A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog about some updates in premises liability law. I learned about a few cases since then that I think would be good to add as an update on premises liability law. As Kansas City personal injury lawyers, Meyerkord, Russell & Hergott handles many premises liability cases and strive to keep up-to-speed on recent developments in this area of practice.
The Missouri Supreme Court recently ruled that some cities can shorten the statute of limitations for premises liability cases. In Zang v. City of St. Charles, the Court held that cities with less than 100,000 people had the legal authority to enact their own notice requirements for premises liability cases. These notice laws require you to notify the city in writing within a short time frame, or else your claim is barred. Cities with a population of more that 100,000 people are covered by the state constitutional notice requirement, which the Court held cannot be modified. But not so for cities with less than 100,000 people. They can enact whatever notice requirement they want, including the time limit, the content of the notice, and where it must be sent. If you’ve been hurt by tripping or slipping and falling on city property, you must check to see if the city has a notice requirement.
In another case, the Missouri Court of Appeals held that a concert venue had no duty to protect a guest from a sexual assault that happened off-premises. The victim in that case had been sexually assaulted by another guest after the concert venue let her leave with him despite the venue providing treatment for her for overconsumption of alcohol. The Court held that the facts did not fall under any exception to the general rule that a business has no duty to protect guests from third-party criminal acts. See M.B. v. Live Nation Worldwide, Inc.
These cases can have real and immediate effects on your premises liability case. If you’ve been hurt in a slip or trip and fall incident, or been the victim of a crime at a business, please contact my firm. We can answer any questions you have and give you the best shot at recovering money compensation for your injuries.