When a dog attacks a person, your immediate reaction is to protect yourself and your family from harm. Injuries and trauma are very common and often devastatingly challenging to overcome. Insurance companies may not listen, provide fair compensation, or even try to blame you. A dog bite lawyer in Conway, AR, is the best resource for protecting your future.
At LeVar Law, we become your advocate, fighting for fair compensation in the most challenging of situations. We offer free consultations to victims, providing them with exceptional access to the resources they need. Talk to our Conway personal injury attorney today about your dog bite injury.
Dog Bite Laws in Conway, AR
Dogs are the responsibility of their owners, and when that owner fails to restrain their animal, allowing it to bite or attack others, the victim has the right to seek compensation for their losses. Under statute A.C.A. § 14-54-1102, the state establishes a strict liability rule. That means that dog owners are responsible for their animals’ actions. The law allows municipalities to make their own decisions about what rules apply, and in Conway, Ord. No. 0-1-102 applies.
Under § 5-62-125: Unlawful Dog Attack regulation, the state puts in place the right to charge a person with a Class A misdemeanor if they:
- Have any reason to believe the dog is a danger to another person or has a natural tendency or inclination to attack or cause injuries
- The person is negligent in allowing their dog to attack and bite another person
- The dog attack causes serious injury or death to another person
Dog bite laws make it clear that owners must take every step possible to prevent their dog from harming another person. With the guidance of our dog bite attorney in Conway, AR, we can make sure you know your rights to recover damages.
Dogs at Large in Conway
Dogs cannot be at large, which means they cannot run through the neighborhood. The city can impound at-large animals, and the Animal Welfare Officer may apply fines if the incident occurs frequently. The animal warden must be notified whenever an animal bites, scratches, or attacks another person or animal within the city.
The city also bans nuisance animals or animals that infringe on the rights of another animal or person, such as those that repeatedly roam at large, hurt someone who walks by, attack other domestic animals, or hurt people.
Other key factors about the city’s laws include:
- In most cases, people are not permitted to own, possess, or keep a dangerous dog unless compliance measures are in place and approved by the animal warden.
- Owners must always prevent animals from attacking or harming other people and from displaying aggressive behavior toward them.
- Others cannot provoke the dog or tease it to get such behavior.
- Owners must keep their dog on a leash and not at large at all times.
Though the dog bite laws can be complex, they are in place to protect others. What this means for you, as a victim of a dog bite, is that you have the right to pursue legal action when a dog owner violates the law and their dog causes injury to you.
What to Do After a Dog Bite in Conway
After a dog attack, seek medical care and document your injuries. If children are involved, even if the child seems okay, get medical care to ensure there is no risk to the child’s well-being.
Gather the owner’s name and contact information, request their homeowner’s insurance information, and report the dangerous dog to the local police if it is still at large.
In Conway, it is the responsibility of all parties to report the incident to the local animal warden even if no serious injuries are documented. The city’s animal services are available during the day, most days.
If you have serious injuries that will require extensive time off work, pain and suffering, and financial loss through medical bills, contact a dog attack lawyer in Conway, AR, immediately. Our legal team at LeVar Law will begin working to protect your rights to compensation immediately.
Additional Tips for Children
When an aggressive dog bites a child, the risk of serious injury is high. Call 911 if the child has wounds, and ensure you follow all recommended follow-up care. Your child may need to be hospitalized to ensure their physical health stability. However, the need for ongoing emotional trauma support is also very real. In children with significant tendon, muscle, or tissue damage, rehabilitation and therapy may be necessary. Our legal team is here to guide you through the claims process.
The Complexity of Dog Bite Injuries
A dog bite can cause minimal pain and not require medical care. In these situations, you may not have the ability to seek legal action. However, many dog bites cause serious injury that can impact a person for years to come. Examples include:
- Deep lacerations impacting soft tissue and muscles
- Risk of infection
- Broken bones
- Traumatic brain injuries occur if a person strikes their head
- Disfigurement through scarring
- Nerve damage
- Spinal cord damage
- Internal organ injury
- Amputation
In each of these situations, victims must seek medical care immediately. Follow all the recommendations your doctor has. Then, seek legal action with the help of our dog attack attorney in Conway, AR.
Complications From Dog Attacks Are Serious
Many victims of a dog attack find themselves struggling with various facets of life as a result of that incident. Some examples of the complications that could arise out of a dog bite or attack in Faulkner County include:
- Loss of mobility for a short time or permanently
- Scarring and disfigurement
- Being unable to go back to work due to your injuries
- Suffering emotional trauma from the incident
- Facing chronic pain due to your injuries
- Being unable to do the things you enjoy
- Facing long-term rehabilitation
- Permanent loss of the ability to care for yourself
- Long-term cosmetic injury recovery and future medical needs
Even if you do not have these types of losses from a dog attack, you have the right to pursue the damages you do have under the law. Many victims face months of recovery and rehabilitation. Put your trust in Alan LeVar and our team.
Dog Bite Injuries in Children Are Worse
Children are at a higher risk of being affected by dog bites than adults. The National Institutes of Health indicate that about half of all children sustain a dog bite at least once. About 80% of severe dog bites to kids involve their head and neck. This causes a much higher risk of psychosocial, aesthetic, and functional injuries in children while they are still growing. That can lead to challenges in every facet of life over time.
