Petrov Personal Injury Lawyers | November 27, 2023 | Premises Liability
Large amusement parks like LEGOLAND in California are essentially cities, and the same accidents that occur in other cities occur in LEGOLAND as well. If you suffer an injury due to someone else’s wrongful conduct, you probably have a legal claim against LEGOLAND or a third party.
How It Works: Premises Liability
The legal doctrine of premises liability asserts that the owner of premises (such as an amusement park) is responsible for inspecting their premises and either repairing or warning of any dangerous conditions. Amusement parks should conduct inspections at least daily. Since so many children go to amusement parks, repairing dangerous conditions often prevails over merely warning visitors of them.
Some injuries, of course, are caused by the behavior of people rather than the conditions of the property itself. Such claims are actionable as well, but are not based on premises liability.
What Injuries Are Common at Amusement Parks in California?
Following is a list of some of the most common amusement park injuries:
- Slip and fall accidents.
- Assault and battery by employees or by other guests.
- Sexual assault by employees or by other guests.
- Negligent security, which is the failure to protect the public against wrongful behavior by others.
- Product liability (a defectively manufactured component or a roller coaster, for example).
- Food poisoning: Remember, food is a product too.
- Falling objects.
- Parking lot incidents, including crashes and criminal assaults due to inadequate lighting or negligent security.
- Drowning or near-drowning on water rides.
- Falls from rides.
A complete list of possible amusement park accidents would be too long to reproduce here.
Filing a Claim Against LEGOLAND
Under the legal doctrine of respondeat superior, you can file a personal injury claim against LEGOLAND due to the wrongful actions of any of its employees. You can also file a claim against LEGOLAND over the misconduct of a non-employee, if LEGOLAND failed to adequately supervise them.
Because filing a claim probably means filing a third-party claim against LEGOLAND’s insurance policy, you will probably be dealing with an insurance company, not LEGOLAND itself. You will need a lawyer, because you will be facing an insurance adjuster who is almost certainly a professional negotiator.
A lawyer can help in many ways. For example, a lawyer can advance your claim by finding an amusement park regulation that LEGOLAND broke. If the violation caused your injury, you will probably win your claim.
Filing a Lawsuit Against LEGOLAND
You probably don’t want to go to trial against LEGOLAND, and you probably won’t have to even if you file a lawsuit (you can always withdraw the lawsuit later). The main reason for filing a lawsuit is to gain access to the pretrial discovery process. This process allows you to demand evidence from LEGOLAND’s private files – such as CCTV footage of the accident.
To file a lawsuit against LEGOLAND, you will need to file a complaint with the appropriate court, pay the filing fee, and have a neutral third party service notification of the lawsuit to the appropriate LEGOLAND representative.
Should I File a Claim or a Lawsuit Against a Third Party?
In this case, “third party” means not you, and not LEGOLAND. It could mean another guest, the plumber called in to fix the sink, or someone else. Your best bet is probably to file a claim against LEGOLAND if you can, as LEGOLAND is almost sure to have enough money to pay it.
However, you might be forced to file a claim against a third party if you cannot find a way to hold LEGOLAND liable.
Damages You Can Get After an Incident at LEGOLAND
Following an injury sustained at LEGOLAND, California recognizes three types of possible damages you can recover:
- Economic damages such as medical expenses and lost earnings.
- Non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering and emotional distress.
- Punitive damages, if LEGOLAND or another defendant engaged in particularly outrageous behavior.
You cannot win punitive damages unless you win economic or non-economic damages. Even then, courts are reluctant to award punitive damages.
Enforce Your Legal Rights and Book a Complimentary Case Consultation
A personal injury lawyer can help you build a case against LEGOLAND. In all likelihood, you will end up with a private settlement without ever seeing the inside of a courtroom. What’s more, you only pay attorney’s fees if you win, either in court or at the settlement table. Because your lawyer won’t get paid unless they win, you can be sure that if they agree to take your case, they believe they can win it.
Find out by scheduling an initial case consultation. Almost all lawyers offer these appointments free of charge.
Contact the North County Premises Liability Lawyers at Petrov Personal Injury Lawyers for Help Today
For more information, please contact the Vista premises liability law firm of Petrov Personal Injury Lawyers to schedule a free consultation today.
We serve in North County, CA and its surrounding areas:
Petrov Personal Injury Lawyers – Vista, CA Office
380 S Melrose Dr. Ste. 201
Vista, CA 92081
(619) 344-0360
Petrov Petrov Personal Injury Lawyers – Oceanside, CA Office
702 Civic Center Drive Ste. 105
Oceanside, CA, 92054
(619) 678-1016