Dog Law in PA

We love our pet companions at Motheral Jones Law. However, sometimes an otherwise friendly dog, unfortunately, injures a friend, relative, child, or stranger. We get many client calls asking what happens when an otherwise nice dog snaps and bites without provocation and the dog doesn’t have a history of biting. The answer is you do not need a prior attack in the animal’s history to prove your case.

They actually need an experienced Pennsylvania dog bite injury lawyer to help them walk through the process and protect their rights to recovery and locate the proper insurance coverage for such incidents. Also, many of these incidents can settle out of court as a pre-litigation settlement negotiated by our experienced dog law team.

We are here to help at Motheral Jones Law Pittsburgh dog attack law firm. We have even handled cases where a dog jumped on our clients and knocked them to the ground, causing injury, so call us today if you were injured and an animal was involved.

It is important to know that Pennsylvania sets statutory limits on the amount of time a claimant must file the proper documentation with the court to preserve their rights to recovery. In Pennsylvania, dog bite cases must be filed within two years of the date the injury occurred (that means the day on which you were bitten or otherwise harmed by the dog).

If you do not have the proper legal guidance for cases involving dogs, you may be missing out on your rights to payment for your medical bills, pain and suffering, and any lost income from the incident. You want a legal team on your side to investigate your case and collect all evidence. The two most common dog laws that we see dog owners violate at Motheral Jones Law are:

3 P.S. § 459-305 (a) Confinement and control.

“It shall be unlawful for the owner or keeper of any dog to fail to keep at all times the dog in any of the following manners:

1. 1. confined within the premises of the owner;
   2. firmly secured by means of a collar and chain or other device so that it cannot stray beyond the premises on which it is secured;

Or

1. 1. 3. under the reasonable control of some person, or when engaged in lawful hunting, exhibition or field training.”

And

3 P.S. § 459-502 – A Registration.

An owner or keeper of a dog is guilty of harboring a dangerous dog if:

1. 1. 1. The dog has done one or more of the following:
         • inflicted severe injury on a human being without provocation on public or private property.
         • killed or inflicted severe injury on a domestic animal without provocation while off the owner’s property.
         • attacked a human being without provocation.
         • been used in the commission of a crime.
      2. The dog has either or both of the following:
         • a history of attacking human beings and/or domestic animals without provocation.
         • a propensity to attack human beings and/or domestic animals without provocation. A propensity to attack may be proven by a single incident of the conduct described in paragraphs (1)(i),(ii), (iii) or (iv).
      3. The defendant is the owner or keeper of the dog.

The Defendant violated this Act, therefore the Defendant is negligent as a matter of law.

The most important part of the above law is that a single incident of the conduct may prove a propensity to attack. If this sounds like something you or a loved one has experienced, call Motheral Jones today for a free consultation at (412) 404-2510.