Slip and Fall Lawyers Indianapolis, IN

Invitees are visitors who are invited onto a property. A common example of an invitee would be someone visiting a property to conduct business of some kind. If you go to the supermarket to shop for groceries, then you would be an invitee under Indiana law. When the supermarket opened its doors that day for business, it “invited” everyone to enter and conduct business there.

Long ago, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that invitees get the highest level of care under slip and fall law in the case of Burrell v. Meads. The owner of the supermarket in this example has a legal duty of care to reasonably ensure that invitees are safe when they enter and use the property.

Licensees are visitors who enter a property with the owner’s implied consent. Implied consent is an unsaid permission to enter for a specific type of visitor. A common example of a licensee would be a utility company entering a property to check a gas meter.

A licensee does not get the same level of protection under the duty of care as an invitee in the first example above. A property owner is required to inform a licensee of any known dangerous conditions on the property. This is usually done with a sign.

Trespassers are visitors who enter a property without any legal consent. A common example of a trespasser would be an individual jumping a fence that surrounds a property. The fence in this case is meant to keep people out, and since the individual entered anyway, the individual would be considered a trespasser.

A trespasser gets the least amount of protection from a property owner. In Indiana, trespassers are not owed any legal duties of care from a property If you have been hurt on another’s property and are owed a legal duty of care as one of the three types of visitors discussed above, then you could have a case to win a money judgment. If you have specific questions about your potential slip and fall case, then it is important to speak to an experienced slip and fall attorney who can help guide you.