Hiring Counsel For Simple Cases

If your dog has bitten someone, few things are more important than hiring a personal injury attorney to protect yourself and your pet. By failing to hire an attorney, you risk paying large sums of money to the injured party or having to put your dog down. Thankfully, a personal injury attorney can help you defend yourself and your dog by proving that the person who was bitten was provoking your dog, committing a crime, or being careless.

Provoking Your Dog

A big way that a personal injury attorney will protect you in a dog bite case is to convince the court that your dog was provoked by the actions of the person who was bitten. For example, if someone was constantly attempting to frighten or injure your dog, that would be considered provoking your animal. In that scenario, you and your dog would not be held liable for the injury. 

Another example of a dog being provoked would be if someone were constantly teasing your dog. In that situation, the person was deliberately trying to get a reaction from the dog, which means that the person who was bitten was directly responsible for the dog biting him or her.

Committing A Crime

Another way that an attorney will protect you and your dog in a dog bite case will be by trying to prove that the person who was bitten was committing a crime that led to the dog biting him or her. For example, if your dog attacks someone because he or she was trying to rob, attack, or assault you in any way, that can be used as justification for the dog's bite.

Trespassing is also a crime that can be used to justify a dog biting someone. For example, if someone has entered your home or property without your permission, your attorney can attempt to use the fact that the person was trespassing as a means of placing the blame for the bite squarely on the person who was bitten.

Being Careless

Finally, your attorney can help you by attempting to prove that the person was only bitten because he or she was being careless. For example, a person could be considered to be careless if they approached a dog that was on a leash or lead without permission, or if he or she approached a dog despite the fact that the dog was warning him or her to stay away. 

Speak to a personal injury attorney today if you dog has bitten someone in order to discuss the strength of your case. An attorney can help you prove that your dog was not at fault for the bite by trying to prove that the person who was bitten was being careless, committing a crime, or provoking your dog.