Were you injured on someone else’s property in Topeka? Property owners in Kansas have a legal duty to keep their premises safe for visitors, customers, and tenants. When they fail in that duty and you are hurt, you have the right to pursue compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, pain, and suffering.
Whether your injury happened at a business on Wanamaker Road, a government building downtown, or an apartment complex in Shawnee County, the property owner may be liable. At Bretz Injury Law, our Topeka office serves premises liability victims across Shawnee County. We handle every case on a no-win, no-fee basis, so call (785) 264-4424 for a free case evaluation.
Premises Liability Attorneys Serving Topeka
Bretz Injury Law represents premises liability victims in Topeka and throughout Shawnee County. Our office at 515 S Kansas Ave C, Topeka, KS 66603 puts us steps from the Shawnee County courthouse and the government buildings where many of these injuries occur.
When you hire our firm, you are working with personal injury attorneys who understand how Kansas property owners and their insurers defend against these claims.
Attorney Matthew Bretz has practiced personal injury law in Kansas for more than 30 years. He built this firm on the belief that injured people deserve focused, personal attention from their lawyer.
We are an intentionally small firm, so your case will never be handed off to someone you have never spoken with. You will work directly with the attorney handling your claim, starting with your first phone call.
We offer free consultations to every prospective client, and we handle all premises liability cases on a contingency fee basis, so you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. Hablamos español.
Without an Attorney vs. With Bretz Injury Law
Property owners and their insurance companies rely on Kansas-specific legal defenses to deny premises liability claims, and the most effective one is the open and obvious defense. This argument shifts blame onto you by claiming the hazard was visible and you should have avoided it.
Without legal representation, you have very little ability to challenge that defense or force the insurer to examine the property owner’s conduct.
Being hurt at a business or on private property can leave you unsure whether you even have a valid claim. Many people assume the property owner will do the right thing, only to find out that the insurer has already started building a case against them.
When you hire Bretz Injury Law, we investigate the property, gather maintenance records and surveillance footage, and build your case before critical evidence disappears. Getting involved early gives us the best chance to preserve the evidence your case depends on.
Types of Cases We Handle in Topeka
Our Topeka attorneys handle every type of premises liability case in Shawnee County. The type of property where your injury happened and the hazard involved directly shape how we investigate your claim and who we hold responsible. The types of premises liability cases we handle include:
- Slip and fall accidents caused by wet floors, ice, or uneven surfaces
- Negligent security claims resulting from assaults or robberies at commercial properties
- Dog bite injuries caused by owners who failed to control their animals
- Falls on broken stairs, in poorly lit stairwells, or on damaged walkways
- Injuries at retail stores, restaurants, and shopping centers on Wanamaker Road
- Apartment injuries caused by unmaintained common areas, stairways, or parking lots
- Injuries at public parks including Gage Park and Lake Shawnee
- Injuries at the Kansas State Capitol and other government-owned property
- Swimming pool accidents and attractive nuisance claims involving children
If a property owner caused your injury anywhere in Topeka, we want to hear what happened. If your injury involved a vehicle in a parking lot, our Topeka car accident attorneys can also evaluate that claim.
How Kansas Law Affects Your Premises Liability Case
Kansas premises liability law determines whether a property owner is responsible for your injury based on why you were on the property and what the owner knew about the hazard. The rules are specific, and they differ depending on your legal status at the time of your injury.
Under K.S.A. 60-258a, Kansas follows a modified comparative fault system with a 50% cutoff. If you are assigned half or more of the fault for your injury, you recover nothing. Below that line, your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault.
The statute of limitations gives you two years to file a premises liability lawsuit under K.S.A. 60-513. Claims involving government property have additional notice requirements that can shorten your timeline even further. Missing any of these deadlines can eliminate your right to recover.
Invitee, Licensee, and Trespasser
Kansas uses a three-tier classification system that determines how much protection you receive on someone else’s property. Invitees, which includes customers, tenants, and anyone on the property for the owner’s benefit, are owed the highest duty of care. The owner must inspect for hidden hazards, fix dangerous conditions, and warn of risks they cannot immediately address.
Licensees, such as social guests, are owed a duty to be warned of known dangerous conditions. The property owner does not have to inspect on their behalf, but they cannot conceal hazards they are already aware of.
Under K.S.A. 58-821, trespassers are owed only the common-law duty not to be willfully or wantonly harmed. The one exception is the attractive nuisance doctrine, which protects children who trespass near dangerous conditions like unfenced swimming pools or construction sites.
The Open and Obvious Defense
The open and obvious defense is the most common reason premises liability claims get denied in Kansas. Property owners use this argument to claim they owed you no duty to warn because the hazard was visible to a reasonable person. Insurance adjusters treat this defense as a case-closer, but Kansas courts have recognized several exceptions.
You can still recover compensation if there was no reasonable alternative path around the hazard, if the property owner created the condition, or if a distraction diverted your attention at the time of your injury. An experienced attorney can identify which exception applies and build the evidence to support it.
Government Property and the Kansas Tort Claims Act
Injuries at government buildings, state offices, and public property in Topeka are governed by the Kansas Tort Claims Act (K.S.A. 75-6101 et seq.). As the state capital, Topeka has a concentration of government-owned properties that other Kansas cities do not, including the Kansas State Capitol, state agency offices, courthouses, and public parks.
Under the Act, government entities are liable for injuries caused by employee acts or omissions within the scope of employment. However, the process for filing a claim is different from a standard premises liability case.
You must file a notice of claim with the governing body under K.S.A. 12-105b(d) before you can file a lawsuit, and no punitive damages are available. Missing the notice deadline can end your case before it begins.
What Should You Do After an Injury on Someone Else’s Property?
The evidence that proves a premises liability case can disappear quickly, so the steps you take right after your injury are critical to building a strong claim. If you are able to, follow this sequence:
- Report the incident to the property owner or manager. Ask for a written incident report and keep a copy. If they refuse, document that refusal.
- Photograph the hazard. Take photos of the condition that caused your injury, the surrounding area, the lighting, and any warning signs or the absence of them.
- Get witness contact information. Anyone who saw the conditions or your injury can support your claim later.
- Seek medical attention immediately. Some injuries take days to produce symptoms, and gaps in your medical records give insurers a reason to question your claim.
- Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance company. Speak with a Topeka premises liability attorney first.
- Contact Bretz Injury Law as soon as possible. Surveillance footage from nearby cameras may be overwritten within 24 to 72 hours. The sooner we act, the more evidence we can preserve.
What Compensation Can You Recover After a Topeka Premises Liability Case?
Kansas law allows premises liability victims to recover damages for the full scope of losses caused by a property owner’s negligence. The value of your claim depends on the severity of your injuries, how long your recovery takes, and whether you will need ongoing medical care.
Economic damages cover your current and future medical bills, surgery, physical therapy, rehabilitation, lost wages, and any reduction in your earning capacity. Non-economic damages compensate you for physical pain, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of independence.
If a property injury resulted in death, surviving family members may pursue wrongful death damages. Never accept a settlement before an attorney reviews the full extent of your losses.
How Bretz Injury Law Can Help
Attorney Matthew Bretz founded this firm after a preventable accident took his 16-year-old sister’s life. That personal loss drives the way we approach every premises liability case, including yours. With more than 30 years of experience and over $300 million recovered for injured clients across Kansas, our team is ready to fight for you.
Acting quickly after an injury gives us the best chance to build a strong case on your behalf. Call our Topeka office at (785) 264-4424 or reach out to our team online to schedule your free case evaluation. You pay nothing unless we win.