Being bitten by a dog is rarely a pleasant experience. Aside from the obvious pain and suffering, a dog bite might lead to some pretty serious medical bills down the line. In a worst case scenario, it could even prevent you from working for a while. Therefore, it is important that you have some means of mitigating those damages, particularly when it comes to cases where you were not at fault at all. Your primary tool is a lawsuit, which can be used to get back any money that you feel that you are owed.

However, lawsuits can be a little complicated. Not only can they be difficult to understand, but they can also vary dramatically from state to state. To help you get a better understanding of your current situation and options, here are some of the questions that you need to ask yourself when considering a dog bite lawsuit in the state of Arizona.

What are the requirements for winning a dog bite lawsuit?

To start with, you need to make sure that you satisfy some basic criteria.

Trespassing – If you were trespassing at the time of the bite, then a lawsuit is usually out of the question. In such a situation, the blame for the bite falls squarely on your shoulders, and thus you will have a hard time arguing that it was the wrongdoing of another party that led to your current economic troubles.

Provocation – If you provoked the dog in some way, then your lawsuit could get tricky. If you acted in a manner that clearly incited the dog to violence, then you are at fault. The real problem lies in determining whether or not your actions actually provoked the dog. Since there is a bit of subjectivity involved, you may want to consult a lawyer before proceeding.

Assuming that you didn't participate in either of the above actions, then your lawsuit has a good chance of going forward. Arizona is not a one bite state, which means that you don't need to prove that the owner had prior knowledge about their dog's aggressive tendencies.

What is the statute of limitations for a dog bite?

You also need to be very careful about the statute of limitations. If you are outside the statute of limitations, then your case is going to be very difficult to win. Dog bites fall under the general category of personal injuries, so you will need to abide by that statute of limitations, which is 2 years.

You may have heard about the concept of discovery as it relates to the statute of limitations, but that generally doesn't apply to dog bites. Since the damage is almost always immediately discovered, you usually can't get an extension on the grounds that you didn't realize the extent of the damage until years after the bite occurred.

For more help, contact an attorney, like Modesitt Law Offices PC.