Dog bites and the law - liability and you
When your dog bites someone, who is liable? There's a lot of misconceptions and misinformation out there, below you will find accurate information with sources providing about dog by laws and bylaws within Alberta and Canada.
There are several cases in which an owner is liable for their dog biting someone, we will start with the doctrine of scienter and the law of negligence
DISCLAIMER: This is not to be taken as legal advise, as we are not qualified to provide such. Below is the information provided on liability in the event of a dog bite or attack as found from various sources such as legal websites and government websites. All sources are listed at the bottom of the page for transparency and accuracy. Please familiarize yourself with your local laws and bylaws, as although there are provincial laws, there can also be municipalities bylaws such as BSL that will effect who is held liable.
There are several cases in which an owner is liable for their dog biting someone, we will start with the doctrine of scienter and the law of negligence
DISCLAIMER: This is not to be taken as legal advise, as we are not qualified to provide such. Below is the information provided on liability in the event of a dog bite or attack as found from various sources such as legal websites and government websites. All sources are listed at the bottom of the page for transparency and accuracy. Please familiarize yourself with your local laws and bylaws, as although there are provincial laws, there can also be municipalities bylaws such as BSL that will effect who is held liable.
DOCTORINE OF SCIENTER
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LAW OF NEGLIGENCE
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Under this, an individual will be held liable for the dog bite if they own the dog, the dog previously demonstrated biting behavior and if the owner was aware of the tendency to bite.
The doctorine of scienter applies in situations that fit the above criteria, the owner will be held liable for compensating the person who was bitten, even if the owner is not negligent in caring or controlling the dog. |
If your dog has never bitten someone in the past, and suddenly injures someone, the courts have ruled that someone who have care and control of a dog are to ensure that their dog does not injure another person or their property; failing to do so could result in being considered negligent.
However, in order to be liable, it has to be proven that the dog owner knew the dog was likely to bite another person AND failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the bite from occurring. This is to test if the owner could have reasonably predicted the dog would bite someone, in the case the owner could have predicted a bite, it is the duty of the owner to prevent the dog from biting another person. |
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO?
The difference between the two is that the doctorine of scienter only applies to dog owners, whereas the law of negligence applies to the individual who was in care and control of the dog at the time of the bite or attack.
COMMON LAW
Under common law, who is liable depends on whether the owner of the pet knew it posed a danger, regardless if you have anything identifying your dog as dangerous or not. In other words, if the pet didn't have a history of aggression or a liability to bite before that incident, the owner isn't liable.
Also under common law, if the owner knew an animal might be dangerous or prone to bite, and allows the animal to enter into a situation where it bites someone, they are liable.
There have been situations where the person who was bit was found to have provoked or aggravated the bite or attack, in these instances the courts generally do not impose liability onto the dog owner.
Also under common law, if the owner knew an animal might be dangerous or prone to bite, and allows the animal to enter into a situation where it bites someone, they are liable.
There have been situations where the person who was bit was found to have provoked or aggravated the bite or attack, in these instances the courts generally do not impose liability onto the dog owner.
BEWARE OF DOG SIGNS AND MORE
What if you have a beware of dog sign posted? Or if you have a red bandana on your dog or a DO NOT PET slip on their collar?
A dog owner can still be held liable if their dog bites someone if the person who was bitten was invited or permitted to be on their property, as per the Occupiers' Liability Act
A dog owner can still be held liable if their dog bites someone if the person who was bitten was invited or permitted to be on their property, as per the Occupiers' Liability Act
WHAT IF SOMEONE APPROACHES WITHOUT ASKING?
The person in control of the dog only needs to take reasonable steps to prevent the dog from biting someone, this means if someone approaches the dog without asking and is bitten, they will likely be found contributing to negligent behavior resulting in the bite and the bitten person will be held liable.
ALBERTA DANGEROUS DOG ACT
Alberta has a dangerous dog act, in short it comprises of a set of laws that under the Act, a justice can take a complaint that a dog has bitten someone, has attempted to bite a person or that a dog is dangerous; in any of these circumstances the Justice can decide the dog ought to be destroyed, in which case the justice directs a peace officer to destroy the animal. Those who fail to comply with an order under this Act is guilty of an offense and is liable to a fine no more than 5$/day that the person fails to comply.
OCCUPIER'S LIABILITY ACT
In order to establish owner liability a few conditions must be met, these are that the individual is a person who is in possession of the premises or who has a responsibility for and control over the condition of the premises and the activities which happen on the premises and those who are allowed to enter the premises.
Once that is established, the court determines if the person who was bitten or otherwise attacked was a visitor to the property when the incident happened, the Act defines a visitor as someone who was lawfully present on the property.
Lastly, it must be determined if the duty of care was breached by the occupier, as mentioned before "Beware of Dog" signs alone are not enough to negate liability. The dog owners actions will be compared to that which is considered to be a reasonable person, and that will determine if duty of care was breached. The Court also considers if the dog bite or attack was reasonably foreseen, which is at the discretion of the Court and each incident may have different factors the Court considers that will determine if they find the bite or attack foreseeable. The event alone does not prove that it was foreseeable.
Once that is established, the court determines if the person who was bitten or otherwise attacked was a visitor to the property when the incident happened, the Act defines a visitor as someone who was lawfully present on the property.
Lastly, it must be determined if the duty of care was breached by the occupier, as mentioned before "Beware of Dog" signs alone are not enough to negate liability. The dog owners actions will be compared to that which is considered to be a reasonable person, and that will determine if duty of care was breached. The Court also considers if the dog bite or attack was reasonably foreseen, which is at the discretion of the Court and each incident may have different factors the Court considers that will determine if they find the bite or attack foreseeable. The event alone does not prove that it was foreseeable.
SUMMARIZED
In short, who is liable is determined by multiple things like the location the bite occurred, previous history of the dog and if the necessary precautions were taken to prevent the dog bite.
If the incident happens on the owners property, the injured is there lawfully and the proper steps were not taken to prevent the incident from occurring, the liability falls on the owner. Regardless of if warning signs are posted
If the incident happens on the owners property and the injured is there unlawfully, the liability falls on the injured; regardless if warning signs are posted
If the incident happens off the owners property the owner holds liability if the were aware of the dogs previous bite history or likelihood of biting, regardless of any signs indicating the dog is dangerous ( Red bandana, "DO NOT APPROACH/PET" patches on harnesses or "DO NOT PET" slips on a leash or collar, as these alone do not indicate a dog is dangerous) and the owner did not take the appropriate steps to prevent an incident from occurring.
If the incident happens off the owners property the injured holds liability if the dog did not have a bite history or a know behavior that could lead to a bite and/or if the owner took the appropriate steps to prevent an incident from occurring; regardless of any indication that your dog could be dangerous ( Red bandana, "DO NOT APPROACH/PET" patches on harnesses or "DO NOT PET" slips on a leash or collar, as these alone do not indicate a dog is dangerous)
If the incident happens on the owners property, the injured is there lawfully and the proper steps were not taken to prevent the incident from occurring, the liability falls on the owner. Regardless of if warning signs are posted
If the incident happens on the owners property and the injured is there unlawfully, the liability falls on the injured; regardless if warning signs are posted
If the incident happens off the owners property the owner holds liability if the were aware of the dogs previous bite history or likelihood of biting, regardless of any signs indicating the dog is dangerous ( Red bandana, "DO NOT APPROACH/PET" patches on harnesses or "DO NOT PET" slips on a leash or collar, as these alone do not indicate a dog is dangerous) and the owner did not take the appropriate steps to prevent an incident from occurring.
If the incident happens off the owners property the injured holds liability if the dog did not have a bite history or a know behavior that could lead to a bite and/or if the owner took the appropriate steps to prevent an incident from occurring; regardless of any indication that your dog could be dangerous ( Red bandana, "DO NOT APPROACH/PET" patches on harnesses or "DO NOT PET" slips on a leash or collar, as these alone do not indicate a dog is dangerous)
SOURCES
https://www.apmlawyers.com/information-center/who-is-responsible-if-your-dog-bites-someone/
https://www.animallaw.info/statute/canada-alberta-dangerous-dogs-act
https://www.moustarah.com/dog-attacks-and-bites/
https://kmsc.ca/dog-owners-liability/
https://kahanelaw.com/occupier-liability-social-host-alberta/
https://open.alberta.ca/publications/o04
https://www.apmlawyers.com/information-center/who-is-responsible-if-your-dog-bites-someone/
https://www.animallaw.info/statute/canada-alberta-dangerous-dogs-act
https://www.moustarah.com/dog-attacks-and-bites/
https://kmsc.ca/dog-owners-liability/
https://kahanelaw.com/occupier-liability-social-host-alberta/
https://open.alberta.ca/publications/o04