Orange County Premises Liability Lawyer

Last updated: October 2026 · Reviewed by Faud Haghighi, Esq., Founder & Lead Trial Attorney

What Is Premises Liability in California?

Premises liability is the area of law that holds property owners, landlords, and businesses responsible when an unsafe condition they knew about, or should have found, injures someone on their property. In California, the question is whether the owner used reasonable care to keep the property safe.

As an Orange County premises liability lawyer, Faud Haghighi represents people injured on unsafe property throughout Orange County and Southern California, from offices in Aliso Viejo and Tustin. Under Civil Code §1714, everyone is responsible for injuries caused by a lack of ordinary care in managing their property. California does not use the rigid “invitee” and “licensee” categories that many states rely on; since Rowland v. Christian (1968) 69 Cal.2d 108, the focus has been on whether the owner acted reasonably given how foreseeable the injury was.

What Must You Prove in a Premises Liability Claim?

You generally must prove that the defendant owned, leased, occupied, or controlled the property; that they were negligent in using or maintaining it; that you were harmed; and that their negligence was a substantial factor in causing that harm. In most cases, negligence turns on notice:

• Actual notice: the owner or an employee created the hazard or knew about it.
• Constructive notice: the hazard existed long enough that a reasonable inspection would have found it. Evidence that the owner did not inspect within a reasonable time can allow a jury to infer notice (Ortega v. Kmart Corp. (2001) 26 Cal.4th 1200).

Evidence wins these cases: photos and video of the condition, incident reports, inspection and maintenance logs, prior complaints, witness statements, and your medical records. Read more about proving notice of a dangerous condition.

What Types of Premises Liability Cases Do We Handle?

We handle injuries caused by any unsafe property condition, including falls, defective stairs, poor lighting and security, falling objects, pool and elevator accidents, and dog bites.

These injuries happen in every kind of setting: shopping centers and stores, grocery stores, restaurants and hotels, apartment complexes, parking lots and structures, office and commercial buildings, and private homes. Poor upkeep is often the root cause; see our page on negligent property maintenance.

Who Can Be Held Responsible for an Injury on Someone’s Property?

Responsibility follows control: whoever owned, managed, or maintained the area where you were hurt can be liable, and it’s often more than one party. Depending on the facts, that can include:

• Property owners, for the overall condition of the premises;
• Property management companies hired to inspect and maintain the property;
• Landlords, for common areas such as stairways, walkways, and parking areas, and for dangerous conditions they know about and can fix;
• Commercial tenants, such as a store or restaurant, for the space they control under their lease;
• Homeowners’ associations, for common areas in a planned community or condominium;
• Maintenance, janitorial, and security contractors whose job was to keep the property safe;
• Government agencies, for dangerous conditions of public property.

Finding every responsible party matters because each may carry its own insurance, and the first policy is often not enough for a serious injury.

What If You Were Hurt on Public Property?

Claims against a city, county, school district, or other public agency follow different rules: you generally must present a written claim within six months, and you must prove the agency created the hazard or knew or should have known about it in time to fix it.

Under Government Code §835, the property must have been in a dangerous condition that created a reasonably foreseeable risk of the injury that happened. Minor defects may be treated as trivial and not dangerous (§830.2). Learn more on our Dangerous Conditions of Public Property page.

What Defenses Do Property Owners Raise?

The most common defenses are that the owner didn’t know about the hazard, that it was open and obvious, that it was too minor to be dangerous, or that you were careless. None of these automatically ends a claim:

• “We didn’t know.” Constructive notice can still apply if a reasonable inspection would have found the hazard.
• “It was open and obvious.” An obvious hazard may not require a warning, but an owner can still have a duty to fix it if people are likely to encounter it anyway.
• “You were there for recreation” or “You were trespassing.” Civil Code §846 limits an owner’s duty to people using land for recreation, with exceptions such as willful failure to warn, paid entry, or an express invitation, and §847 bars recovery for injuries during certain felonies. These defenses are narrow and fact-specific.
• “You weren’t paying attention.” California follows pure comparative negligence. If your damages are $100,000 and you are found 20% at fault, you can still recover $80,000.

See our overview of premises liability defenses in California.

How Long Do You Have to File a Premises Liability Claim?

Most California premises liability lawsuits must be filed within two years of the injury (Code of Civil Procedure §335.1). If a public agency owns the property, a written claim is generally due within six months.

What Should You Do After an Injury on Someone’s Property?

Get medical care, report the injury to the owner or manager, photograph the hazard before it changes, and collect witness information. Dangerous conditions are often repaired within days, and surveillance footage is recorded over.

1. Seek medical attention, even if the injury seems minor.
2. Report the incident to the owner, manager, or landlord and ask for a written incident report.
3. Photograph or video the condition, the area around it, and your injuries.
4. Get names and phone numbers of witnesses.
5. Keep your shoes, clothing, and any damaged property as they are.
6. Keep copies of medical records, bills, and proof of missed work.
7. Don’t give a recorded statement to the owner’s insurer before speaking with a lawyer.

How We Build a Premises Liability Case

We move quickly to preserve evidence the owner controls, then prove notice and causation with records the defense can’t explain away. That includes written preservation demands for surveillance footage, incident reports, inspection and maintenance logs, and prior complaints; witness interviews; site inspections and measurements; and, when needed, safety and building-code experts. We identify every party with control of the property and every insurance policy that may apply, and we handle all communication with the insurers.

What Compensation Can You Recover?

Depending on the evidence, compensation can include medical expenses, future treatment, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. The value of a claim depends on the severity of the injury, the length and cost of treatment, any permanent limitations, the strength of the notice evidence, any share of fault assigned to you, and the insurance available. Read more about what affects the value of a personal injury case. Results depend on the facts of each case and will differ if based on different facts.

Why Choose Our Orange County Premises Liability Lawyer?

You work directly with attorney Faud Haghighi, who has handled hundreds of cases, including premises liability and dangerous-condition-of-public-property claims, and who prepares every case so it can go to trial. He has practiced law in California since 2012. We work on contingency, so there is no attorney fee unless we recover for you, and we file in the Orange County Superior Court when an insurer won’t be reasonable.

Premises liability is part of our broader Orange County personal injury practice. We represent injured people throughout Orange County and Southern California, including Anaheim, Costa Mesa, Irvine, Newport Beach, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach, Tustin, Aliso Viejo, and Mission Viejo.

Injured because of an unsafe property condition? Evidence can disappear quickly, so talk to us soon. The consultation is free, and there is no attorney fee unless we recover for you. Call (949) 313-7656 or request a free consultation.