New Jersey strict-liability dog bite representation across northern Bergen County. Homeowners insurance recovery, scar documentation and psychological injury claims handled in-house.
Englewood Personal Injury Lawyers handles dog bite and animal attack injury claims throughout northern Bergen County and the Palisades. New Jersey is one of the more claimant-favourable states in the country for dog bite cases — a distinction with real dollar consequences for injured victims and their families.
Working across Englewood, Fort Lee, Tenafly, Cresskill, Alpine, Demarest and the wider Palisades area.
Dog bite injuries range from puncture wounds requiring irrigation and antibiotics through soft-tissue injury needing surgical repair, tendon damage, and, in the most severe cases, permanent disfigurement or nerve damage. Facial injuries in children are a distinct category and often carry lifetime scarring implications that a first ER visit does not fully capture.
Post-bite medical is more involved than the wound itself. Rabies risk assessment and prophylaxis, tetanus update, infection monitoring, and scar-revision surgery over months or years are all routine on a serious bite. Psychological injury — particularly in child victims and in cases involving an attack on someone the dog was supposed to know — is real, documentable and compensable.
New Jersey Statute 4:19-16 imposes strict liability on the dog owner for any bite that happens in a public place or while the victim is lawfully on private property. The prior “one bite rule” does not apply — the owner is liable whether or not the dog has ever shown aggression before, whether or not the owner had any reason to expect it, and whether or not the owner was negligent. This is a substantial claimant advantage compared to most states.
Strict liability applies to bites. Non-bite injuries — being knocked down by a large dog, injured while trying to escape an attacking dog — fall under ordinary negligence principles and require the traditional showing of foreseeability and unreasonable conduct.
Recovery typically comes from the dog owner’s homeowners or renters insurance policy. Most policies cover dog bite liability, though some carriers exclude specific breeds by rider or exclude the policy entirely after a prior bite has been reported. Where the owner is uninsured or the policy excludes the loss, direct personal-asset recovery is the fallback — often impractical, but occasionally worth pursuing where the injuries are severe.
Comparative fault can reduce recovery. Provocation, trespass on the dog owner’s property without permission, and (in narrow cases) certain occupational exposures (veterinary workers, groomers, kennel staff) can support a defence. The statute of limitations is two years; two years from age eighteen if the victim is a minor.
Get medical evaluation the day of the bite — infection risk from dog bite wounds is significant. Report the bite to the local health department; most Bergen County municipalities require it, and the report often produces the owner’s identification and the dog’s rabies status. Photograph the wound early and again over the following weeks as it heals — scar documentation is difficult to reconstruct after the fact. Get the dog owner’s homeowners or renters insurance information if you can, and do not accept an informal cash offer from the owner in exchange for signing anything. Consult counsel before responding to any insurance approach.
New Jersey’s strict-liability rule tilts these cases toward the injured party — provided the claim is handled properly. You can request a free consultation online and an attorney will contact you the same business day. Consultations are free, and we come to you if travel is difficult after the injury.
Related practice areas: Premises liability injuries · Catastrophic injuries requiring long-term care
New Jersey’s strict-liability rule tilts these cases toward the injured party — provided the claim is handled properly. Request a free consultation and an attorney will contact you the same business day.