By Beau Ruff

Personal liability exposure is an important planning consideration. A person should be able to identify potential risks and assess means to mitigate those risks with the ultimate goal of reducing liability and the costs associated with the liability. In the world of liability, “man’s best friend” presents notable liability traps for the unwary.

Consider the

world of torts (also known as “personal injury”). Torts encompass the body of

law that holds one person (the tortfeasor) liable for his or her actions to

another person. When one person negligently injures another, the person causing

the harm is held monetarily liable for the action.

In a typical

action (lawsuit), the injured party must prove that the tortfeasor did

something (act of commission) that a reasonable person would not have done and

it caused injury. Or, the injured party must prove that the tortfeasor failed

to do something (act of omission) that a reasonable person would have done and

the omission caused injury.

A key concept is

the idea of negligence. Did the tortfeasor do something negligent that caused

injury to another? In a rear-ended car crash, the owner of the car that got

rear-ended would need to prove that a reasonable person would have stopped the

car, and thus the tortfeasor would be liable because he failed to act as a

reasonable person. Or maybe a shopper on a commercial property fell down a

flight of stairs. The shopper would then attempt to prove negligence – the

owner failed to provide safeguards like handrails, traction on steps and proper

lighting, etc. A threshold issue in a regular personal injury case is whether

or not the tortfeasor was negligent.

Now, consider

your dog. Dogs are in a special class of torts usually reserved for inherently

dangerous or abnormally dangerous activities: the strict liability category.

That is, if your dog injures someone, the injured party need not prove

negligence. The question of what a reasonable person would do is irrelevant.

You’re liable, no matter what.

For example, if

you diligently keep your pup on a short leash in public but it nonetheless

bites someone, the owner is liable for the injuries and the damages caused by

the bite. Further, even if the owner did not know and had no reason to know

that the dog might bite someone (“he’s never done anything like that before”),

the owner is still held liable for the injury. This means you are liable to

cover not only the medical costs of the victim, but the emotional damage that

could be claimed as well.

Let’s say you

host a party (maybe even a kid’s birthday party) and one of the attendees gets

bit on your own property. Same rules apply. The dog owner is held strictly

liable for the actions of the dog.

The law imposes

even more stringent rules if your dog has bitten previously. If your dog has

bitten someone once, that dog might be classified as a “dangerous dog” by your

city, county, or other governmental agency. Dangerous dogs are required to be

kept in special enclosures. And, when out of the enclosure, the dog must be

muzzled and restrained. The owner also must secure special liability insurance

for dangerous dogs. The owner’s failure to follow the rules pertaining to a

dangerous dog can lead to confiscation of the dog by animal control, the dog

may be potentially put down, and the owner may be guilty of a misdemeanor (or a

felony for a second offense).

Now, of course

there are exceptions to these that you might well imagine. If your dog bit the

burglar in your house, the owner is not liable. If the person injured was

purposefully provoking the dog, the owner may not be liable.

The point here is

that a dog owner must go above and beyond a regularly prudent person to protect

against strict liability. Check your insurance policy to see if it covers dog

bites and make sure you have enough for the worst case scenario. Be a

responsible dog owner.  Keep the dog on a

leash when outside your private property. Avoid taking untrained dogs into

public. Avoid taking any dogs to areas where the stimulus present might

reasonably cause the dog to act differently. Take the time to properly train

your best friend and continue working with him to help you (the owner)

understand the dog’s limits.

Dogs are

definitely the best “piece of property” you can own, so make sure you protect

yourself and your property from liability risks so you can spend more time

enjoying your dog and less time worrying.

Beau Ruff, a licensed attorney, is the director of planning at Cornerstone Wealth Strategies, a financial planning firm in Kennewick.