Columbia Premises Liability Lawyer

When a property owner fails to keep their South Carolina land or building free from hazards, you can hold them legally responsible for any injuries you incur. If you suffered injuries on someone else’s property, a Columbia premises liability lawyer at our firm can pursue compensation for your expenses and losses.

You can speak to Louthian Law Firm, P.A., today at no obligation. We provide free case reviews for those who suffered injuries in South Carolina. Columbia personal injury lawyers can explain your options and how we can seek a payout on your behalf. Contact us today to get started.

Results in Our Recent Personal Injury Cases

Our attorneys regularly recover compensation for our clients hurt due to someone else’s negligence. Some recent case results include:

• $1 million settlement in a client’s personal injury claim
• $550,000 settlement of a victim’s personal injury case
• $225,000 settlement in a client’s premises liability injury

There is no typical or average payout in a South Carolina premises liability case. However, we use our experience and knowledge of the law to pursue compensation and fight for every client’s best interests.

How a Columbia Premises Liability Attorney at Our Firm Can Help With Your Case

As your attorney in your premises liability case, our team can help you in several ways, including:

• Protecting your right to pursue fair compensation
• Representing your best interests
• Handling all communication related to the claim
• Investigating what happened and building a strong claim
• Helping you understand the potential value of your case
• Navigating the claims process on your behalf
• Negotiating with the insurance company
• Taking your case to trial, if needed

With more than 80 years of combined experience handling personal injury and premises liability cases, our lawyers know how to prove negligence and liability and recover fair compensation for our clients. You can learn more today during a free case review.

Columbia Premises Liability Injuries Create Significant Damages for Victims

When a property owner allows a hazard to occur without addressing it or does not maintain the property in a safe condition, those who visit the building or land may suffer injuries.

These injuries can occur in many ways. Some we see in Columbia include:

• Trip and falls
• Slip and falls
• Falls from a height
• Balcony, deck, or railing collapse
• Swimming pool injuries
• Electrocution
• Fires
• Dog bites
• Elevator or escalator incidents
• Inadequate security

Because injuries occur in so many ways, the severity of the injury can also vary widely. Some who slip in tracked water may suffer a broken wrist or torn ligament in their knee. Others could hit their head and live with traumatic brain injuries (TBI) for the rest of their lives.

We help our clients seek compensation for relatively minor injuries to devastating, debilitating injuries, including:

• Catastrophic injuries, such as TBIs and spinal cord injuries
• Neck and back injuries
• Burns, scarring, and disfigurement
• Amputations and loss of limb use
• Fractures
• Soft tissue and joint injuries
• Internal injuries
• Contusions, abrasions, and lacerations

Each victim’s injuries require a unique treatment plan and have different lasting effects on the victim’s life. These effects could include financial stress from medical bills, new disabilities that prevent them from working in the same field, and emotional distress related to the situation. Some people miss weeks or months at work, making their concerns even more pronounced.

Recovering Damages for Clients in Columbia

At Louthian Law Firm, P.A., our goal is to get justice and compensation for our clients. We file insurance claims and lawsuits against negligent property owners and other liable parties. This way, we can seek compensation for our clients’ expenses and losses from their accidents and injuries.

Compensation could include damages such as:

• Medical bills and related expenses
• Future care costs for lasting injuries
• Lost income, including wages, tips, commissions, gig pay, and other sources
• Diminished earning capacity
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish

Our Team Calculates a Fair Settlement Range

Our attorneys know how to use our resources and the evidence in your case to determine a possible settlement range for your insurance claim. We may call in experts, gather receipts and bills, and take other steps to estimate the value of your expenses and losses, including the intangible damages you endured.

Completing these tasks helps us ensure we seek a fair and just payout when negotiating with the insurance company. It also gives us the necessary evidence to show the jury the value of your case if we need to go to trial.

Wrongful Death Damages Are Available

Louthian Law Firm, P.A., manages wrongful death actions for clients in Columbia. We represent families who lost a loved one in a premises liability incident. We know how South Carolina’s wrongful death laws work, who can take legal action, and who benefits from these claims.

