NEGLIGENT SECURITY ATTORNEY IN LAWRENCEVILLE, GEORGIA
Were you injured in a violent crime while at a convenience store, hotel, apartment complex, or other commercial property in Lawrenceville, Georgia? No one expects to be attacked and injured while shopping or visiting a commercial business on East Crogan Street or any other area in Lawrenceville. Most customers assume that they are safe while visiting commercial establishments. Commercial property owners are responsible for putting safety measures in place to deter crime. If an owner fails to take the necessary precautions and someone is injured, he/she can be held liable for negligence.
When a commercial property owner’s negligence causes you to be injured, contact the negligent security attorneys at Williams Elleby Howard & Easter at 833-LEGALGA (534-2542). Our law firm specializes only in personal injury cases, allowing us to be experts in our field. The lawyers of Williams Elleby Howard & Easter fight hard to get their clients the financial compensation they deserve and have the results to prove it.
WINNING A LAWRENCEVILLE NEGLIGENT SECURITY CASE
To win a negligent security case, your Lawrenceville attorney needs to prove the commercial property owner failed to take the necessary precautions to keep patrons or residents safe. According to Georgia statute O.C.G.A. § 51-3-1, commercial property owners are required to exercise ordinary care and take precautions to prevent foreseeable crimes. Crimes are considered foreseeable if similar crimes have occurred on the property before and are likely to occur on the property again in the future. To exercise ordinary care and to prevent crimes, a responsible property owner can install cameras, fences, or security gates. Utilizing security officers is another option, if necessary, to keep commercial properties safe.
To help determine the level of crime in the area and on the commercial property, your attorney will request a crime grid from the Lawrenceville Police Department. The crime grid serves as a powerful piece of evidence by showing the number and types of crimes that occurred where you were attacked. Your Lawrenceville negligent security attorney will then consult with an expert to see if the commercial property owner took enough precautions to deter crime on his/her property. If an expert concludes that the property owner did not, your attorney will file a negligent security lawsuit on your behalf.
WHAT HAPPENS DURING A LAWRENCEVILLE NEGLIGENT SECURITY LAWSUIT?
Once your Lawrenceville negligent security lawsuit is filed, your attorney will begin gathering important documents in your case. Your medical records and bills will be requested to prove the extent of your injuries and to help determine your financial losses. Insurance declaration pages will be requested from the commercial property owner’s insurance company to determine the amount of coverage available. To gather more information, the property owner, employees, and former crime victims may be deposed during this time. The entire discovery process, or information gathering period, will last at least six months.
Once all the evidence and records are gathered, your Lawrenceville negligent security case will most likely be ordered to mediation by the judge in your case. Mediation is one last final attempt to settle your case before moving to a jury trial. If an agreement cannot be reached between you and the commercial property owner’s insurance company, then your attorney will prepare for trial. Finally, a jury will decide if the commercial property owner was negligent and whether you are entitled to compensation.
APPORTIONMENT OF FAULT IN LAWRENCEVILLE NEGLIGENT SECURITY CASES
During a Lawrenceville negligent security case, the jury will apportion fault or determine the amount of responsibility the commercial property owner, the criminal, and the injury victim had in the incident. Each person will be assigned a percentage of fault, but usually only the injury victim will be able to collect any compensation. For example, if the jury decides the injuries are valued at $100,000, and the commercial property owner is 50% at fault, the criminal is 40% at fault, and the victim is 10% at fault, the victim could collect 90% of the $100,000. Since most criminals are not walking around with $40,000, you would most likely only receive $50,000 from the commercial property owner.
To help you better understand what apportionment is and how it affects your Lawrenceville negligent security case, watch this short video from Attorney Joel Williams: