Texas Premises Liability Lawyer
A property owner is not automatically responsible when someone is hurt on their land. In Texas the duty owed depends on why the injured person was there, and the claim turns on what the owner knew about the hazard.
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The three categories Texas uses
An invitee enters for the mutual benefit of both parties, which covers customers in a shop and most visitors to a business. They are owed the highest duty: the owner must make the property reasonably safe, or warn of hazards it knows about or should have discovered through reasonable inspection.
A licensee enters with permission but for their own purposes, which covers most social guests. The owner must warn of hazards it actually knows about. A trespasser is owed only the duty not to injure them wilfully or through gross negligence, with an exception where children are drawn onto the property by something attractive and dangerous.
The element that decides most cases
For an invitee the case usually turns on knowledge. The owner must have had actual knowledge of the hazard, or constructive knowledge, meaning the hazard existed long enough that reasonable inspection would have found it.
That is why the time a spill sat on the floor matters so much, and why inspection logs, sweep sheets and surveillance footage are the first documents requested. Without evidence on knowledge, a genuinely dangerous condition can still fail as a claim.
Open and obvious hazards
An owner generally owes no duty to warn about a hazard that is open and obvious, or that the visitor already knew about. That defense is raised in most cases and is not always correct. Where a visitor had no practical alternative but to encounter the hazard, or where the owner should have anticipated the harm regardless, the argument weakens.
Evidence that disappears fastest
Surveillance footage is routinely overwritten within days or weeks. Incident reports are written the same day and are frequently the only contemporaneous record. Photograph the hazard before it is cleaned up, report it before leaving, and get the names of any staff who attended. A written preservation demand should follow quickly.
Do you have a premises liability claim?
It depends first on why you were on the property. An invitee, which covers customers and most business visitors, is owed the highest duty and can rely on hazards the owner should have found through reasonable inspection. A social guest is owed a narrower duty.
Then it depends on knowledge. A dangerous condition that appeared moments before you encountered it will usually not support a claim, because the owner had no opportunity to find it.
How responsibility is divided
Section 33.001 applies, and businesses routinely argue that the visitor was distracted, wearing unsuitable footwear, or not watching where they were going. Those arguments reduce recovery in proportion rather than defeating the claim, unless the visitor is 51 percent or more responsible.
There is a tension the defense rarely acknowledges: retail environments are designed to draw attention to displays and signage, which is relevant when the same business argues a customer should have been looking at the floor.
How long you have, and the governmental exception
Two years from the injury under section 16.003 for a private property owner. Where the property belongs to a governmental unit, such as a city building, a school or a public park, formal written notice can be required within months and damages are capped by statute. Those claims need attention immediately.
The cost of running a premises case
The firm works on a contingency fee and advances case expenses. The decisive expenditure in these claims is early: obtaining surveillance footage and inspection records before footage is overwritten, which is a matter of speed rather than expense.
What this kind of claim can recover
| Visitor | Who this covers | Duty owed |
|---|---|---|
| Invitee | Customers, business visitors | Make safe or warn of hazards known or discoverable by reasonable inspection |
| Licensee | Social guests | Warn of hazards the owner actually knows about |
| Trespasser | Entrants without permission | Do not injure wilfully or through gross negligence |
| Child trespasser | Children drawn by an attractive hazard | A higher duty may apply where the hazard attracts children |
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Related practice areas
Injury claims overlap. These are the areas most often connected to this one.
Dog Bites
Texas has no statute making a dog owner automatically responsible for a bite.
Learn moreBurn Injuries
Burn injuries are measured by depth and by how much of the body is affected, and both drive a course of treatment that can run for years.
Learn moreConstruction Accidents
Texas is the only state that does not require private employers to carry workers compensation.
Learn more
Who handles premises liability at the firm
Shanna Valentine
Attorney
St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami, Florida
Nick Reed
Attorney
St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami. Dual JD and MBA, with honors.
Frequently asked questions
No. The claim usually requires proof that the shop knew about the spill, or that it had been there long enough that reasonable inspection would have found it. That is why the length of time the hazard existed, and the inspection records, matter so much.
An invitee enters for the mutual benefit of both parties, which covers customers at a business. Invitees are owed the highest duty, including a duty to discover hazards through reasonable inspection. A social guest is a licensee and is owed a narrower duty.
Not necessarily. An owner generally owes no duty to warn about an open and obvious hazard, but the defense has limits, particularly where a visitor had no realistic alternative but to encounter it, or where the owner should have anticipated harm anyway.
Photograph the hazard before it is cleaned up, report it before you leave and ask for a copy of the incident report, note any staff who attended, and get names of witnesses. Surveillance footage is often overwritten within days.
Two years from the date of injury. Claims against a governmental property owner can require formal written notice within months.
Nothing to start, and no fee unless the firm recovers. The decisive step in these claims is early rather than expensive: securing surveillance footage and inspection records before the footage is overwritten.
Find out where your claim stands
A free consultation covers what your claim requires, what the deadline is, and what insurance coverage is actually available.
Contingency fee. You pay nothing unless we win.