Louisiana Premises Liability Lawyer

A Louisiana premises claim under La. C.C. art. 2317.1 requires proof that the owner knew or should have known of a defect that created an unreasonable risk and failed to use reasonable care, and the filing period is two years under art. 3493.1. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers builds that knowledge file from inspection records, maintenance logs, prior complaints and surveillance, whether the injury came from a broken stair, a security failure, a pool or a falling object.

Louisiana Premises Liability Law and the Duty of Care

La. C.C. Art. 2317.1

Louisiana premises liability law operates under a framework different from most states. The duty of care comes from La. C.C. Art. 2317, which holds that a person is responsible for damage caused by things in their custody. La. C.C. Art. 2317.1 narrows that obligation by requiring proof that the property owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition.

To prove a premises liability claim in Louisiana, you must establish four elements. First, the defendant owned or controlled the property. Second, a condition on the property created an unreasonable risk of harm. Third, the defendant knew or should have known about the condition. Fourth, the defendant failed to exercise reasonable care. Missing any one of these elements defeats the claim.

Louisiana does not use the common law invitee, licensee, and trespasser classifications that most states follow. Instead, Louisiana courts apply a general reasonableness standard. The question is whether the property owner acted reasonably under the circumstances.

Falls in stores, restaurants, and other businesses that sell goods, food, or merchandise at a fixed location, including a hotel’s shops, restaurants, and lobby areas, are governed by a separate merchant statute, La. R.S. 9:2800.6, with its own proof requirements. Our Louisiana slip and fall lawyers page explains how those cases are proved.

Louisiana’s premises liability framework also intersects with La. C.C. Art. 2315, the general negligence article. In some cases, a claim may proceed under general negligence rather than the specific custody framework. If you have been injured in a hunting accident on someone’s property, different rules may apply.

Common Premises Liability Injuries in Louisiana

Broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, spinal damage, and drowning are the most common premises liability injuries in Louisiana. The type and severity of your injury determines the value of your claim and the medical evidence needed to support it.

Broken bones are the most common premises liability injury. Falls on wet floors, uneven sidewalks, and damaged staircases frequently result in fractured wrists, hips, and ankles. Hip fractures are particularly serious for older adults. The CDC reports that falls are the leading cause of non-fatal injuries treated in emergency departments nationwide.

Traumatic brain injuries occur when a person’s head strikes the ground or a hard surface during a fall. These injuries are not always immediately apparent. Symptoms like confusion, headaches, and memory problems may develop hours or days later. Any head impact during a premises incident requires medical evaluation.

Spinal cord injuries and back injuries result from falls from elevated surfaces, collapsed structures, or impacts with equipment. Herniated discs, compression fractures, and soft tissue damage to the back and neck are common. These injuries often require long-term treatment and can limit your ability to work.

Drowning and near-drowning occur in swimming pool accidents, particularly involving children. Near-drowning events can cause permanent brain damage even when the victim survives.

Electrocution injuries happen when exposed wiring, faulty electrical panels, or downed power lines on a property contact a visitor. Burns from fires, explosions, and hot surfaces on commercial or industrial properties create severe injuries that often require reconstructive surgery. Dog bites cause lacerations, scarring, nerve damage, and infections. Under La. C.C. Art. 2321, a dog’s owner is responsible for injuries the dog causes that the owner could have prevented, unless the injured person provoked the dog. If another kind of animal hurt you, you must show that the owner knew or should have known the animal could cause harm and failed to use reasonable care to prevent it.

Premises cases involving TBI, spinal injuries, or severe burns require life care planning and vocational assessments. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers coordinates with medical specialists to document the full scope of injury before entering settlement negotiations.

Types of Premises Liability Cases in Louisiana

Premises liability covers a broad range of situations. The common thread is that someone was injured because a property owner failed to maintain safe conditions or warn about known hazards.

