical "invitee/licensee/trespasser" categories in Rowland v. Christian, 69 Cal.2d 108 (1968), and now applies a unified reasonable care standard. A property owner or possessor owes a duty of reasonable care under the circumstances to all persons who enter the property. Whether a duty was breached depends on factors including foreseeability of harm, certainty of injury, closeness of the connection between the conduct and injury, moral blame, policy of preventing future harm, burden on the defendant, and availability of insurance.

• Slip and fall — wet floors, spills, ice, defective walking surfaces, inadequate warning
• Trip and fall — uneven sidewalks, broken pavement, transition hazards
• Inadequate security — assaults in parking lots, hotels, apartment complexes where prior similar incidents made the harm foreseeable (Ann M. v. Pacific Plaza Shopping Center, 6 Cal.4th 666)
• Swimming pool injuries — drownings, diving injuries, defective pool equipment
• Defective stairs and railings — building code violations, inadequate handrails, riser/tread irregularities
• Falling object injuries — improperly stocked shelves, falling signage
• Dog attacks on premises — overlap with our Dog Attack page

Most premises cases turn on whether the defendant had notice of the dangerous condition:

• Actual notice — the defendant knew about the condition (employee saw it, complaint was logged)
• Constructive notice — the condition existed long enough that a reasonable inspection should have discovered it

Premises liability against public entities (cities, counties, state) is governed by Cal. Gov't Code § 835 ("dangerous condition of public property"). The plaintiff must prove the property was in a dangerous condition, the defendant knew or should have known of it, and the entity failed to take reasonable steps to protect against the danger. A claim must be presented to the entity within six months (Cal. Gov't Code § 911.2) before suit.

Range from modest to catastrophic depending on the injury. Recoverable damages include past and future medical expenses, lost earnings, lost earning capacity, pain and suffering, and life-care needs for severe injuries. Inadequate-security cases involving assault may also support punitive damages where the defendant's conduct was sufficiently reckless.