We can discuss your case with you for free. Our compassionate, understanding team members can assess your options and talk you through what could happen next if you choose to work with us and pursue damages. We may be able to get justice for you and your family after a fatal accident in the Midlands region.

Who Is Liable for My Injuries?

South Carolina law allows injury victims to hold the property owner or occupier legally responsible when:

• They owe the victim a duty of care
• They failed to uphold that duty
• This failure caused the victim’s accident and injuries
• The victim suffered physical, emotional, and financial harm

For example, imagine you fell in a local store. The carpet had a tear, and you tripped. The party responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the store should have known about the tear in the carpet. However, they did not act to repair it. You suffered a torn ligament in your knee and required surgery.

Under the premises liability laws established in a court ruling, Sojourner v. Autozone Inc et al., the party responsible for the carpet owes you a duty of care since you were there as a customer or guest.

Our team can review the property ownership, lease agreement, and other documentation to determine who owed our client the duty of care. We identify the liable party or parties, then seek compensation from them through an insurance claim, lawsuit, or another type of negotiated settlement.

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Proving Negligence and Liability in My Case

The attorneys from Louthian Law Firm, P.A., know how to develop a case for compensation and use it as support for negotiating a fair and just payout. We know how to investigate premises liability accidents, including falls, pool accidents, and more. We understand the necessary steps to identify, gather, and analyze evidence and how to properly document negligence and liability in your case.

The evidence we often use in these cases includes:

• Official documents, such as police reports or incident reports
• Relevant medical records
• Video of the accident
• A survey of the accident scene
• Photographs or other documentation of the hazard
• Eyewitness accounts
• Accident reconstruction, as needed
• Physical evidence
• Expert opinions about prognosis, future care needs, and more
• Documentation of our client’s losses

Once we have the necessary evidence, we can document what happened and determine the legally responsible party. Showing which party owed our client the duty of care and how their negligence caused the accident and injuries is essential to securing compensation.

We can often convince the liable party or their insurance provider with strong evidence that they do not want to take this case to court. When they realize we have a strong enough case to show a jury what happened and who is legally responsible, negotiating an out-of-court settlement becomes possible. This is one of the most common outcomes in these cases. We negotiate a fair and just settlement with the liable party’s insurer for our client.

What if They Claim I Was Trespassing?

Some liable parties try to deny or reduce compensation due to a victim in these cases by claiming they were not on the property or in the area legally. South Carolina law states that property owners do not owe most trespassers a duty of care. This defense makes it difficult to prove negligence and liability.

Our attorneys know how to counter these accusations and other common defenses that arise in these cases. We can mitigate their effect on your case or deny them and continue to pursue full compensation for your injuries and damages.

If the property owner, manager, or another party already made this accusation against you, let our team know as soon as possible. The sooner we get to work on your case, the better we can support your side of the story and show the insurer or court that you deserve a fair payout.

How Long Do You Have to Start a Columbia Premises Liability Lawsuit?

South Carolina has strict laws that set deadlines for beginning a lawsuit. These deadlines do not stop insurance claims or suits already in progress. They apply only to filing the initial complaint in a Richland County civil court or another applicable South Carolina court.

In general, the timelines include:

• Personal injury: Three years under South Carolina law
• Wrongful death: Three years under the same law
• Injury suits against a municipality: Two years under South Carolina law

There are many reasons to act well in advance of this deadline in all of these situations. The earlier you get started, the more evidence may be available to support your claim. In addition, some claims settle relatively quickly outside of court and do not require a lawsuit. If this applies to your case, you could have your money sooner than if you wait on the court system.

When suing the City of Columbia, Richland County, or another government agency, we may have to meet much quicker deadlines, so enlist our help as soon as possible in these cases.

Connect With Our Columbia Premises Liability Lawyer for Free

At Louthian Law Firm, P.A., we provide free case reviews for victims of premises liability injuries in Columbia and other nearby areas. We can assess your rights and options based on the specific details of your case. Our attorneys are here to help you get justice and hold the at-fault party accountable.

Contact us now at (803) 454-1200 to get started with your complimentary initial consultation with our team.

Louthian Law Firm, P.A., – Columbia Office

1116 Blanding St., #3A
Columbia, SC 29201
(803) 454-1200