swimming pool accident and drowning lawyers

Texas Swimming Pool Accident Lawyers & Negligence Attorneys

Swimming Pool Accident Law Firm Advocating for Children Injured in Swimming Pool Accidents

From water parks to your own backyard, swimming pools have become a necessity for families across the United States.

While swimming and other water-related activities are excellent ways to cool off and enjoy your summer, they also come with life-threatening risks with which all parents should be aware. If your child was injured, contact the swimming pool accident attorneys at Thomas J. Henry Law today.

Swimming Pool Injuries and Drownings

Americans love to swim — especially children. Among children and teens between the age of 7 and 17, swimming is the number one most popular recreational activity. Sadly, every year hundreds of children are injured and killed due to a drowning. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury death among children aged 1-4 years. More than 60 percent of fatal drownings of 0 to 4 year-old children occur in swimming pools. Some fatal drownings are the result of negligent property owners who have failed to provide a safe environment for your child to swim.

Common Causes of Pool Accidents and Injuries

Similar to any other premises liability case, if the pool’s property owner is found to be negligent in keeping the area safe for you and your children, you may be entitled to compensation. Here are a few causes of pool accidents:

Failure to maintain water clarity
Inattentive and untrained life guards
Failure to maintain self latching and closing gates that keep young children from entering pool area
Failure to maintain pool logs as required by state laws
Vacuum drains that do not have proper covers can cause serious or fatal results
Lack of safety equipment on hand such as shepherd hooks and ring buoys with throw ropes
Lack of flotation safety lines separating deep and shallow areas of pool
Unclear depth markers that prevent swimmers from knowing what the depth of the pool is
Lack of certified and properly trained pool staff responsible for pool upkeep
Defective pool equipment such as filters and pool pumps that affect water clarity
Lack of pool ladders that allow easy exit from pools
Emergency phone near pool not working or non-existent
Overcrowded pools with too many people in the pool at one time
Inadequate light for pool area
Defective pool lights

Circulation Entrapment Injuries

The CPSC defines “circulation entrapment” as being caught in the water circulation system in a pool or spa, which includes the drain and suction outlets. Here are some facts about circulation entrapment:

Between 2011 and 2015, there were 20 incidents of reported circulation entrapment injuries.
Out of the 20 incidents, only one victim was fatally injured.
78 percent of the victims of circulation entrapment were younger than 15 years old.
Nearly half (48 percent) of victims were trapped in a suction incident.
35 percent of circulation entrapment incidents involved entrapment of a limb.

Contact Us for a Free Case Review

866-517-5659

info@tjhlaw.com

Contact Us for a Free Case Review

866-517-5659
info@tjhlaw.com

Your Questions Answered

We have straight answers to difficult questions
to help you make critical decisions, navigate
legal process and help you get justice.

Following an accident, there are always more questions
than answers. At Thomas J. Henry, we’re here to answer
any questions you have about your injury case.

If you or a loved one were injured on someone’s property and believe your injury was the result of the property owner’s failure to provide reasonable protection, following these steps may help build your product liability case.

Seek medical attention for your injuries
Ensure that you or loved ones’ well being is taken care of before taking any other actions
Report the incident to the owner or manager of the property
Make sure to get a copy of the incident report
Take pictures of the area where the accident happened
Photos with a date and time are important, because evidence could be removed
Get names and phone numbers of any people who witnessed the accident
Witnesses will help prove your story in the future
Call an experienced injury attorney

Thomas J. Henry Injury Attorneys has the experience and resources necessary to retrieve the compensation you deserve for your injuries

In most situations, a property owner owes a general duty of care toward those injured on his property. How far this duty of care extends is dependent on the relationship between the property owner and the injured person. In most premises liability cases, plaintiffs will fall into one of three categories:

Licensee: A licensee is a visitor whom the property owner permits expressly or implicitly to be on his property without a contractual relationship or trade of benefits. A houseguest is normally considered a licensee.
Invitee: An invitee is an individual who visits a property for a reason that benefits both the visitor and the property owner. A common example of an invitee is a shopper visiting a grocery store. In this instance, the shopper benefits from getting groceries and the store benefits from the shopper spending their money. A residential example of an invitee would include a contractor hired by a homeowner to complete repairs on a property. While a transfer of money is common in invitee situations, it is not required.
Trespasser: A trespasser is a visitor who comes onto a property without permission of the property owner.

If you are visiting a business as a customer, then you are considered an invitee and the property owner owes you a duty of care. Part of this duty of care is that the owner must exercise ordinary care to keep the premises safe for invitees. This includes protecting invitees from any dangerous conditions the owner knows about or should reasonably know about as well as inspecting the property and either fixing or warning invitees about any dangerous conditions. For example, in a situation in which liquid was spilled, the store would either have to clean up the spill in a timely manner or provide notification, such as a “Caution: Wet Floor” sign, to invitees provided the spill was known about or should have reasonably been known about. If you feel that your injury was the result of a business owner’s failure to fulfill a reasonable duty of care, then you may be entitled to compensation.

