Two Florida Cases From Late 2017 Shine Light on Premises Liability

Two Florida Cases From Late 2017 Shine Light on Premises Liability

Aronberg Law Delray InjuryAs our Delray Beach injury lawyers at Aronberg & Aronberg understand, defendants in personal injury cases need not necessarily be parties who took an active, direct role in causing harm to the victim. In premises liability cases, for example, a liable defendant might not have been the primary actor in causing harm to the victim, yet may still be secondarily liable for one or more of a variety of reasons. In this blog post, we will explore two premises liability cases from late 2017 in which defendants, owners of the properties upon which victims sustained injuries, were found liable for the harm. Read the latest from your Delray Beach Personal Injury Law Firm.

Beaubrun v. Central Boca Nightlife

The Beaubrun case stemmed from a nightclub shooting which caused the club patrons to rush hastily toward the exit of the club. Amidst the rush to the door, Vanessa Beaubrun was allegedly knocked to the ground and run over by a group of club-goers. As a result of injuries and losses caused by being trampled in the club, Ms. Beaubrun sued Central Boca Nightlife (owner of the Oasis Nightlife club at which the incident took place), alleging that the defendant was negligent in exposing Ms. Beaubrun to “unreasonable” risk of injury and harm by allowing a firearm on the property. As our Delray Beach team of injury attorneys understands, Ms. Beauburn sought damages to cover costs associated with her injuries, medical costs, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of earnings.

In October of 2017, the Palm Beach County jury deciding the case found for the plaintiff, deciding that Central Boca Nightlife was liable on the basis of lack of security at the nightclub which allowed for the gun to be present, and fired, within the club. As a result, the jury awarded Ms. Beaubrun a total of $130,513 in damages. The award was composed of $8,512.64 to cover costs such as loss of earnings, future loss of capacity to earn money, and past and future medical costs. But the bulk of the award–$122,000—was awarded to the plaintiff in connection with her pain and suffering, disability and physical impairment, disfigurement, mental anguish, inconvenience, aggravation of a disease or physical defect, and loss of enjoyment of life.

This case shows a defendant company being found liable for failing to provide adequate security in a nightclub where, had proper security measures been implemented, the incident causing the victim’s injury might never have occurred.

Hayag v. AMC Entertainment Holdings

Hayag involved a slip-and-fall at an AMC movie theater. Apparently, as our premises liability lawyers understand, Guillermo Hayag was a customer at an AMC theater when he slipped and fell on a liquid substance on the floor of the men’s restroom. As a result of the fall, Mr. Hayag sustained personal injuries. As a result, Mr. Hayag sued AMC, alleging that the company which owned and operated the movie theater had what is known as “constructive notice” of the liquid on the floor and was negligent in failing to safely maintain the walkways and warn about the dangerous condition which led to the slip-and-fall. (As our team of personal injury attorneys knows, “constructive notice” is a doctrine that applies where a reasonable person or entity should have known about something, in this case, the danger presented by the liquid on the floor, even if they did not actually have knowledge of the danger.)

The jury sitting in Orange County rendered their verdict in October 2017, attributing liability to both Mr. Hayag, for being negligent, (25%) and AMC for failing to properly maintain a safe premises (75%). As a result, the jury awarded damages in favor of Mr. Hayag in the total amount of $440,841.58, to cover lost wages, past medical expenses, pain and suffering, mental anguish, future pain and suffering and mental anguish, etc.

In this case, a defendant company was found liable for failing to maintain a safe walking space within its movie theater property—had the company paid more attention to removing liquids from the walkways within the movie theater, the injury might never have taken place

As we have explored in this blog post, owners of premises on which someone sustains personal injuries can be held liable for those injuries, even if they have no active participation in causing the injuries. If you or someone you know has been injured due to the negligence or wrongdoing of another, please contact our skilled injury lawyers at the Law Offices of Aronberg & Aronberg to schedule a free consultation. You may reach us by calling 561-266-9191 or by e-mailing us at daronberg@build.simple.biz. With offices in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Plantation, and Wellington, we are here to help.

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