Premises Liability

Generally, the owner or operator of the premises has a duty to keep the property in a reasonably safe condition or to at least warn customers of dangerous conditions the operator has caused, knows about, or should know about. These types of cases can involve both residential and commercial buildings, as well as shopping centers, parking lots, and hotels.

An Oklahoma case from 1973 provides a nice primer of the law with regard to a store or shopping center:

A storekeeper owes customers the duty to exercise ordinary care to keep aisles and other parts of the premises ordinarily used by customers in transacting business in a reasonably safe condition, and to warn customers of dangerous conditions upon the premises which are known, or which should reasonably be known to the storekeeper, but not to customers. [Citations omitted.]. Knowledge of the dangerous condition will be imputed to the storekeeper if he knew of the dangerous condition, or if it existed for such time it was his duty to know of it, or if the condition was created by him, or by his employees acting within the scope of the employment. [Citations omitted.]. Williams v. Safeway Stores, Inc., 515 P.2d 223 (Okla. 1973).