Hollywood, FL Premises Liability Lawyer

Premises Liability Representation in Hollywood and South Florida

25+ Years in Practice | Million-Dollar Jury Trial Experience | Former Insurance-Defense Attorney​

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Before representing injured plaintiffs, Dan spent approximately six years representing insurance companies and defendants in civil litigation. With more than 25 years in practice, he understands how premises liability claims are investigated and defended, including disputes over property control, notice, warnings, comparative fault, medical causation, and damages. Dan personally handles each accepted case from investigation through settlement or trial.

What Is Premises Liability in Florida?

Premises liability is the area of Florida negligence law that addresses when a person or business responsible for property may be liable for injuries caused by dangerous conditions or inadequate property safety. It is broader than slip-and-fall law and can include trip-and-fall accidents, unsafe stairs and walkways, falling merchandise, negligent security, inadequate maintenance, structural hazards, and other dangerous property conditions.

Liability may depend on who owned, occupied, possessed, maintained, or controlled the accident location; what duty was owed to the injured person; whether the condition was unreasonably dangerous; whether the responsible party created, knew about, or should have known about the condition; and whether that condition caused the injury.

The legal analysis depends on the type of property and hazard. A supermarket customer who slips on spilled liquid may face different notice requirements from a condominium resident injured by a defective common-area stairway. A negligent-security claim presents different issues from an injury caused by falling merchandise. The common question is whether a person or business responsible for the property failed to use reasonable care under the circumstances.​​

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Who Can Be Responsible for an Unsafe Property Condition?

The property owner is not necessarily the only responsible party. Premises liability often depends on who controlled the accident location and who was responsible for inspection, maintenance, repairs, warnings, or security.

A commercial tenant may control conditions inside a store or restaurant while an owner or management company is responsible for a parking lot or common walkway. At a condominium, responsibility for common stairs, elevators, entrances, and other shared areas may differ from responsibility for conditions inside an individual unit.

Determining responsibility may require examining leases, management agreements, maintenance and security contracts, condominium documents, work orders, repair records, and the parties’ actual practices.

Where Do Premises Liability Claims Arise in Hollywood?

Premises liability claims in Hollywood can arise at hotels and resorts, condominiums and apartments, supermarkets and retail stores, restaurants and bars, shopping centers, office and medical buildings, parking lots and garages, entertainment venues, and other properties.

Hollywood’s beachfront hospitality properties, condominium communities, Downtown Hollywood businesses, shopping areas, and residential developments can make control of the accident location important. Responsibility may differ between a tenant’s interior space, common walkway, parking area, association-controlled common area, or adjoining public property. The location alone does not establish negligence; liability depends on the dangerous condition, responsible parties, applicable duty, notice when required, causation, and evidence.

Evidence in a Florida Premises Liability Claim

Premises liability cases often depend on evidence showing the dangerous condition, who controlled or was responsible for the area, whether anyone knew or should have known about the condition, and how it caused the injury.

Evidence may include photographs, surveillance footage, incident reports, witness statements, inspection records, maintenance logs, work orders, repair records, prior complaints, and similar incidents. Leases, management agreements, condominium documents, maintenance contracts, and security agreements may help establish responsibility. Measurements, building plans, permits, code provisions, and expert analysis may help document physical property defects.

Evidence can disappear or change. Surveillance video may be overwritten, dangerous conditions repaired, merchandise moved, and maintenance practices changed. Prompt investigation and appropriate preservation requests can therefore be important.

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

If you are injured because of a dangerous condition on someone else’s property, the steps taken afterward can help protect your health and important evidence.

1. Report the incident. Notify the property owner, manager, business, landlord, or other person responsible for the property and ask that the incident be documented.

2. Document the condition. Photograph or record the dangerous condition, surrounding area, warnings or lack of warnings, and precise accident location if possible.

3. Identify witnesses. Obtain contact information for anyone who saw the incident, observed the condition beforehand, or knows about prior problems.

4. Seek appropriate medical care. Prompt evaluation can address your injuries and document their relationship to the incident.

5. Preserve evidence early. Surveillance footage, maintenance records, incident reports, work orders, and other evidence may be lost or overwritten.

Frequently Asked Questions About Premises Liability Claims

I slipped on water or another substance in a store or restaurant. Is that a premises liability claim?

Potentially. A fall caused by water, food, grease, cleaning products, tracked-in rain, or another substance may involve a slip-and-fall claim, which is a type of premises liability case. Florida has specific rules concerning proof that a business had actual or constructive knowledge of a transitory foreign substance. Our Hollywood Slip and Fall Lawyer page explains those requirements.

I tripped over broken pavement, an uneven sidewalk, or another property defect. Is that different from a slip and fall?

Yes. A trip-and-fall claim generally involves a physical condition such as broken pavement, an elevation change, defective stairs, a raised edge, or an obstruction rather than a slippery substance. The investigation may focus on the defect, who controlled and maintained the area, how long it existed, prior repairs or complaints, and warnings. Our Hollywood Trip and Fall Lawyer page explains these claims in greater detail.

I was injured at an apartment or condominium. Is the landlord or association responsible?

It depends on where the injury occurred and who controlled that part of the property. A landlord, condominium association, property manager, maintenance contractor, security company, individual unit owner, or another party may be responsible. Leases, condominium documents, contracts, and the accident location can help determine responsibility.

I was attacked or injured because security was inadequate. Can that be a premises liability case?

Potentially. Negligent security is a form of premises liability involving allegations that inadequate security contributed to an injury caused by criminal activity. Relevant issues may include foreseeability, prior criminal activity, lighting, locks, gates, surveillance, access control, security personnel, and responsibility for security.

Something fell from a shelf or display and injured me. Is that a premises liability claim?

It can be. Falling-merchandise claims may involve how merchandise, fixtures, signs, or equipment were stored or displayed, employee activity, inspection and stocking practices, surveillance footage, prior incidents, and what the business knew or should have known about the hazard.

I was injured on someone else's property, but I do not know who was responsible. What should I do?

You do not necessarily need to know immediately. Ownership and responsibility are not always the same. An investigation may identify an owner, tenant, landlord, property manager, association, maintenance company, security contractor, or another party that controlled the area or dangerous condition. Preserving photographs, surveillance footage, incident records, contracts, and maintenance records can help determine responsibility.

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Discuss Your Premises Liability Claim Directly With Dan

If you were injured in a slip and fall, trip and fall, or other premises liability accident in Hollywood, Broward County, or South Florida, you will speak directly with Dan—not a call center or intake department. Dan is a trial-tested personal injury lawyer with more than 25 years of experience and former insurance-defense knowledge who personally evaluates and handles every case accepted by the firm. FREE consultations may be available by telephone, Zoom, hospital visit, or home visit when appropriate. No attorney’s fee unless a recovery is obtained. ​CALL Dan 📞 (954) 923-6110​