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NEGLIGENT SECURITY CLAIMS


Premises Liability Lawyer Reviewing Cases for injured plaintiffs Nationwide
Nationwide Success

Victims of crimes in private establishments like bars, parking lots or housing complexes may have legal claims against the owners and management for possible negligent security.

The owners and property managers are not directly responsible for criminal action, but if businesses fail to provide adequate staff, lighting or other basic security measures to protect against crimes that are reasonably foreseeable, they may be liable for putting either employees or patrons at unnecessary risk.

The courts have upheld the belief that property and business owners have a legal duty to make sure their property does not present an undue danger to the physical well-being of workers, tenants, customers or people who come onto the property for any purpose.

If an assault or robbery occurs on private property due in part to poor security conditions, a civil lawsuit against the property owner for negligent security may be filed. Negligent security cases fall under the practice area of premises liability law, and may involve hotels, stores, restaurants, malls, parking garages, or apartment complexes.

Joe Lyon is an experienced personal injury attorney investigating claims of physical assault or property damages due to negligent security.

Common Crimes in Negligent Security Lawsuits

  • Assault and battery
  • Sexual assault
  • Rape claims
  • Wrongful death
  • Robbery
  • False imprisonment
  • Arson
  • Home invasion
  • Car jacking
  • Gun Violence

Proper Crime & Safety Precautions

Businesses in high-crime areas are common defendants in negligent security claims. If it is more likely that crime is likely to occur on a property, there must be preventative security actions taken to ensure the safety of employees, tenants and patrons. Poor security conditions include a lack of security staff, and a lack of lighting and cameras. The more security barriers there are, the less likely a criminal will seize an opportunity to commit a particular crime.

Whether or not a safety risk is foreseeable depends on where a business or property is located, how attractive it is to criminals, and the history of area crime. If the property in question is located in a high crime area, any property owner has a duty to obtain sufficient security measures.

For a victim to win a negligent security case, a court must find that the property owner knew the property was located in a high-crime area, and still failed to take appropriate caution. An experienced local lawyer can analyze area crime statistics and experts’ opinion to argue that the property owner ignored obvious crime risks.

How much security is enough? The answer depends on specific case circumstances, but usually the more frequently a crime occurs, the more additional security measures a property owner is expected to take. In most cases, proper lighting, cameras and armed security patrols are sufficient.

Common Defendants in Negligent Security Claims

Most plaintiffs are either customers, tenants or guests of a business, and employees represent make up around 15 percent of plaintiffs. Common establishments involved in lawsuits include:

Compensation for Victims of Negligent Security

When it comes to taking legal action, it may be easier for a victim to locate the owner or manager of a property than whomever actually committed the crime. An owner is also likely to have insurance, making it more likely for damages to be recovered.

What a court will see as adequate security for a property can vary, though common security features include trained security patrols during business hours or when guests are expected to be at the property, proper lighting, and functioning cameras and locks. If there has been a crime on the premises, contact a lawyer to determine whether security measures were adequate and to evaluate who may be liable in your situation.

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ABOUT THE LYON FIRM

Joseph Lyon has 17 years of experience representing individuals in complex litigation matters. He has represented individuals in every state against many of the largest companies in the world.

The Firm focuses on single-event civil cases and class actions involving corporate neglect & fraud, toxic exposure, product defects & recalls, medical malpractice, and invasion of privacy.

NO COST UNLESS WE WIN

The Firm offers contingency fees, advancing all costs of the litigation, and accepting the full financial risk, allowing our clients full access to the legal system while reducing the financial stress while they focus on their healthcare and financial needs.

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A Voice for Those who have suffered

Why are these cases important?

Serious injuries and accidents often result through no fault of the injured party, yet the injured victim suffers from life altering physical, mental and financial losses. Such economic and human losses can have devastating financial consequences on individuals and families if not properly compensated. Tort law allows those individuals to seek just legal recourse through personal injury lawsuits.

CONTACT THE LYON FIRM TODAY

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Questions about Personal Injury Cases

What is a Personal Injury Lawsuit?

Any kind of negligence by an individual or company that causes injury or harm can lead to filing a personal injury lawsuit. The amount a plaintiff is entitled to depends on several factors, particularly how egregious the act and how serious the injury.

Personal injury attorneys generally only will take cases on a confidential and contingency fee basis, which means your lawyer will only get paid if he or she is able to reach a settlement or positive verdict. The Lyon Firm will review your case for free and assess what compensation any plaintiff can expect through litigation.

