Property owners in Arizona have a legal duty to maintain reasonably safe conditions for people who come onto their property. When they fail, and someone is injured because of a hazard they knew about or should have found, premises liability law gives the injured person a path to recovery.
The duty depends on your status as a visitor
Arizona premises liability law applies different standards based on the relationship between the visitor and the property owner. Invitees, customers, guests invited for business purposes, are owed the highest duty: the owner must actively inspect for hazards and fix or warn of any discovered. Licensees, social guests, are owed a duty to warn of known hazards. Trespassers receive the lowest protection, though children may be protected under the attractive nuisance doctrine even if they technically trespassed. Most commercial premises liability claims involve invitees, where the full duty applies.
Notice is the critical issue
To establish breach, you need to show the owner had actual notice (they knew about the hazard) or constructive notice (the condition existed long enough that reasonable inspection would have found it). A spill that sat for two hours without cleanup is different from one that formed minutes before the fall. Maintenance records, inspection logs, prior complaints at the same location, and surveillance footage are all evidence of notice, and that footage gets overwritten in 24 to 72 hours.
Comparative fault
Arizona's pure comparative fault rule (A.R.S. § 12-2505) means your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault, but you can still recover even if you were partly responsible. Property owner insurers routinely argue the hazard was open and obvious, or that you weren't paying attention. See our post on Arizona comparative negligence law.
The filing deadline
Arizona gives most personal injury victims two years from the date of injury (A.R.S. § 12-542). Claims against government entities require a Notice of Claim within 180 days. See our post on the Arizona personal injury statute of limitations.
Our premises liability attorneys handle claims throughout Phoenix and Scottsdale on a contingency fee basis. No fee unless we win. Call (480) 418-SHER (7437) or reach out online.