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Oregon Premises Liability
Property owners in Oregon have a legal duty to keep their premises safe. When they fail — and you get hurt — that's not bad luck. It's negligence. David Wallace holds them accountable.
Free consultation. No fee unless we win. David responds personally within 30 minutes.
$10M+
Recovered for Oregon Clients
98%
Success Rate on Premises Cases
4.8★
Google Rating (71 Reviews)
30 Min
Personal Response Time
Decades
Litigating Oregon Property Cases
Oregon Premises Liability Law
The moment after a fall is the moment everything changes. The pain comes first — but quickly behind it comes the question: was this preventable? In most cases, the answer is yes.
Premises liability is the area of Oregon law that holds property owners, businesses, and landlords responsible when someone is injured on their property due to unsafe conditions. Under Oregon law, property owners have a duty of care to anyone lawfully on their premises — including customers, tenants, guests, and in some cases, even trespassers.
When a property owner knows — or reasonably should have known — about a dangerous condition and fails to fix it or warn visitors, they have breached that duty. If that breach causes an injury, the injured person has the right to pursue compensation.
Premises liability covers far more than just slip and falls. It applies to any injury caused by unsafe conditions on property: inadequate lighting, broken stairs, negligent security, unmarked hazards, icy walkways, defective equipment, and more. If the hazard existed because someone didn't do their job, that's a premises liability case.
Cases We Handle
If you were hurt on property you didn't own, there's a good chance someone was negligent. Here's what that can look like.
Every category below represents a property owner who knew — or should have known — about a hazard and failed to fix it before someone got hurt.
Wet floors, loose rugs, uneven pavement, cluttered aisles — slip and fall accidents cause serious injuries and are among the most common premises liability cases. Property owners are responsible for conditions they knew about or should have discovered through regular inspection.
Oregon winters create dangerous walkways outside businesses, apartment buildings, and parking lots. When a property owner fails to clear ice or salt walkways within a reasonable time, they can be held liable for resulting falls and injuries.
Businesses, landlords, and property managers have a duty to provide adequate security in areas with known crime risk. If you were assaulted, robbed, or attacked on a property that lacked proper lighting, security personnel, or functioning locks, the property owner may be liable.
Dark stairwells, unlit parking lots, and poorly lit hallways create foreseeable injury risks. When a property owner fails to maintain adequate lighting and someone is injured as a result, that's a compensable premises liability claim.
Broken handrails, crumbling steps, rotting decks, and uneven walkways are hazards property owners are required to repair. If you were injured because a property's structural features failed, you may have a strong claim.
Oregon holds dog owners strictly liable for bites and attacks in most circumstances. If a dog bit you on someone else's property, both the dog owner and the property owner (if different) may bear responsibility.
Grocery stores, shopping centers, warehouses, and commercial buildings are held to the highest standard of care. Spills, fallen merchandise, hazardous displays, and inadequate maintenance are all potential bases for a claim.
Landlords and property managers must maintain rental properties in a habitable and safe condition. Broken locks, faulty wiring, mold, collapsing fixtures, and unsafe common areas can all give rise to premises liability claims against a landlord.
The Defense Playbook
Most people who are hurt on someone else's property don't pursue a claim — not because they don't have one, but because they've already been made to feel like it was their fault.
Insurance companies and defense attorneys are very good at this. They'll argue you “should have seen it.” They'll claim you were wearing the wrong shoes, not paying attention, or moving too fast. Oregon's comparative fault rules mean that the more responsibility they can shift to you, the less they have to pay.
This is the game. David knows how it's played — and how to win it.
What the Defense Will Argue
What David Does About It
“The defense in a slip and fall case starts working immediately. Evidence gets cleaned up. Security footage gets overwritten. Witnesses forget. The day you call David is the day the documentation begins — and that documentation is what wins cases.”
What You Need to Prove
Oregon premises liability cases require proving four elements. David builds the evidence to establish all four — from inspection records to expert testimony.
01
The property owner owed you a legal duty to maintain safe conditions. In Oregon, businesses and commercial property owners owe the highest duty of care to lawful visitors. David establishes the duty owed based on the type of property and your legal status as a visitor.
02
The property owner failed to meet that duty — by creating the hazard, failing to fix it, or failing to warn visitors. David obtains inspection records, maintenance logs, and expert testimony to prove the owner knew or should have known about the dangerous condition.
03
The breach directly caused your injury. This is where insurance companies attack hardest — arguing the condition wasn’t actually the cause, or that a pre-existing condition was to blame. David counters this with medical documentation and, when needed, expert medical testimony.
04
You suffered real losses: medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, reduced quality of life. David ensures every element of your damages is documented and valued — not just the bills you’ve already paid, but the ongoing and future costs you’ll face.
How It Works
Time matters in these cases. Evidence disappears. David moves fast.
David personally responds within 30 minutes during business hours. In your first call, he’ll assess your case, explain your rights, and tell you what your next steps should be. No intake forms. No paralegals. David.
David’s team moves immediately to secure surveillance footage, photograph the hazard, gather witness information, and request maintenance records and incident logs from the property. In premises cases, this evidence often disappears within days.
