Michigan Dog Bite Laws: Lawyer Resources

Our book, “The Ultimate Michigan Bite & Animal Attack Handbook,” has great information on the Michigan dog bite laws.  You can request your free copy of the book simply by clicking here.  The books are being requested in great numbers and they are tremendous resource for consumers and dog bite victims.  I have pasted below an excerpt of the book on the Michigan dog bite laws for your review.  If you have any questions about a Michigan dog bite case, just give me a call at (800) 606-1717 or fill out this contact form.

In Michigan, the law recognizes three potential causes of action arising out of a dog attack incident: (1) statutory strict liability; (2) common-law strict liability; (3) and common law negligence (including statutory and ordinance violations).  

Michigan has enacted statutory strict liability under what is commonly referred to as the dog-bite statute. Under this law, if a dog bites a person, without provocation, while the person is on public property, or lawfully on private property, including the property of the owner of the dog, the owner of the dog is be liable for any damages suffered by the person bitten, regardless of the former viciousness of the dog or the owner’s knowledge of such viciousness. This means that if someone is bitten while lawfully on public or private property, the owner of the dog is automatically liable for any injury or damage the dog causes as long as the dog was not provoked. In addition, the law makes clear that people considered lawfully on the private property of the owner includes social guests, friends, family members, contractors, postal employees, utility company workers, newspaper carriers, and others who were invited onto the property for a business or social purpose.

In addition to strict liability under the dog-bite statute, Michigan law recognizes two other potential causes of action arising out of a dog attack incident: common-law strict liability and common law negligence (including statutory and ordinance violations).

A cause of action for common law strict liability attaches for harm done by a dog or domestic animal where three elements are present: (1) one is the owner or possessor of the animal; (2) one knew or should have known of the animal’s abnormal dangerous propensities; and (3) harm results from the dangerous propensity that was known or should have been known.  This means that if someone owns or harbors a vicious dog and a person is harmed as a result of the dog’s vicious behavior, then the owner or keeper of the dog will be liable under common law strict liability.

Next, a cause of action under common law negligence is available without regard to whether the owner, keeper, or possessor had knowledge of the dog’s dangerous propensities if that person was negligent in failing to prevent foreseeable harm and that negligence resulted in an injury. This means that the dog or animal owner may be liable if the injury occurred because the dog owner was unreasonably careless in controlling the dog. This can include not putting a leash on the dog, the lack of a proper sign in warning citizens of a vicious dog, and simply not paying attention to the actions of the dog.

Many times, the owner is automatically liable for failing to properly have the dog restrained or on a leash under city ordinances and rules.  This might include in a public park or just somewhere in the neighborhood.  Dog owners are also responsible for attacks in these places.

Some people believe that the one-bite rule is the law in Michigan. This rule means that the owner is not liable or responsible if the dog had never bitten anyone before your incident.  This law does not exist in Michigan and dog owners are not entitled to a free bite.

Related posts:

1. Two Boys Injured In A Michigan Dog Attack
2. Pit Bulls Attack Woman In Westland, Michigan
3. Pitbull Bites Flint Man In Dog Attack
4. Westland Dog Bite Lawyers
5. Dog Bite Claims in Michigan

If you would like more information about your legal rights after a Michigan injury accident, medical malpractice, wrongful death case, or other accident, you can order our FREE book, "The Ultimate Guide To Injury Cases In Michigan" by clicking on the book link. We will send it out immediately along with other important information.

For more information about Michigan injury and accident cases, visit our Michigan personal injury, car accident, and malpractice law website. If you would like to speak with one of our Michigan personal injury attorneys about your case, feel free to call us anytime at (800) 606-1717 or simply submit this contact form and we will get back to you quickly.

BUCKFIRE & BUCKFIRE, P.C. is a Michigan personal injury law firm and is not representing any of the parties mentioned in this article at the time of the posting of the article. The information contained in this article is from online news sources and any perceived misstatements should be attributed to those sources as we did not complete any investigation of the accident. If you believe that the information is inaccurate and would like it changed or would like this post completely removed from the site, please let us know and we will do our best to promptly accommodate your request. We are very sensitive to these requests.

If you were involved in this accident or a similar accident and have questions about your legal rights and options, it is important that you contact a reputable law firm. Please make sure that any Michigan law firm that you contact has significant experience in handling these types of accident and injury cases and has an excellent track record of successful settlements and jury verdicts. We also suggest that the attorney you contact provides you with a free initial consultation.