Dog Bite Injury Lawyer

Most dog bites do not cause serious injury. However, in some instances, dog attacks can result in disfiguring scars, disabling injuries to muscles to muscles and tendons, psychological trauma, and occasionally even death. Often serious dog bites involve young children who are not yet alert to signs of aggression in animals and are less able to protect themselves. Individuals who sustain serious injuries from a dog attack should consider consulting with a personal injury lawyer.

Ontario has enacted legislation which assists judges in determining who is legally responsible when a dog attacks an individual. The Dog Owner’s Liability Act imposes “strict liability” on dog owners. This means that even if a dog owner was acting with “reasonable care”, they will likely be liable for the attack. If there is more than one owner of a dog, the owners will be “jointly and severally liable” for the attack. There are some instances however where a dog owner will not be held liable for injuries caused by a bite or attack. For example, if the individual attacked was trespassing for the purpose of committing a criminal act, the owner would likely not be liable.

If a victim’s behaviour contributed to the attack by actions such as provoking the dog, ignoring warnings, or otherwise, they will likely be considered partially at fault and the damages they can obtain will be reduced by the same percentage as their fault.

Many victims of serious dog bites are hesitant to consider legal action because they do not believe the dog owner will be capable of paying them significant compensation. However, dog owners will often have some type of insurance coverage which extends to the dog bite. In the vast majority of dog bite cases that we have handled, a home insurance policy or tenant insurance policy will be triggered after the lawsuit commences. At that point, significant insurance policy limits are available to respond to the lawsuit.

If you were seriously injured by a dog bite or dog attack, please don’t hesitate to contact us for a no cost, no obligation, case evaluation.