Dangerous Conditions
Q: What constitutes a "dangerous condition of public property"?
A: The California Tort Claims Act (Government Code Sections 810-996.6) defines "dangerous condition" as a condition of property that creates a substantial risk of injury when used with due care in a reasonably foreseeable manner.
Q: When can the University be liable for a dangerous condition?
A: Government Code Section 835 makes a public entity liable for the dangerous condition of public property. To establish liability, the plaintiff must prove either that an employee of the public entity negligently created the dangerous condition OR that the public entity had notice of it.
Q: What is "notice" as defined by law?
A: There are two types of notice: actual or constructive (Gov. Code Sections 835(a) - (b)). E.g., "Actual notice" might take the form of an inspection that revealed a defective condition; whereas, "Constructive notice" provides that an entity that knew or should have known of the dangerous condition due its obvious nature.