Your Dog Bite Law Handbook, From an Alabama Dog Bite Attorney

Dog bites happen in Alabama more often than you might expect. Adults and children attacked by dogs are often left with physical and emotional scars, whether they knew the dog who bit them or not.

Complicating dog bite cases is the question of who’s responsible, since the dog itself cannot be legally at-fault. In these challenging situations, injured people deserve legal advice they can trust.

This free, downloadable handbook will walk you through the basics of dog bite law in Alabama, how compensation works, and the ways an experienced personal injury attorney guide you through the process.

Dog Bites Are Different Than Other Injuries

Unlike car accident or slip and fall cases, dog bite cases can’t hold the actual offender at fault. In general, according to Alabama code, the dog’s owner is held responsible, but only if:

• The dog was not provoked intentionally or unintentionally, yet still injures someone (unintentional provocation is tricky, and we discuss it more in the ebook).
• The bite happened on property the dog’s owner owns or oversees or after the dog chased someone from such a property.
• The bitten person was legally allowed to be on the dog owner’s property, such as a visitor or contractor, and not trespassing.

Historically, dog owners were given a break with the “one bite rule,” meaning they weren’t considered negligent unless their dog had bitten in the past and shown dangerous propensities.

Today, however, owners are expected to assume their dog — any dog — could suddenly become dangerous and observe laws about containment and leash use.

If they don’t, and their dog attacks someone, they could face a dog bite lawsuit.