Take steps to aggressively protect your child from the risk of dog bites, including:
- Teaching children about the inability to know how a dog will react to them.
- Teach kids not to pull a dog’s ear or tail, not to climb on the dog, and not to hit a dog, even in a playful way.
- Always supervise children around dogs, never leaving children under 10 alone with a dog they do not know.
- Focus on gentle behavior. Encourage children to touch a dog only after the owner says it is okay. Never approach the dog with their hands or arms upright, but instead slowly with their hand lower.
- Do not roughhouse or tease dogs, even as adults, when children are around, as this could encourage this behavior later when no one is available to help.
How Our Dog Bite Lawyers in Conway, AR Can Help You
Hiring an attorney becomes necessary in many dog attack cases. Insurance companies can be very aggressive in limiting the compensation paid out. They may try to accuse you of provoking the dog or state that you were trespassing at the time of the accident. Your injuries and losses could be significant and critical to your recovery. When you hire our dog bite attorneys, you gain the legal guidance you need in these difficult situations. Some of the benefits of hiring our legal team include:
- Years of experience. Our legal team, led by Alan LeVar, has decades of experience that works for your benefit. In those years, we have helped many victims navigate the tough dog bite laws in the area, aiding victims in pursuing fair compensation.
- A reputation for fighting hard. Insurance companies, the city, and the courts know that our legal team will work hard for victims. We have a reputation for pursuing aggressive recovery of your losses.
- Compassionate support. In this difficult time, you need an attorney who works closely with you to protect your rights and cares about your outcome.
With extensive trial experience and having recovered millions of dollars in damages for our clients, you can trust that our dog bite attorneys in Conway, AR, will fight for you to receive full recovery of your losses.
What Your Dog Bite Case May Be Worth
Every dog attack is different and results in various losses. Our goal, as your dog attack lawyers in Conway, AR, is to fully investigate what took place, why it happened, and who is responsible. We then examine all ways in which this incident has impacted your health, emotional well-being, and finances, and how it will continue to do so in the future.
To determine the value of your case, we use:
- Evidence of your wounds and lasting damage to your physical well-being
- Documentation of emotional trauma from friends, family, and professionals who treated you
- Video and photo evidence of what took place
- Data from medical experts on the severity of your injuries and the long-lasting impact
- Evidence of the impact on your daily life
Using this information, we build an evidence-based claim to submit to the dog owner. Most often, the property insurance for the owner will cover dog bites. If they do not have such insurance, we can seek a lawsuit against the owner for any losses you have suffered directly. Some of the most common types of losses suffered in a dog attack include:
- Medical bills: Any type of medical bill you have, such as emergency room care, hospitalization, surgeries, medications, treatments, and rehabilitation
- Future medical needs: The need for cosmetic or restorative surgeries, ongoing therapy, in-home support, and any expected medical care you will need
- Loss of income: Loss of wages from being unable to work for a period of time, including bonuses, benefits, and other compensation you did not receive
- Loss of future income: For those with permanent injuries, loss of future earnings is also calculated
- Property damage: Losses related to any damaged property you have to repair or replace.
- Pain and suffering: The emotional and physical pain you suffered due to the accident, including the ongoing suffering you have due to your injuries
- Emotional trauma: The onset of conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety from the attack and recovery process
Consider all ways this accident has impacted your quality of life, well-being, and overall emotional stability. We will also examine how your relationships have changed and whether you can no longer engage in activities you enjoyed. Learn more about us today.
How We Prove Negligence in a Dog Attack Case
To prove the dog’s owner is responsible for all of your losses, our legal team must establish negligence. This process has several components.
- Duty of care: We must show that the dog’s owner owed you a duty of care, meaning they should have kept the dog confined or on a leash, or taken other measures to protect the public from a dog they know is a risk
- Breach of that duty of care: The owner did something that violates your right to be kept safe
- Causation: The owner’s breach of duty of care is what directly caused the accident to occur, such as allowing the dog to be outside unleashed
- Losses: You suffered monetary damages from the dog attack
By proving each of these areas, our legal team can build a strong case for you. Remember that dog owners are responsible for keeping their dogs leashed. If they fail to do so and you suffer injuries, our dog attack attorneys in Conway, AR, are ready to help.
Comparative Negligence Rules in Arkansas
In some instances, the police may determine that you, as the victim, were partially responsible for what occurred. Arkansas follows a modified comparative negligence rule. This means that if you are partially at fault for the accident, you can still file a claim. However, the value of your claim is reduced by the percentage of fault applied.
In situations where the court finds that you are more than 50% at fault, you cannot recover any damages. This is one of the critical reasons to hire an experienced dog attack attorney to fight for you. We work to minimize this risk.
Schedule a Free Consultation with Our Dog Bite Attorney in Conway, AR
Dog bite laws are complex, and the risk of long-term injury is high. Let our over 20 years of legal experience fight for you. Call LeVar Law for a free consultation. We will listen to what happened, discuss your injuries, and tell you if you have a case.
There is never a charge for a consultation. You only pay for our services if we win your case. Call our dog bite lawyer in Conway, AR, now to learn more about your rights in these matters.
