Premises Liability

Premises liability is a broad legal term that refers to dangerous conditions of property, including uniform building code violations, improper maintenance, improper management, and improper design and construction that lead to injury or death on public or private property.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler has the experience and the resources to effectively litigate against government entities, owners of large properties such as shopping malls, apartment complexes, hotels, bars, landlords, property management companies, and insurers.

Throughout our personal injury practice, we focus on cases of catastrophic injury and wrongful death, seeking full and fair compensation for plaintiffs and family members for all damages and losses.  Our premises liability practice includes representation for accidents related to falling objects, falls, poorly maintained playground equipment, defective escalators and elevators, inadequate handrails and stair systems, hazardous windows and doors, unsafe buildings, ineffective fire warning systems, and defective or inadequate security measures including lighting, window and door locks, bouncers, assault, rope, fencing and guarding equipment, and security systems.             

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler has developed handling techniques designed to maximize our clients’ recoveries in cases involving dangerous premises. For example:

  • Liability Disputes – The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler has proven liability in cases where, on first blush, it appeared that our client rather
    than conditions of the premises might have caused the accident.  We accomplished this by extraordinarily thorough investigation, complex accident reconstructions with the best experts and high tech tools, such as computer modeling.
  • Examples of Dangerous Premises – Sometimes it is obvious that the dangerous condition of property is responsible for an accident, such as where a cracked or slippery walking surface causes a fall.  Other times, the danger is more subtle, such as toxic fumes in a closed area, gasses that escape and cause an explosion, an overcrowded loading dock leading to a trucker being struck by a forklift, a malfunctioning gate closing on a business guest or inadequate security.  Many times defective premises injure children, such as drownings resulting from inadequate guarding of swimming pools.  The possibilities are infinite.  Gary A Kessler specializes in finding the dangerous condition that contributed to the cause of an accident where other lawyers cannot find fault.  We handle difficult and complex dangerous premises cases.
  • Products Liability – Sometimes the best claim is not against the property owner, but rather against the manufacturer of a defective product that made the premises unsafe.  For example, sometimes catastrophic incidents in amusement parks result more from the defective design of the amusement ride than the conduct of the park operator.  Other examples of dangerous products rendering premises unsafe include: defective heaters and air conditioners, defective gates, defective ventilating systems, defective smoke detectors, defective pool lights, etc.  Attorney Gary A Kessler carefully analyzes these complex cases and utilizes nationally respected experts to obtain the maximum compensatory recovery for his clients.
  • Maximizing Damages – It isn’t enough to establish liability, the outcome of a client’s ease also depends on proving the full extent of damages.  Gary A Kessler knows how to find the best medical experts who can not only diagnose and treat the most sophisticated injuries, but just as importantly can effectively communicate their findings.  To maximize damages, it takes more than proving the injury.  Attorney Gary A Kessler works with economists (to establish the monetary losses of our clients), vocational rehabilitationists (to establish the impact of the injury on the client’s earning capacity), life care planners (to establish future care needs and the costs involved), and other types of damage experts, all geared to maximizing our client’s recoveries.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler represents clients who suffer serious broken bones and orthopedic injuries, crushed limbs and traumatic amputations, burns, spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, paralysis, and loss of cognitive functioning as well as wrongful death due to dangerous premises accidents.

If you or a loved one is involved in a dangerous premises liability accident/death:- Seek medical attention and CPR for the victim immediately;

  • Insist that a report is filed by the police department or Sheriff’s Department;
  • Obtain essential information (i.e., name, address, insurance information, witness information of any and all persons involved in the accident);- Photograph the accident scene as well as all of the surrounding area;
  • Shut up!  Talk to no one about the accident other than your attorney, never to an insurance adjuster or insurance investigator.  Do not volunteer a statement to any insurance company;
  • Sign absolutely nothing without consulting a lawyer;
  • Keep a diary of your loved one’s recovery;
  • Keep all receipts for all medical expenses and/or funeral bills and wage loss;
  • Contact the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler an experienced law firm to protect your rights and preserve the evidence!

Demand accountability from those responsible for the dangerous premises liability accidents.  Many times the insurance companies will play “hardball” if you try to settle the case yourself or you have employed a lawyer who does not have the litigation experience to handle such a complex case,  We at the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler have twenty-five years of litigation experience and know how to handle the insurance companies to your advantage.  We are prepared to front all costs required for the necessary investigation and expert witnesses needed to prepare your case for trial.

The laws regarding dangerous product liability cases are complex and include many facets of the law.  It is vital to surviving family members to seek the advice of an experienced dangerous premises liability lawyer such as Gary A Kessler at the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler to protect your rights and those of your loved ones.

The California dangerous premises liability attorney Gary A Kessler and the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler are compassionate and fully understand that you are attempting to cope with extreme grief and sorrow associated with the loss of a loved one in a tragic premises liability accident.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler carefully selects its wrongful death/premises liability cases so that we may give you (the client) the substantial personal attention necessary to obtain a successful result for your dangerous premises liability/accidental death case as well as maximize your recovery.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler is prepared to front all costs required for a thorough investigation and expert witnesses to prepare for trial of your case.  As in all wrongful death and serious personal injury cases, we advance all legal costs to prepare and present our client’s claim, and receive for our services only a percentage of what we recover for our attorney fees on their behalf.  Upon settlement our costs shall be reimbursed to us from the gross recovery.  If there is no recovery, no attorneys fees or costs are owed to our firm.

With over 25 years of experience, we have earned a reputation among our colleagues and the courts for excellent plaintiffs work, and we have achieved a winning record on behalf of our clients.  If you or a loved one has been seriously injured due to negligence on the part of a public or private property owner, we encourage you to contact The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler today for skilled and knowledgeable legal counsel.


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Gary Kessler, California Personal Injury Lawyer Disclaimer: The California personal injury, wrongful death, swimming pool drowning, boating accident, dog bite, amusement park negligence, pedestrian accident, product liability, aviation accidents, or any other California legal information presented at this site should not be construed to be formal legal advice, nor the creation of a lawyer or attorney client relationship. The information contained herein is intended for information purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. All results described on this site were based on the individual facts of those said cases and are not indicative of future settlements. Results will differ from case to case. Please contact Gary A. Kessler, a California lawyer at our California law firm offices in Newport Beach or our San Francisco Bay Area office.

The Law Offices of Gary A. Kessler are licensed to practice in California, District of Columbia & Pennsylvania. Through local law firms with which we have associations, we are able to represent Personal Injury and Wrongful Death cases across the United States. Our associations allow us to represent clients"pro hac vice", meaning "for this particular occasion". In order to effectively and efficiently represent the client in these cases, we will employ the local law firms (at no additional cost to our client) to make routine court appearances and proceedings where it is necessary to assist our clients case.