Louisiana Premises Liability Lawyer

What must you prove after a fall in a Louisiana store?

Louisiana has a specific law for injuries on a merchant's premises. You generally must prove the condition created an unreasonable risk of harm, the merchant created it or had actual or constructive notice of it, and the merchant failed to use reasonable care.

Constructive notice is where many cases are won or lost. It generally means the hazard existed long enough that the store should have found it with reasonable inspections. A shopper who slips on a puddle with no way to show how long it was there may struggle. Store video, sweep logs, employee testimony and even the condition of the spill, such as cart tracks running through it, can show time. That is why we ask the store in writing to keep its video as soon as possible.

How do Louisiana duties work outside of stores?

Outside the merchant statute, Louisiana generally asks whether the owner or custodian knew or should have known of a defect that created an unreasonable risk of harm and failed to use reasonable care to fix it.

Louisiana's civil-law approach does not lean on the common-law categories of invitee, licensee and trespasser. Instead, courts look at the risk, the owner's knowledge and what a reasonable owner would have done. Apartment complexes, office buildings, private homes and rental properties fall under this framework. Landlords may be responsible for defects they knew about or should have known about, depending on the lease and the facts.

Which Louisiana settings lead to premises claims?

Tourism, gaming and large events shape many Louisiana premises cases, along with ordinary stores and apartments.

Casinos and hotels

Casinos and hotel resorts see crowds at all hours, with spilled drinks, crowded walkways and parking garage assaults. Security staffing and lighting are common issues.

Festivals and parades

Parade routes, festival grounds and temporary bleachers bring uneven ground and crowds. Louisiana limits liability for injuries caused by items thrown from parade floats, though claims may still exist for other kinds of negligence, such as gross negligence by a rider or an unsafe float.

Weather and storms

Heavy rain tracks water into entrances, and hurricanes leave debris, weakened structures and downed lines. Owners who ignore storm damage they knew about may be responsible.

How does Louisiana's new fault rule affect a fall case?

For injuries on or after January 1, 2026, your award is reduced by your share of fault and barred at 51% or more. Property owners often argue the hazard was obvious or that you were not watching your step.

Example: a guest at a Shreveport hotel trips on a torn hallway carpet in February 2026 and breaks a wrist. Damages total $60,000. The hotel argues the tear was easy to see.

• Housekeeping records show staff reported the tear two weeks earlier. The jury assigns the hotel 75% fault and the guest 25%. The guest recovers $45,000.
• If the jury had found the guest 51% responsible, the recovery would be zero.

An injury that occurred in 2025 would follow pure comparative fault, so the injury date matters.

What about security, recreation and public property?

Negligent security claims may arise when an owner fails to take reasonable steps against foreseeable crime, such as repeated assaults in a poorly lit garage. Prior incidents and security staffing records are key.

Louisiana also has a recreational use law that limits landowner liability when land is opened for free recreation like hunting or fishing, with exceptions for certain conduct. Injuries on public property, such as broken sidewalks or government buildings, raise special immunity and procedural rules. See government and public property injury claims.

What should you do after a Louisiana premises injury?

Report it, document it and get treatment. You generally have 2 years to sue for injuries on or after July 1, 2024.

1. Ask the manager for an incident report and a copy if possible.
2. Photograph the hazard, lighting, signs and footwear.
3. Note how long the hazard appeared to have been there, such as dried edges or footprints.
4. Get witness names and contact details.
5. Send a written request to preserve video.

Learn more about premises liability, see our Louisiana wrongful death page if a fall was fatal, or visit our Louisiana injury guide. Free case review, no fee unless we win.