What Happens If Someone Is Injured on Your Property?

Key Takeaways

  • Nevada courts apply a single reasonable care standard to lawful visitors, with a separate, more limited rule for trespassers.
  • Property owners must have known about a hazard and failed to fix or warn of it.
  • Nevada bars recovery when a victim is 50 percent or more at fault for the injury.
  • Wrongful death claims allow a victim’s heirs to pursue compensation under Nevada law after a fatal injury.
  • A valid claim requires proving duty, breach, causation, and measurable damages.

Property owners in Nevada have a legal duty to keep their premises reasonably safe for visitors. When they fail to fix or warn about a hazard, and someone gets hurt, the question becomes: If someone is injured on your property, are you liable? The answer depends on what the owner knew, what they did about it, and the visitor’s relationship to the property. A Las Vegas negligent security lawyer at Cloward Trial Lawyers can help clients determine whether a property owner failed in their legal duty to keep them safe.

Nevada Premises Liability Law: When Are Property Owners Liable for Injuries?

Three elements decide liability in a Nevada premises case: the owner’s knowledge of a hazard, the owner’s response to it, and whether that hazard caused the injury. An owner who knew, or should have known, about a dangerous condition and left it unaddressed has failed the standard of reasonable care Nevada law demands.

That standard applies to lawful visitors, but shifts for trespassers:

  • Lawful Visitors: Owners must inspect for hazards and either fix them or warn of anything dangerous.
  • Trespassers: Under NRS 41.515, are owed no general duty of safety, though liability can still follow for willful or deliberate harm, or for ignoring a trespasser in danger.

Nevada’s comparative negligence system then decides how much that negligence is worth: a victim found 50 percent or more at fault cannot recover damages, while a lesser share reduces compensation proportionally. Liability for someone injured on your property rests on both factors favoring the victim, with even higher stakes when the injury results in death.

Steps to Take If You Are Injured on Someone’s Property

Acting quickly protects both a victim’s health and the evidence a claim will later need, and the following steps help build that record from the start:

  • Seek medical attention right away, even if the injury feels minor
  • Report the incident to the property owner or manager and request a written report
  • Photograph the hazard and the surrounding area before anything changes
  • Collect names and contact details from anyone who saw what happened
  • Consult a premises liability lawyer early, before evidence disappears

Each step builds a record of what happened and why the owner bears responsibility, groundwork that becomes essential when an injury proves fatal.

 

Premises Liability Cases That Result in Wrongful Death

Premises liability cases carry heavier consequences when a hazard results in death rather than injury. Under NRS 41.085, a deceased victim’s heirs may pursue a wrongful death claim against the negligent property owner. A Las Vegas wrongful death lawyer can help surviving family members understand what damages Nevada law allows, and how those losses trace back to the same duty of care the owner failed to uphold.

Why Fatal Premises Liability Cases Are Serious

Fatal cases carry a heavier evidentiary burden, since the victim can no longer describe what happened. Families must rely on witness accounts, maintenance records, and expert testimony to reconstruct the hazard and prove it caused the death, using the same legal elements that support any premises liability claim.

What You Need to Prove in a Premises Liability Case

Whether the injury was survivable or fatal, a premises liability claim rests on four elements:

  • Duty of Care: The owner owed a duty of care based on the visitor’s status.
  • Breach of Duty: The owner ignored or failed to address a known hazard.
  • Causation: The breach directly caused the injury or death.
  • Damages: The victim suffered measurable losses, such as medical bills, lost income, or lost financial support.

Nevada courts examine each element closely, and this structure applies across most negligence-based personal injury claims. Strong documentation, from incident reports to medical records, is what turns these elements into a claim an owner cannot dismiss.

Contact a Las Vegas Negligent Security Lawyer for Legal Guidance

If you are still asking, “If someone is injured on your property, are you liable?”, the answer depends on facts that only a careful investigation can uncover. At Cloward Trial Lawyers, we can review the evidence, identify all liable parties, and help pursue the compensation that Las Vegas victims deserve. Call (702) 605-5000 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation today, and let our team start building your case.

Contact a Las Vegas Negligent Security Lawyer

Benjamin P. Cloward

In 2016, at the age of 37, Benjamin P. Cloward became the youngest lawyer in the history of the State of Nevada to be awarded the prestigious “Trial Lawyer of the Year” by the Nevada Justice Association. That same year, he became the youngest member of the Nevada, Las Vegas Chapter of ABOTA (American Board of Trial Advocates), and at the time was also the youngest person in the State of Nevada to be Board Certified as a Personal Injury Specialist.

Practice areas: personal injury, car accidents, truck accidents, wrongful death, Greyhound bus accidents, and walk-in tub accidents.
Location: Las Vegas, NV

Request Free Consultation

Start your Free Case Evaluation by using the form below. You’ll get a fast response from one of our team members, or you can call our office at 702-605-5000.

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This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by attorney Ben Cloward, who has over 20 years of legal experience as a practicing personal injury attorney.

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