If I am Injured in my Apartment, is my Landlord Legally Responsible?

Have you been injured in an apartment you are renting?

Submitted by New Jersey Personal Injury Lawyer, Jeffrey Hark

What is the landlord responsible for if you were injured in the apartment.

In this case the plaintiff was sitting on the porch when a piece of wood from a porch ceiling fell causing injury. The tenant sued the landlord and tried to make a claim for the injury. The Appellate Division with a long-standing and well settled case law  reiterated the proofs required of the tenant to prove the Landlord knew or should have known of the defect which caused injury.

What do you have to do for a landlord to be legally responsible for your injuries?

The tenant in this case was not able to prove that the type of defect in the was one the landlord should have been aware of.  The tenant has to prove that the landlord has actual or constructive notice of a defect or dangerous condition and did nothing to address it. As a result if the defect or dangerous condition existed for which the landlord was aware of that would create liability.  A landlord is not responsible for any hidden or unknown defect that arose after the landlord performed his inspection duty.

Jeffrey S. Hark, Esq.