Slip, Trip and Fall Accidents

Falls are the most common premises injury: wet floors, spilled liquids, icy walkways, loose rugs, cracked sidewalks and unmarked steps. A fall in a store or restaurant is governed by the merchant statute, and a fall on a public sidewalk or in a public building by the rules for public entities. Both are explained on our slip and fall page. Outside those settings, these cases often turn on whether the property owner had prior knowledge of the condition. Repeated complaints from other visitors, prior incident reports, and maintenance requests all establish constructive knowledge.

Property owners are not required to make their property perfectly safe. They must use reasonable care to find hazards, then fix them within a reasonable time or warn visitors about them. Under La. C.C. art. 2317.1, an owner is responsible for an injury caused by a hazard only when the owner knew about it or, using reasonable care, should have known about it, reasonable care could have prevented the injury, and the owner failed to use that care.

Inadequate Security

When a property owner fails to provide reasonable security measures and someone is assaulted, the property owner may be liable. Our negligent security page covers these claims in detail. These cases arise in apartment complexes, parking garages, hotels, and shopping centers. Missing locks, broken cameras, inadequate lighting, and absent security personnel all contribute to inadequate security claims.

Inadequate security cases require different expert witnesses and different evidence than a standard slip and fall. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers works with security consultants who evaluate whether the property’s security measures met industry standards for the type of property and its location.

Swimming Pool Accidents

Pool accidents involve drowning, diving injuries, drain entrapment, and chemical exposure. Our swimming pool accident page covers them in detail. These cases frequently involve children, which changes the duty of care analysis.

Drain entrapment is one of the most dangerous pool hazards. Defective or uncovered drains create suction forces strong enough to hold a child underwater. If the property had a known drain deficiency and failed to address it, that is a strong basis for liability.

Additional Premises Hazards

Injuries at hotels and casinos raise their own questions about guest safety, security and maintenance, covered on our hotel injury and casino injury pages. Elevator and escalator malfunctions cause crush injuries, falls, and entrapment. Toxic exposure from mold, asbestos, or chemical spills on property creates both acute and long-term health problems. Amusement parks and entertainment venues create unique premises liability situations involving ride malfunctions and crowd management failures.

Louisiana’s hurricane and storm seasons create temporary premises hazards that are particularly common in coastal and storm-prone parishes. Fallen trees, construction debris, damaged walkways, and active repair zones all create conditions where injuries occur. Property owners have a duty to secure these hazards or restrict access to damaged areas while repairs are underway.

Proving Negligence in a Louisiana Premises Liability Case

Preponderance of the Evidence

The burden of proof in a premises liability case rests on you. You must prove your claim by a Preponderance of the Evidence standard. This means showing that your version of events is more likely true than not.

Constructive Knowledge

The critical question in most premises cases is whether the property owner knew or should have known about the hazard. Direct knowledge is straightforward. The owner received a complaint, saw the hazard, or created it. Constructive knowledge is harder to prove. You must show that the condition existed long enough that a reasonable property owner would have discovered and addressed it.

Evidence That Matters

The most important evidence in a premises liability case includes surveillance video, incident reports, maintenance logs, inspection records, prior complaints about the same condition, and building code violation records. Expert witnesses play a significant role. Structural engineers evaluate whether a building condition violated safety codes. Lighting experts assess whether visibility contributed to the accident. Safety consultants determine whether the property met industry standards.

Spoliation

The destruction or alteration of evidence after a party has notice of pending litigation. Courts can instruct juries to assume the destroyed evidence was unfavorable to the party that destroyed it.

Spoliation is a serious risk in premises cases. Many commercial surveillance systems record over their footage on a short cycle. If you do not send a preservation demand immediately after the incident, the most important evidence in your case may be permanently deleted.

Evidence Strategy Under the 2026 Fault Rules

Louisiana’s new 51% comparative fault bar (La. C.C. art. 2323) makes evidence gathering more critical than ever. For injuries on or after January 1, 2026, insurance companies have a specific target: push your fault percentage to 51% or more and the property owner pays nothing; below that, your damages are cut by your share of fault. The change applies only going forward (La. C.C. art. 6). If you were hurt before January 1, 2026, your share of fault lowers your damages but does not bar your claim, no matter how high it is. Building a strong negligence case from the start requires documenting every aspect of the property’s condition, not just the hazard that caused your injury.

