What Does Strict Liability Mean in California Dog Bite Cases?

Dog bites are a traumatic, painful experience we hope no one ever has to deal with but they happen all the time. If you’re injured by a dog bite in California, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries.

Normally, to recover compensatory damages, you must establish negligence. In most cases, the elements for a finding of liability that must be established are:

• The defendant had a legal to you;
• The duty was breached through either an act or omission;
• The breach caused injury to you; and
• You suffered harm as a result.

However, in California most dog bite cases fall into a category where the party causing harm may be held responsible even if they did not act negligently. This is a legal concept known as strict liability.

Dog Bite Injuries and Strict Legal Liability

In California, dog owners are usually strictly liable for any injuries their animals cause during a dog bite accident. For strict liability to apply, you only have to prove you were lawfully present on the property at time of attack and the attack caused injury. Knowledge of a dog’s viciousness is not required for liability to attach, and the lack of any prior attacks does not prevent an owner from being found liable.

Even though the owner is usually responsible for their dog’s actions, in a few situations where an owner will not be strictly liable for the harm caused. Common scenarios where a defendant may not be liable include:

• You provoked the dog;
• The dog was involved in police or military work and either defending itself or aiding during the execution of a warrant, investigating a crime, defending an officer or other person, or apprehending and holding a suspect reasonably suspected of being involved in criminal activity;
• You were trespassing at the time of the bite;
• You assumed the risk;
• The dog isn’t actually owned by the person you’re suing; and
• You negligently caused the bite.

However, in cases involving either a police or military dog, strict liability could still apply if the victim injured by the dog was not either an actual or suspected participant in or party to the actions that led up to the decision to involve the dog in its official capacity.

The rules, exceptions, and exceptions to these exceptions are best dealt with by an experienced California dog bite attorney.

Contact an Attorney Today

Though nothing can undo the fact your endured a traumatic experience, contacting the skilled California Dog Bite attorneys at Daneshrad Law today is a good place to start. Attorney Alan Daneshrad has spent years working tirelessly for victims like you and will use his knowledge, skill, and resources to help your family navigate through a difficult time and get the compensation you deserve. Call us at (888) 881-3529 to schedule a no risk initial case consultation. Let us evaluate your case and start working on your behalf today to get the best possible result from this tragedy to help get your life back on track. We represent clients in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, and throughout California.