Most people in Alabama believe that when it comes to responsibility for a dog's vicious behavior, the plaintiff must prove that the dog has bitten someone before.  That is not true in all cases.  Our Firm has handled dozens of cases involving vicious dogs and it is usually feasible to prosecute the cases by proving that the dog owner violated either the state statute or a city ordinance.

                We recently settled a case where our client was viciously attacked by her friend's dog as she was leaving her friend's house and while still in the yard.  The case was prosecuted under §3-6-1 which governs the liability of the owner of a dog for injuries suffered to a person bitten or injured while upon property owned or controlled by the owner.  In essence, the statute provides that if without provocation a dog bites or injures any person who is on the dog's property, the owner shall be liable in damages.  This also applies if the dog follows a person off the property and bites or injuries that person.

                Many municipalities in Alabama make it illegal for a dog to run at large, (leash law) and also make it illegal to keep a vicious dog unless the dog is securely confined in such a manner as to prevent the dog from biting or attacking a person or another animal. 

                Insurance companies pay out millions of dollars each year for incidents where dogs bite and injure friends, family members, and strangers.  In order to protect yourself from liability as the result of your dog's conduct, keep the dog in a fence or on a leash. 

                Recent cases settled by Yearout & Traylor involving dog attacks include a case where an elderly man was attacked by a pit bull while the man was leaning up against a fence looking at a horse; a six year old boy's ear was bitten off by a German Sheppard as  the boy was chasing a ball in a family members back yard; a young girl was bitten on the face by a Chow while attempted to pet the dog as it was walking through her neighborhood; an older lady was bitten on the hand by a Pit Bull mix as she was walking through a residential neighborhood; a middle aged lady was attacked and bitten on her lower extremities as she walked her dog through a neighborhood in a residential area; and middle aged lady was attacked and bitten on the face and arm by a Pit Bull as she was carrying a small dog through a mobile home park.