Can a person sue for a dog almost jumping on him?

Question

my dog was on leash and a man walked past us(pretty close by) and my dog barked and jumped towards him ( scaring the hell out of him)
but not at all touching him
now the guy is walking around acting like his leg hurts, probably wants to report us
just to let u know- my dog is a labrador, he is very calm but also protective

Answer 1

Well, it might have worked better for you to ask this question in the law section :)

But I would imagine there would need to be PROOF your dog did it and caused injury. First of all he needs to prove YOUR dog was the "offender" and unless he had a hidden camera or witnesses (tho I suppose he could dream some up) he doesn't have a "leg" to stand on ;)

Also, he would have to show actual injuries....bruising, scrapes, cuts, etc. Which he WON'T have if your dog never touched him.

It's a longshot, but he COULD actually be injured especially if he's an older person. Just the action of suddenly jerking backwards to get away from the dog could cause injury in someone who has bad joints, etc. However, even if he is hurt, if your dog did not make actual contact I don't see how he can do anything.

As others have said, he could take you to court but that doesn't mean he'll win.

Answer 2

I don't see how he could sue you if the dog didn't even touch him. There should be no marks on his leg, and it should be very easy for a doctor to tell that nothing is wrong. Sadly if something is wrong with his leg, even if it is from another injury, he could probably get someone to believe that your dog is the cause of the problem. Just be careful and make sure you have a tight grip on the leash whenever you go near people, it is just the dogs natural instinct to want to lunge at an unfamiliar person. Or just walk your dog somewhere else so this man can't try to pull a fast one on you again.

Answer 3

I hate to say it, but people can sue for anything in the US. He can take you to small claims court without even getting a lawyer, and if he can find a lawyer to take the case he can take you to a higher court. If he wants to spend his money and time that way, he has the right to do it. Even though he didn't bring the police into it at the time if he can produce medical records he can take you to court. Heck, even without them he can try.

That doesn't make it right, that just means it's possible. If you can talk with him and apologize that would be a wise move. Humility can go a long way in this sort of situation.

If your city has a leash law and your dog had been off lead you'd be in trouble even if the guy just tripped and blamed it on your dog who had done nothing. Since you had your dog under your control on leash you're in a better situation.

I work with aggressive dogs (not saying yours is aggressive, but he did behave in a way that would be described as aggressive in this incident) and I've acted as an expert witness. That does not mean I have any legal expertise whatsoever, of course.

What I would suggest is getting your dog into training with a positive reinforcement type of trainer. (Too many dogs get worse with old-school force and correction training, trust me. No shock collars, no prong collars, no hitting, no pinning the dog down like Cesar Millan... you'll end up with a bigger problem.) Taking the class will demonstrate that you are a conscientious pet owner. Keep receipts for your payments for the classes just in case.

If you have to go to court be humble, not arrogant. Explain that you were very surprised by your dog's response and immediately got him into classes to learn how to deal with it. Apologize, but say clearly that you had the dog under your control at all times and that the man was never at risk of being touched. The classes, you'll explain, were to ensure that your dog doesn't do it again and doesn't get worse.

Don't tell them, "My dog would never bite anyone." Most owners think that but anyone who works with dogs knows that the apparent fact that a dog wouldn't bite his owner has no bearing on whether he would bite someone else. Saying that will just make you look defensive. Any competing expert witness would have a dozen stories to tell the opposite story.

In the meantime, while you're walking be sure to give wide berth to anyone walking near you on your walks, and give up the sidewalk if someone is coming from the opposite direction so that you can provide sufficient distance that your dog is not spooked.

Answer 4

He can't sue cause your dog might have jumped up on him. He has no way of proving that your dog would have actually jumped on him. He can however lie about the situation and what actually happened. But if his story is that the dog jumped on him and his leg is sore, I think he would have a pretty hard time proving that he was injured. I think a judge would throw the case out of court and charge him for wasting courts time.

If he hasn't reported you yet, it's not likely that he will, it sounds like he is looking for an apology at very least, or he wants you to offer him something in order to make sure he doesn't report you.. Honestly if they showed up, they would likely laugh at him, No marks to show no nothing cause the dog didn't touch him. Where's his proof that anything even happened?

Answer 5

Law vary from place to place, but the most likely answer to your question is, No.

First of all, I'm being facetious here, but you sue an owner, not a dog!

You can't press charges without first reporting the incident to the police. If that happens, they will investigate. Unless the guy has actual bite marks to show the officer, he won't get very far with this.

You cannot be sued if your dog causes an injury, if you have taken resonable precautions AND you had no way of anticipating aggressive behaviour from your dog. For example: off-leash park, over-enthusiastic super friendly dog jumps on old lady, old lady falls & breaks a hip. Unfortunate, yes. Are you liable, no. Your dog was allowed off leash, and playful, exhuberant doggie behaviour is to be expected in off-leash parks. It was a freak accident that you are not expected to predict, much less prevent.

Other example (yours): guy has dog on leash, dog (who has always been sweet and has never been reported (you would have told us, yes?)) lunges at guy, guy freaks out, moves too quickly, trips and sprains ankle. Unfortunate? yes again. Are you liable? Still no. There was nothing negligent on your part, nor did the dog do anything to cause injury.

People who are upset by dogs tend to react with intense anger borne out of fear, which causes them to make all kinds of threats. Few follow through with any of them, especially if they weren't seriously hurt.

All of this said, you need to teach that dog some manners. From what you describe, he lunged at the man for aggression, not out of playfulness. This kind of behavior is absolutely not acceptable, from any dog. Don't make excuses for him--being protective isn't a license to be a jerk. The next time, someone might get seriously hurt.

Answer 6

Anybody can sue for anything they want... but actually having a case is another matter. I'm not a lawyer but if you had the dog leashed and under control and he never touched the guy I don't see how he would win. You might want to contact any eyewitnesses so they will remember what happened, just in case.

Answer 7

If your dog did not come into physical contact with the man and your dog was on a leash then this man has absolutely no legal claim against you.
You can't sue somebody because their dog scared you. There needs to be physical evidence of injury or negligence on the owner's part, and if he was on a leash, then no law was broken on your part.
If he sues you, go to court because you'll win.

Answer 8

Unfortunately someone can sue for ANY reason
but
Depending on where you live, people are starting to get somewhat hysterical about “mean dogs” & I would be more concerned about him reporting your dog to the police. Make sure you are licensed & shots are up to date & if it ever did come to where he caused trouble I would lower myself to his level.

Meaning, since he his obviously lying, I would say how I was frightened by him, he walked so close he ran into me (on purpose) etc . I thought he was going to mug, attack (whatever) me & therefore your dog had reason. Or rather you would be giving your dog a reason. At least have that mind set/story so you are prepared.

Again, it depends upon where you live, I would call your local pound & ask what their policy is
Good luck

Answer 9

I think if he saw the dog coming he should take due precaution to stay at leash distance from the dog. He has a certain amount of personal responsibility to keep himself safe and avoiding a strange dog encounter. It's not your fault if the dog was on a leash.

Answer 10

If this man managed to keep this dog under control you have no right to press charges. As for the guy he cannot press charges either since your dog did not successfully attack him. You maneged to keep him under control. If he hurt himself it was his own fault. He should have known better than to walk to to close to you if he was walking his own dog.

And anytime a dog attacks another person, the law does not view the dog at fault but the owner of the dog.