Dog bite lawyers in Fort Wayne: what Indiana law says and what to do

Personal Injury Attorney Fort Wayne is a free attorney referral service, not a law firm. It can connect you with a participating independent attorney’s office, and the A to Z directory of Fort Wayne injury law firms shows which firms name dog bites among their practice areas. This page is general information, not legal advice.

First, take care of the wound

Bites can carry infection and can damage tissue more deeply than they look. Get medical care promptly, and follow up if the wound changes. If the bite is serious, or a child is hurt on the face or neck, call 911.

At the doctor’s office or hospital, say plainly that a dog bit you, where, and when. Ask whoever treats you whether the bite needs to be reported, and to whom. That visit also creates a record linking the injury to the date.

What to gather after a bite

1. The owner’s name, address and phone. If the dog was with someone else, get that person’s details too.
2. The dog’s vaccination information. Ask the owner for the dog’s rabies vaccination record and the vet’s name; your doctor will want to know.
3. Photos. The wounds on the day and as they heal, torn clothing, and the place where it happened, including any gate, fence or leash involved.
4. Witnesses. Names and phone numbers of anyone who saw it.
5. Your notes. Where you were, what you were doing, what the dog did, and anything the owner said.
6. Bills and lost time. Medical bills, prescriptions and missed work.

Ask the owner, politely, whether they have homeowner’s or renter’s insurance. Many people feel awkward about that, especially with a neighbor. A lawyer can tell you whether a policy may apply and how a claim against it would work.

Indiana’s dog bite statute is narrow

Indiana has a specific dog bite law, Indiana Code 15-20-1-3, but it covers a particular situation. In general terms: if a dog, without provocation, bites a person who is acting peaceably and is in a place where that person may be required to be to perform a duty under Indiana law, federal law or US postal regulations, the owner is liable for all damages. That holds even if the dog never acted viciously before and the owner did not know of any vicious behavior.

Think of a mail carrier on a route, or someone else whose duties under the law take them onto a property. The statute speaks to people in that position. It is not a rule that every bite in Indiana automatically makes the owner responsible.

Bites outside that situation

Many bites happen somewhere else: in a park, at a neighbor’s door, on a walk, at a family gathering. For those, whether the owner is responsible depends on other rules and on the facts, such as what the owner knew, how the dog was kept, and what the injured person was doing. This site does not try to summarize those rules. A licensed Indiana attorney can explain how they apply to a particular bite.

Shared fault can also come up. Indiana generally follows modified comparative fault: if the injured person is found 50 percent or less at fault, any recovery is generally reduced by that share, and at 51 percent or more it is generally barred. Owners and insurers sometimes argue that the person bitten provoked the dog or went where they should not have, which is one more reason the details you write down early matter.

When a child is bitten

When the person bitten is a child, a few extra steps help. Keep the same records as above, and add the names of any adults who were supervising. Photograph the injuries as they heal, and keep track of follow-up care, counseling or school missed.

For an injured child, Indiana generally allows extra time to bring a claim, with the two-year period counted from when the child turns 18. Waiting is not always wise, though: witnesses move, photos get lost, and memories fade. Which deadline fits a particular bite is a question for a licensed Indiana attorney.

Keeping track while the bite heals

Bite injuries often take weeks to settle, and some leave scars or a fear of dogs that lasts longer than the wound. A simple record kept as you go makes the later conversation with a lawyer or an insurer much easier, and it saves you from trying to remember dates months from now.

• A short weekly note on pain, sleep and what you could not do.
• Dates of every appointment, stitch removal, dressing change or prescription.
• Photos of the wound on the same spot of the body each week.
• Days of work or school missed, and any help you had to pay for at home.
• Any contact with the owner or an insurer: date, name and what was said.

Deadlines after a dog bite

Indiana law generally gives two years to start a lawsuit for an injury to a person, under Indiana Code 34-11-2-4. If a government body or its employee was involved, a written tort claim notice may be due much sooner: 180 days for a city, town or county, and 270 days for the state. These deadlines can be shorter or different depending on the facts. Talk with a licensed Indiana attorney about the one that applies to you.

Talking with the owner’s insurer

If the owner has insurance, an adjuster may call. It is fine to take their name, company and claim number and say you will call back. You do not have to give a recorded statement right away, and it is wise to be careful with medical releases that reach far back.

Indiana has a rule about payments already received from other sources before trial: the court generally allows evidence of them in a personal injury case, so that the same loss is not paid twice. Life insurance, insurance you paid for directly and government payments are treated differently. A lawyer can explain how that plays out.

Questions to ask a dog bite lawyer

• Does the Indiana dog bite statute apply to my situation, or do other rules?
• How might the owner’s insurance come into it?
• Which deadline applies, and is anything urgent?
• How is your fee figured, and which costs could I owe? (In Indiana, a contingency fee agreement must be in writing and signed by the client.)
• Who will handle my file, and how will you keep me updated?

See also questions to ask an injury lawyer and how injury lawyers charge.

Finding a dog bite attorney in Fort Wayne

The free referral line puts you through to the intake team of a participating independent attorney’s office. Calls may be recorded, and the office should tell you its name. Or pick a firm yourself from the Fort Wayne personal injury law firm directory: many listings name dog bites, and each shows the firm’s own address, phone and website. If a lawsuit is filed, it would generally go to the Allen Circuit Court or the Allen Superior Court.

Hurt in a fall while getting away from a dog? The slip and fall guide may help as well.

Questions people ask