Premises Liability
San Juan Apartment-Complex Injury Claims: When the Landlord Is Liable
Falls on broken stairs, dark walkways and unmaintained common areas at a San Juan apartment complex can be the landlord's responsibility. Here's how Texas premises law treats tenant and visitor injuries.
Quick answer
If you were hurt in a fall on a broken stair, dark walkway, or other unmaintained common area at a San Juan apartment complex, the landlord or property management company may be liable under Texas premises liability law. Landlords generally owe a duty to keep common areas they control reasonably safe and to repair known hazards. As with any fall claim, you must show the landlord created the hazard, knew about it, or should have found it — often proven with maintenance requests, prior complaints and inspection records.
Common areas are the landlord's responsibility
In a Texas apartment complex, the law generally places the duty for common areas — stairwells, exterior walkways, parking lots, laundry rooms, pools, mailbox areas — on the landlord or management company that controls and maintains them. Whether you're a tenant or a guest visiting one, you're owed reasonable care in those shared spaces. That's different from inside your own unit, where the analysis can turn on the lease and who controlled the condition.
Hazards that injure residents and guests
- Broken, rotted or missing stair treads and loose handrails.
- Burned-out lighting on stairways and walkways at night.
- Cracked sidewalks, potholes and uneven walkways.
- Standing water, algae and leaks in breezeways and laundry rooms.
- Damaged pool decks and gates left in disrepair.
Proving the landlord had notice
The evidence in an apartment fall is often stronger than in a store case, because tenants leave a paper trail. Written maintenance requests, repair tickets, emails and text messages reporting a broken step or a dark stairwell are powerful proof the landlord knew about the hazard and didn't fix it. Prior complaints from other residents about the same condition show a pattern. We gather these records, along with any inspection logs, to establish the notice Texas law requires.
Comparative fault and the two-year deadline
Texas comparative fault applies here too: you can recover as long as you're 50% or less responsible, with your recovery reduced by your share of the blame. A landlord may argue you knew the stair was broken and used it anyway, so how the facts are framed matters. The deadline to file is generally two years from the date of the fall, and the maintenance records that prove your case are easier to obtain the sooner you act.
What to do after an apartment fall in San Juan
Report the hazard to the office in writing and keep a copy, photograph the broken stair or dark walkway and your injuries, save any prior maintenance requests you submitted, get witness names from neighbors, and see a doctor the same day. Then call us before talking to the complex's insurer. Our San Juan office is on S. Nebraska Avenue, the consultation is free, and you pay nothing unless we win.
Frequently asked questions
Is my landlord responsible if I fell on a broken stair in San Juan?
Possibly. Landlords generally must keep common areas like stairwells reasonably safe and repair known hazards. You'll need to show the landlord created the problem, knew about it, or should have found it — maintenance requests and prior complaints often prove that.
What if I already reported the broken stair before I fell?
That can strengthen your case. A written maintenance request the landlord ignored is direct evidence they had notice of the hazard and failed to fix it, which is exactly what Texas premises liability law requires you to prove.
Injured? Let's talk today.
Free case review. No fee unless we win.