David connects you with the right medical providers and ensures your injuries are thoroughly documented — including imaging, specialist evaluations, and ongoing treatment records. Thorough documentation is what converts a claim into a settlement.
From insurance negotiation to courtroom trial, David pursues the full value of your damages — medical costs, lost income, pain and suffering, and future losses. He does not settle for less than full value, and he’s not afraid to take a case to trial to get it.
Why David
Premises liability defendants always try to blame the victim. David is experienced in countering every version of this argument — “open and obvious,” comparative fault, pre-existing conditions — with hard evidence and expert testimony that puts the responsibility where it belongs.
Surveillance footage gets overwritten. Hazards get repaired. Witnesses move on. David moves immediately to preserve the evidence that makes your case — so by the time the property owner’s insurance lawyer is ready to fight, David already has what he needs to win.
Most firms pressure clients to settle quickly. David fronts expert costs — sometimes $40,000 or more — and takes cases to trial and the Oregon Supreme Court when that’s what it takes. His willingness to go to court is often what produces the highest settlements.
About David Wallace
David Wallace has litigated premises liability cases against grocery chains, commercial landlords, and property management companies across Oregon. He knows their legal playbooks — and he builds cases that dismantle them. He's reversed precedent, fronted expert fees, and won cases that other attorneys told clients weren't worth pursuing. When you hire David, you're not getting a big-box firm that cycles through settlements. You're getting him.
Case Results
David has held Oregon property owners accountable. Here's what that has looked like.
$XXX,XXX
Slip and Fall — Portland Grocery Store
Client slipped on an unmarked wet floor. Recovered full medical costs plus non-economic damages after the store denied liability.
$XXX,XXX
Negligent Security — Portland Apartment Complex
Client was assaulted in an inadequately lit parking lot. Recovered against property management company for failure to maintain adequate security measures.
$XXX,XXX
Icy Walkway — Commercial Property, Oregon
Client slipped on an uncleared icy entrance to a commercial building. Property owner claimed hazard was “open and obvious.” David proved prior notice and recovered full damages.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Every case is unique.
Real Clients. Real Results.
4.8 stars across 71 Google reviews
“After my car accident, the insurance company pressured me to settle for almost nothing. David refused to back down. He got me more than ten times their initial offer and treated me like a person, not a case file.”
Marcus T.
Portland, OR
“I lost my husband to a drunk driver. David was the first lawyer who actually listened. He fought for our family for two years and recovered more than we ever expected. He responds to texts within minutes — even on weekends.”
Sarah K.
Beaverton, OR
“I slipped at a grocery store and the corporate insurance company tried to blame me. David proved they had ignored multiple complaints about the same hazard. He took the case all the way and won.”
James R.
Salem, OR
“I called three other lawyers before David. He was the only one who picked up himself, no receptionist. He explained everything in plain English and never made me feel stupid for asking questions.”
Linda M.
Eugene, OR
“David fronted forty thousand dollars in expert costs to take my case to trial when other firms told me to settle for pennies. He won, and I got my life back. He's the real deal.”
Anthony P.
Gresham, OR
Frequently Asked
If you were injured on property you didn’t own — a store, apartment building, parking lot, or any other space — and the injury resulted from an unsafe condition the property owner knew about or should have known about, you likely have a claim. The key question is whether the owner failed to meet their duty of care. David offers free consultations and will give you an honest answer about whether your situation qualifies.
Oregon uses modified comparative fault rules: you can still recover damages as long as you were not more than 50% responsible for your own injury. Your award will be reduced by your percentage of fault — but you don’t lose everything. Insurance companies always try to inflate your fault percentage to reduce their payout. David knows this tactic and counters it with documentation of the property hazard.
Oregon’s statute of limitations for premises liability claims is two years from the date of injury. Claims against government entities (city sidewalks, public buildings, etc.) have much shorter notice deadlines — sometimes as short as 180 days. If you were hurt on government property, contact David immediately. Don’t wait on any premises case — evidence degrades fast.
The “open and obvious” defense argues that the hazard was so visible you should have seen it and avoided it. Property owners use this to escape liability. But Oregon courts have limited this defense significantly — particularly when the hazard was one visitors would foreseeably encounter despite its visibility (like a single step in a busy aisle). David has successfully countered open-and-obvious arguments in premises cases. It’s a defense, not a guarantee.
Claims against Oregon government entities follow different rules. You must file a tort claims notice within a specific timeframe (often 180 days for state government, 60–180 days for local government). Missing this deadline can permanently bar your claim. If you were injured on public property, call David immediately — these deadlines move fast and the rules are complex.
It depends on the severity of your injuries, how clearly the property owner breached their duty, and the strength of the documentation. Premises cases can range from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. David will give you an honest assessment in your free consultation — based on your actual situation, not a formula. He takes cases he believes in and fights for every dollar.
Insurance companies start protecting the property owner the moment you're injured. David starts protecting you the moment you call. Get a free, no-obligation case review today.
No fee unless we win. David personally responds within 30 minutes during business hours.
Call directly: (503) 208-2950