Dog Bites & Animal Attacks

Brief Case Summary:

We recovered a $300,000 settlement for a dog bite victim attacked by a pit bull mix causing severe, gaping lacerations to her face and nose.

Our client, Betty, lived in Wisconsin and was visiting her adult daughter in Seattle when she was the victim of a dog bite that resulted in a severe laceration to her face and nose.

In July 2013, Betty and her daughter visited a friend at an apartment in Seattle. While inside the residence, Betty asked if she could offer a treat to the friend’s dog, a pit bull mix. The dog’s owner said it was alright to give the dog a treat.

Betty’s daughter watched her mother lean down to give the dog a treat, and the dog jumped up and snapped at Betty’s face without any warning or provocation.

The dog bit down hard on Betty’s face, leaving her with a deep laceration to her face and nose. All three people began to panic as blood spilled from the wounds on Betty’s face.

Defendants Settled Six Months before Trial

Betty hired attorney Chris Davis and Davis Law Group Car Accident and Personal Injury Lawyers to represent her in a dog bite claim against the dog owner’s renters insurance policy. It was later determined that the dog in question had a history of violent behavior.

We argued that that the dog’s owner – the defendant – had concrete knowledge of the dog’s propensity to behave violently and that the owner should have taken reasonable precautions to prevent Betty from being injured by the dog, but failed to do so.

Our attorneys filed a lawsuit against the dog owner’s renters insurance policy and began to prepare for the case to go to a jury trial. Approximately six months before the trial was scheduled to begin, the defendant’s insurance company agreed to a $300,000 settlement for the damages she suffered as a result of the attack.

DLG Case No. 200598