Trey Morris Injury Lawyers sends a preservation demand once the facts give an honest basis for one, so footage, inspection logs and repair records stay available, and investigators photograph and measure the property condition before repairs can be made.

Comparative Fault in Louisiana Premises Liability Claims

Comparative Fault

Louisiana follows Comparative Fault principles under La. C.C. Art. 2323.

As of January 1, 2026, Louisiana’s tort reform introduced a hard cutoff. If you are found 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing. Before 2026, Louisiana was a pure comparative fault state where you could recover something even at 99% fault.

How Property Owners Use Comparative Fault

Property owners and their insurance companies use comparative fault aggressively in premises cases. Common arguments include that you were looking at your phone, wearing inappropriate footwear, ignored posted warning signs, entered a restricted area, or should have seen the hazard.

Open and Obvious Doctrine

A defense argument that the hazard was so apparent that a reasonable person would have seen it and avoided it. If successful, it shifts fault to the injured person. Louisiana courts evaluate this on a case-by-case basis.

A visible pothole in broad daylight is different from a wet floor in a dimly lit corridor.

Insurance adjusters routinely inflate your fault percentage to reduce payouts or push you above the 51% bar.

What Compensation Does Louisiana Law Allow After a Premises Injury?

Louisiana law divides personal injury compensation into economic and non-economic categories. There is no cap on non-economic damages in premises liability cases against private owners; claims against public bodies are capped. This distinguishes premises liability from medical malpractice, where Louisiana does cap non-economic recovery.

Economic Damages

Economic damages cover your measurable financial losses. These include past and future medical expenses, lost wages during recovery, Loss of Earning Capacity, rehabilitation and physical therapy costs, and home modification costs if your injury requires changes to your living space.

Future medical costs require expert testimony.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages compensate for losses that do not have a receipt. Pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and scarring or disfigurement all fall into this category. These damages are subjective, which is why they are heavily contested.

Loss of Consortium

Your close family may have its own Loss of Consortium claim under La. C.C. Art. 2315 for the loss of your companionship, help and support caused by the injury. The law gives that claim to the same relatives who could bring a wrongful death claim: your spouse and children first, then your parents if you have no spouse or child, then your brothers and sisters, then your grandparents. It is their claim, separate from yours.

Fatal Premises Accidents

If a premises liability incident results in death, Louisiana law provides two separate claims. A wrongful death action under La. C.C. Art. 2315.2 compensates surviving family members for their own losses. A Survival Action under La. C.C. Art. 2315.1 recovers the victim’s own damages from the moment of injury to the moment of death.

Louisiana’s tort reform also changed the collateral source rule for past medical bills under La. R.S. 9:2800.27. In lawsuits filed on or after January 1, 2026, if health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid or workers’ compensation paid your medical bills, you can claim only what was actually paid plus your own copays, coinsurance and deductibles, not the full billed amount. The same limit applies when your lawyer negotiated a lower bill with a provider. Bills you paid yourself or still owe count in full. The change does not apply to medical payments coverage under a car insurance policy, and it does not reach disability benefits or other payments that are not for medical bills.

Louisiana’s Prescriptive Period for Premises Liability Claims

Louisiana gives you two years from the date of injury to file a premises liability lawsuit. This deadline is set by La. C.C. Art. 3493.1, which took effect on July 1, 2024. On or before that date, Louisiana’s Prescriptive Period for personal injury was one year.

The contra non valentem doctrine may extend the prescriptive period in limited circumstances. If your injury was not immediately apparent, the clock may not start until you knew or should have known about it. This applies to cases involving toxic exposure, latent injuries, and situations where the connection between the property condition and the injury was not obvious.

For minors injured on someone’s property, the prescriptive period still runs (La. C.C. art. 3468), so a parent or tutor has to file within the same period. Claims against government entities under La. R.S. 13:5101 use the same deadline, with no pre-suit notice, but service must be requested within 90 days of filing. Government premises liability claims have additional procedural requirements that can bar your case if not followed.

