Premises Liability for Owners of Private Property

Premises liability for owners of private property in Maryland are dependent on the type of property involved. Private property owners are required to maintain their home in a reasonably safe manner when they are having a social guest. This means that any known dangerous conditions must be corrected or properly warned of to avoid an injury.

If you have been injured on private property due to another’s negligence, it is imperative that you consult with an experienced attorney as soon as possible. A knowledgeable lawyer can assist in maximizing any potential damages you may be entitled to.

Examples of Dangerous Conditions

If one of the steps is missing from a set of steps leading down to the basement and the owner intends to use the basement when having guests over to their house; that is a dangerous condition.

It should be corrected or they cannot use their basement. If they want to use the basement, they need to properly warn the guests that a step is missing.

Type of Property

The type of property changes the duty owed to the social guest. Therefore, the type of property must be known and the incident must be evaluated so that the actions taken by the homeowner can be evaluated against those actions of the injured person.

Someone who owns a regular home owes a different duty than the board of a condominium association owes to all of the condominium owners and social guests. Likewise, the owner of an individual condominium owes a different duty to social guests than the owner of the entire condominium complex.

The premises liability for owners of private property in Maryland completely depends on the type of property involved in the incident. During the trial process, the finder of fact is typically the jury or with a bench trial, the judge.

Rights of a Property Owner

A property owner has the right to a defense. They have the right to turn the claim into their own association or their homeowner’s insurance policy may provide them with an attorney.

They have the right to defend their claim. Just because someone is injured in a person’s home does not mean the homeowner has no right to a defense. This will depend on the specific premises liability claim for an owner of private property in Maryland.

Landlords are required to maintain the property in a good and safe condition. The duty owed by the owner of the property, the landlord, or anyone else in the chain of command depends on the nature of the property and the issues pertaining to the case.

Potential Consequences

The premises liability evaluation is the same no matter if the property is private or commercial. The duty owed is different, but the evaluation as to the actions by the injured person and the actions taken by the property owner is the same.

However, the duty owed, the reasonable actions of each party, and the specific premises liability elements for owners of private property in Maryland are different based on the facts and circumstances of the case.