Personal Injury cases can range from minor auto accidents to complex lawsuits filed against large corporations. The Lyon Firm has handled both with equal care. Severe injury requires legal action on occasion, no matter if the injury is the result of a vehicle accident, a dog bite, a boating accident, workplace injury, defective consumer products, medical malpractice, or toxic exposure.

What is the Process?

Pre-Suit Investigation and Negotiations: Personal injury lawsuits are unique and require a thorough investigation before a lawsuit is filed. An initial investigation involves gathering all relevant medical records, accident reports, and interviews with available witnesses.  Preservation letters are drafted to notify the defendant of the case. The duty to preserve electronic evidence is critical in most cases to prevent spoliation.

Filing a Lawsuit in Cincinnati: If pre-suit negotiations are unsuccessful, then a lawsuit must be filed to preserve the statute of limitations.  Filing a lawsuit early in the process is often necessary to begin gathering evidence while the witnesses memories are fresh and documents remain available.

Once suit is filed by your personal injury lawyer, the court will set a case management schedule and the parties will begin exchanging information in the formal process of discovery. Depositions will be taken to preserve testimony for trial and to understand what certain witnesses are likely to say at trial.

Proving Negligence, Causation and Damages: In addition to lay witness testimony and other documentary evidence, personal injury claims rely upon medical and scientific evidence to prove negligence, causation and damages. The chosen expert in a case must have a reliable and sound basis in science and in the facts of the case or his opinion may not be admissible under the rules of evidence.

In the areas of Toxic and Environmental Torts, the admission of expert testimony may be scrutinized harder than in other areas simply because the subject may not have been as widely tested and may rest on novel scientific theories.

Are there any limits to what I can recover?

Each state will vary. Under Ohio law, an injured party may recover damages related to medical expenses, lost wages, property damage, loss of enjoyment of life, past pain and suffering, future pain and suffering, and punitive damages. The numerical limits are as such:

  1. Non-Catastrophic Injury:   The non-economic award is limited to $250,000 per plaintiff, or three times the economic loss, up to $350,000 per plaintiff. A maximum of $500,000 for each “occurrence.”
  2. Catastrophic Injury: No limits.

The Lyon Firm may be able to file injury claims and recover rightful compensation for clients for medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost earnings and long-term disability.

Why should I hire The Lyon Firm?

Our Firm will help you find the answers.  The Firm has the experience, resources and dedication to take on difficult and emotional cases and help our clients obtain the justice for the wrong they have suffered. 

Experience:  Joe Lyon is an experienced Cincinnati Personal Injury Lawyer. The Lyon Firm has 17 years of experience and success representing individuals and plaintiffs in all fifty states, and in a variety of complex civil litigation matters.   Personal Injury lawsuits can be complex and require industry experts to determine the root cause of an accident or injury.  Mr. Lyon has worked with experts nationwide to assist individuals understand why an injury occurred and what can be done to improve their lives in the future. Some cases may go to a jury trial, though many others can be settled out of court.

Resources/Dedication: Mr. Lyon has worked with experts in the fields of accident reconstruction, biomechanics, epidemiology, metallurgy, pharmacology, toxicology, human factors, workplace safety, life care planning, economics, and virtually every medical discipline in successfully representing Plaintiffs across numerous areas of law. The Lyon Firm is dedicated to building the strongest cases possible for clients and their critical interests.

Results:  Mr. Lyon has obtained numerous seven and six figure results.

Our Victories

The Lyon Firm aggressively, professionally, and passionately advocates for injured individuals and families against negligent individuals or companies to obtain just compensation under the law. 

$1,000,000

WRONGFUL DEATH: DISTRACTED DRIVER

(Brown County, Kentucky):   The Lyon Firm was second chair a case involving a driver texting and driving when he crossed the median, killing a father of four. The case was resolved once discovery confirmed the cell phone records proved the texting-related incident. The settlement will pay for the surviving childrens’ education. The driver was likely facing additional criminal charges at the time of the settlement.

$495,000

MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT

(Cincinnati, Ohio):  The Lyon Firm was lead counsel in a $495,000 settlement. This case involved a motorcycle operator who sustained fractures of the calcaneus, talus, medial cuneiform, tarsal bones, and tarsometatarsal when a car ignored its driving lane and crossed into his right-of-way. Settlement provided repayment of medical bills of $20,000 and funds for future education to re-enter the work force in a less physically-demanding job.