Who Can Be Held Liable in a Louisiana Premises Liability Case?

Liability in a premises case does not always fall on the property owner alone. Louisiana law recognizes multiple parties who may share responsibility for maintaining safe conditions.

Property Owners and Operators

The most obvious defendant is the person or entity that owns the property. This includes individuals, LLCs, trusts, and corporate owners. Tenants and lessees who exercise control over the property also bear a duty of care to people who enter. If you slipped in a restaurant, the restaurant tenant may be liable even though they do not own the building.

Property management companies that handle day-to-day maintenance and inspection responsibilities can be held liable for hazards they failed to discover or repair. The management contract often determines which party bears the maintenance obligation.

Contractors and Government Entities

General contractors and subcontractors working on a property create premises hazards during construction and renovation. Open excavations, exposed wiring, unmarked drop-offs, and construction debris all fall on the contractor if they failed to secure the work area.

Government entities in Louisiana are not immune from premises liability, but they have additional protections. Under La. R.S. 9:2800, for most government property, such as a sidewalk, street or park, you must prove the entity had actual or constructive notice of the particular defect before the injury, had a reasonable opportunity to fix it, and failed to do so. That added requirement does not apply to the condition of a government building in the entity’s care and custody. A claim about a defective government building is judged under the general rule that applies to any property owner. Government premises claims also carry the procedural rules described in the deadline section above.

Multiple Liable Parties

When more than one party is responsible, Louisiana law allows for contribution and indemnity among defendants. This means the defendants share the financial responsibility according to their respective fault percentages. From your perspective, having multiple liable parties can strengthen your case because you are not dependent on a single defendant’s insurance limits.

Filing suit only against the property owner, without considering the management company, the contractor, or other parties, can leave available coverage on the table. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers investigates the ownership structure, management agreements, and maintenance contracts for every property involved in a claim.

Steps to Take After an Injury on Someone Else’s Property

What you do in the first 48 hours after a premises injury directly affects the strength of your case.

Report the incident to the property owner or manager immediately. Request a written incident report and ask for a copy. Many property owners will complete an internal report and then claim one was never made. Get your copy before you leave if possible.

Seek medical attention the same day. Even if you think the injury is minor, a medical record linking your symptoms to the location and date of the incident is essential. Insurance companies look for gaps between the incident and the first medical visit. A three-day gap gives them room to argue the injury happened elsewhere.

Document the scene before you leave. Take photos and video of the hazard that caused your injury, the surrounding area, lighting conditions, any warning signs or lack thereof, and your visible injuries. Photograph your shoes. The defense will argue about your footwear.

Identify witnesses and collect their contact information. Witness testimony about what they saw, the condition of the property, and whether any warnings were posted can corroborate your account.

Preserve the clothing and footwear you were wearing at the time. These become evidence. Do not wash them, repair them, or throw them away.

Do not give recorded statements to the property owner’s insurance company before consulting an attorney. The adjuster’s goal is to get you to say something that reduces the value of your claim or admits fault.

How Trey Morris Injury Lawyers Handles Premises Liability Cases

Trey Morris Injury Lawyers has handled premises liability claims across Louisiana for over 20 years. The firm has six offices statewide, in Shreveport, Bossier City, Minden, Ruston, Covington, and Lake Charles.

The firm’s approach to premises cases starts with evidence preservation, because the evidence that proves premises cases is time-sensitive in a way that other personal injury evidence is not.

Trey Morris Injury Lawyers works with structural engineers, safety consultants, and building inspectors who evaluate whether the property condition violated applicable codes and standards. These experts provide the technical foundation for proving the property owner’s negligence.

Contingency Fee

A fee arrangement where the attorney is paid a percentage of the recovery and only if there is a recovery. The client pays nothing upfront and owes no attorney fees if the case is unsuccessful.

The firm carries an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and has earned over 2,815 five-star Google reviews. Trey Morris Injury Lawyers handles premises liability cases on a Contingency Fee basis. View our case results or contact our office.