Premises Liability in Dorm Buildings

Dorms offer an incredible transitional environment for our young college students. Dorm residents don’t yet have the face all of the hardships of normal adult life, but receive just enough responsibility to learn how to take care of themselves. This is an incredibly valuable part of the college experience, and we usually pay a premium for it. When we send our young students off to live in a dorm, we expect that they will be safe and taken care of. When a dorm building fails to maintain safe conditions for their residents, serious injuries can occur. If your child has been injured due to a dangerous condition in a dorm building, you may be able to file a premises liability claim against the university.

Premises liability is the legal principle that holds property owners accountable for the condition that they keep their property in. There is an expectation that all property owners will eliminate tripping hazards, slipping hazards, electrical hazards, or any other maintenance issue which can lead to injuries. This responsibility applies to any property owner and is intended to keep visitors on that property safe. With a dorm building, premises liability allows students and their families to seek compensation for their injuries if they are injured due to poor maintenance by the school.

In order for your premises liability case to succeed, you will need to prove that the school was negligent in their care of the property. Negligence means that the school did not act within reason to maintain the dorm property, and this lack of maintenance was the cause of the student’s injuries. Though this all may sound simple, actually proving negligence is a very complicated matter. The school may argue that the student’s own actions were careless and led to their injuries, or that they had taken reasonable efforts to fix the issue before the injuries occurred.

To win a premises liability case against a college or university, you will need to contact an attorney, like a skilled premises liability attorney Dekalb County GA relies on, in your area who is experienced in premises liability law. An attorney with skill will be able to analyze the factors of the accident to determine the strength of your case, and help you decide what path will be best for you. If the accident was severe, then a favorable outcome could see compensation for the injuries that your student suffered, as well as compensation for any time they missed from work or classes.

Thanks to our friends and contributors from Andrew R. Lynch, P.C. for their insight into premises liability in dorm buildings