Who is Liable in Animal Bite Cases?

     The owner of the animal is not the sole person who can be liable for injuries caused by their pet. Other people who can share responsibility include:

1. Animal Keepers: Those responsible for the care or custody of an animal, such as kennels, pounds, or animal sitters;
2. Parents of Minors: The parent of a minor, under the age of 18, may be responsible for the injuries caused by the child’s animal;
3. Property Owners: The owner of the property on which the injury occurred may be liable for the injuries caused by an animal;
4. Landlords: Landlords may be liable for injuries caused by a dangerous animal if the landlord knew that a tenant owned the animal or should have known about tenant’s animal.

     In a facility which has multiple units, such as an apartment complex, the landlord ordinarily has a duty to maintain the common areas of the facility in a reasonably safe condition. That duty applies not only to the tenant, but also to the members of the tenant’s family, the tenant’s guests, people the tenant has invited on the property, and others allowed to be on the property.

     Where a landlord leases separate portions of the property to different tenants and retains control of the passageways, stairways and other parts of the property for the common use of all the tenants, the landlord must then exercise ordinary care and diligence to maintain the portions over which the landlord exercises control, in a reasonably safe condition.

     This duty may extend beyond the common areas and apply to the leased premises as well. For example, if a tenant owns a dog in violation of the landlord’s lease prohibiting pets, and the dog injures the tenant’s guest, the landlord may be liable for the injuries sustained by the tenant’s guest because the landlord has a duty of care to the tenant’s guest which was breached because the landlord retained control over the presence of the animal in the tenant’s apartment due to the clause in the lease prohibiting pets.

    Furthermore, in cases where the landlord had notice of prior dangerous incidents involving the dog, the foreseeability of harm is clear and the landlord’s failure to eliminate that danger establishes liability for injuries caused by the dog.