{"id":6984,"date":"2021-04-28T03:15:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-28T08:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/?p=6984"},"modified":"2021-04-28T16:20:02","modified_gmt":"2021-04-28T21:20:02","slug":"personal-injury-liability-rules-dog-bites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2021\/04\/28\/personal-injury-liability-rules-dog-bites\/","title":{"rendered":"Personal Injury Liability Rules: Dog Bites"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a> (CDC), approximately 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs each year in the U.S. Eighty-one percent of all dog bite victims are children and 10 percent of total victims require hospitalization. While the statistics are quite alarming, knowing what to do from a legal perspective if you\u2019re bitten can help if your case goes to court. Read our blog as we discuss personal injury liability rules for dog bites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>Minnesota\u2019s dog bite law<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>A dog bite victim may be entitled to compensation under a special statute and the doctrines of negligence under state law. The Minnesota dog bite law in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.revisor.mn.gov\/statutes\/cite\/347.22\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Section 347.22<\/a> of the Minnesota Statutes states that an injured person can hold a dog owner liable for injuries caused by the dog if:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>the person was lawfully in the place where he or she was bitten \u2013 such as public property or lawfully on private property, and<\/li><li>the person was \u201cacting peaceably,\u201d and<\/li><li>the person did not provoke the dog.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The law applies to any damages caused by a dog \u2013 attacks or injuries \u2013 including dog bites and other dog-related behaviors. For example, if a dog jumps on a person causing that person to fall, they could seek damages under the Minnesota dog bite law. They don\u2019t have to prove the injury was the result of owner negligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>Strict liability rule<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Minnesota has a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.animallaw.info\/topic\/table-dog-bite-strict-liability-statutes\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cstrict liability\u201d<\/a> rule for dog bites. An owner can be held liable for injuries as long as the requirements in the statute are met (see above), even if the owner did not know or could not have known the dog would act aggressively, bite, or attack. Moreover, Minnesota doesn\u2019t adhere to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\/wex\/one-bite_rule#:~:text=A%20rule%20that%20says%20that,been%20manifested%20in%20the%20past.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cone bite rule\u201d<\/a> that requires that an owner know or have reason to believe the dog is dangerous before liability can be imposed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>Deadline for filing a lawsuit<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Deadlines for filing a lawsuit for a personal injury case including dog bites are set by the <a href=\"https:\/\/statelaws.findlaw.com\/minnesota-law\/minnesota-civil-statute-of-limitations-laws.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Minnesota statutes of limitations<\/a>. A person may lose their right to file a dog bite lawsuit in civil court if they do not file within <strong>six years<\/strong> of the date of the injury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>What to do after a dog bite<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019ve suffered an injury resulting from a dog bite, there are several things you should do immediately afterward:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol type=\"1\"><li><strong>Identify the owner and the dog.<\/strong> As soon as you have the clarity of mind, you should get the dog\u2019s name and the owner\u2019s name and information immediately. If the dog has not had its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mayoclinic.org\/diseases-conditions\/rabies\/symptoms-causes\/syc-20351821#:~:text=Rabies%20is%20a%20deadly%20virus,%2C%20foxes%2C%20raccoons%20and%20skunks.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">rabies<\/a> shots, you will need to get the shots to protect yourself from the disease.<\/li><li><strong>Seek medical attention<\/strong>, even if the dog is up to date on its rabies shots, and be sure to have the health care provider document your injuries with photographs.<\/li><li><strong>File a report with Animal Control.<\/strong> This will provide written documentation of the incident you can show to your attorney.<\/li><li><strong>Seek legal representation.<\/strong> The legal issues surrounding dog bites are complicated and an experienced dog bite attorney can help you navigate the laws as well as look out for your best interests.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen<\/a> has an outstanding team of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/individual-law\/personal-injury\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">personal injury attorneys<\/a> available to talk to you about your specific needs. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/contact\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Contact us today<\/a> to determine which services are right for you. We look forward to hearing from you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 4.7 million people are bitten by dogs each year in the U.S. Eighty-one percent of all dog bite victims are children and 10 percent of total victims require hospitalization. While the statistics are quite alarming, knowing what to do from a legal perspective if you\u2019re bitten can help if your case goes to court. Read our blog as we discuss personal injury liability rules for dog bites. Minnesota\u2019s dog bite law A dog bite victim may be entitled to compensation under a special statute and the doctrines of negligence under state law. The Minnesota dog bite law in Section 347.22 of the Minnesota Statutes states that an injured person can hold a dog owner liable for injuries caused by the dog if: the person was lawfully in the place where he or she was bitten \u2013 such as public property or lawfully on private property, and the person was \u201cacting peaceably,\u201d and the person did not provoke the dog. The law applies to any damages caused by a dog \u2013 attacks or injuries \u2013 including dog bites and other dog-related behaviors. For example, if a dog jumps on a person causing that person to fall, they could seek damages under the Minnesota&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":6988,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[73,122,132,76,72,107,124],"coauthors":[65],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Personal Injury Liability Rules: Dog Bites - Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When bitten by a dog, knowing the rules can help if your case goes to court. 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Read our blog for personal injury liability rules for dog bites.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/2021\/04\/28\/personal-injury-liability-rules-dog-bites\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Barna, Guzy &amp; Steffen, LTD.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-04-28T08:15:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-04-28T21:20:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bgs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/BGS_April_Blog_Dog_Bite_WP.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"850\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"567\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Adriel B. 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