Whether you can sue a property owner depends whether the property owner owed you a duty of care and whether the property owner breached that duty of care. The duty of care owed to you by the property owner depends on your relationship with the property owner. Typically, you as a visitor will fall into one of three categories:

Licensee: A licensee is a visitor whom the property owner permits expressly or implicitly to be on his property without a contractual relationship or trade of benefits. A houseguest is normally considered a licensee.
Invitee: An invitee is an individual who visits a property for a reason that benefits both the visitor and the property owner. A common example of an invitee is a shopper visiting a grocery store. In this instance, the shopper benefits from getting groceries and the store benefits from the shopper spending their money. A residential example of an invitee would include a contractor hired by a homeowner to complete repairs on a property. While a transfer of money is common in invitee situations, it is not required.
Trespasser: A trespasser is a visitor who comes onto a property without permission of the property owner.

Once that is established, your attorney will begin to look at the duty of care owed:

Duty of Care Owed to Licensees: The property owner is usually only liable for willful or wanton injury to a licensee. This means the property owner must exercise enough care to prevent injury to a visitor who is known to be or could reasonably be expected to be within the range of a dangerous act or condition (i.e. warn the licensee of a known hazard). However, the property owner is not required to inspect the premises or to immediately fix dangerous conditions.
Duty of Care Owed to Invitees: The property owner must exercise ordinary care to keep the premises safe. This includes protecting invitees from any dangerous conditions the owner knows about or should reasonably know about. The property owner must also inspect the property and must either fix or warn invitees about any dangerous conditions. An example of this is the “Caution: Wet Floor” signs that is commonly used in retail and grocery stores.
Duty of Care Owed to Trespassers: Because there is now true relationship between a trespasser or property owner, the law is much more lenient when it comes to the duty of care owed by the property owner. The property owner is not required to fix any dangerous conditions nor must the property owner warn trespassers about potential hazards. However, a property owner can be held liable for creating dangerous conditions on his property or making dangers conditions worse in order to catch trespassers.

If it is determined that the plaintiff was an invitee of the business owner, then the business owner has a legal duty to exercise ordinary care to keep their premises safe for that invitee. This includes protecting invitees from any dangerous conditions the owner knows about or should reasonably know about as well as regularly inspecting the property in order to fix or warn invitees about any dangerous conditions. Situations involving invitees in which a business owner may have failed to provide a duty of ordinary care and may be liable for a visitor’s injuries include:

Injuries caused by a defective sliding door
Injuries caused by improperly assembled shelves
Injuries caused by improperly assembled and/or poorly maintained ceilings
A business owner failing to provide a safe parking lot for customers
Slip and fall injuries caused by a wet floor

However, even if a visitor is determined to be a trespasser, a business owner can be held liable for injuries suffered by the trespasser if it is determined that the business owner created dangerous conditions on his property or attempted to make known dangerous conditions worse in order to catch or punish trespassers.

After determining which category an injured falls into, a court will analyze what duty of care is owed by the property owner. Generally, the duty of care will be as follows:

Duty of Care Owed to Licensees: The property owner is usually only liable for willful or wanton injury to a licensee. This means the property owner must exercise enough care to prevent injury to a visitor who is known to be or could reasonably be expected to be within the range of a dangerous act or condition (i.e. warn the licensee of a known hazard). However, the property owner is not required to inspect the premises or to immediately fix dangerous conditions.
Duty of Care Owed to Invitees: The property owner must exercise ordinary care to keep the premises safe. This includes protecting invitees from any dangerous conditions the owner knows about or should reasonably know about. The property owner must also inspect the property and must either fix or warn invitees about any dangerous conditions. An example of this is the “Caution: Wet Floor” signs that is commonly used in retail and grocery stores.
Duty of Care Owed to Trespassers: Because there is now true relationship between a trespasser or property owner, the law is much more lenient when it comes to the duty of care owed by the property owner. The property owner is not required to fix any dangerous conditions nor must the property owner warn trespassers about potential hazards. However, a property owner can be held liable for creating dangerous conditions on his property or making dangers conditions worse in order to catch trespassers.

Why Choose Us

No Win, No Fee

Thomas J. Henry offers a "No Fee Promise." We work on a contingency fee basis which means you do not pay our firm any fees unless and until we win your case. Learn more.

Family standing next to a house and car with a checkmarked shield icon

Help with Bills

If you've been hurt, you may have a damaged vehicle or be unable to work. We can help get you a rental car if your vehicle is damaged and even advance money on qualified cases.

Full-Service Injury Firm

We handle all types of injury cases, including vehicle accidents, slip and falls, medical malpractice, vehicle recalls, product recalls, pharmaceutical cases, mass tort, and more.

We Come to You

If you've been hurt, you may not be able to come into our offices to speak to an attorney. Don't worry, we will come to you wherever you are – at home, work, or hospital.

Why Choose Us - Over 250 Attorneys Available

Largest Injury Firm in Texas

We have 250+ personal injury attorneys available 24/7 to help you and your family. We have the power and resources to handle any case. Call now for your free case review.

Nationally Recognized

Our firm wins top verdict awards each year and has been featured in Texas Monthly, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Newsweek.com, Forbes, Fortune, Parenting Magazine and more.

Top Verdicts & Settlements

We win some of the top verdicts, settlements, and judgments in the country. Recent recoveries include $50 million for a trucking accident, $35 million for a trucking accident and $30.2 million for a vehicle recall accident.

About Us