New Mexico Dog Bite Lawyer

New Mexico has not enacted a dog bite statute, but rather, the state follows rules set forth in court decisions as well as a uniform jury instruction for dog bite liability. The relevant jury instruction states that a dog owner is liable for damages if the owner had reason to know the dog might be vicious. Further, New Mexico’s courts have ruled that an owner is liable for harm cause by the dog if they knew or should have known that the dog was vicious or had a tendency or natural inclination to be vicious. There are exceptions that relieve the owner of liability, which include situations where the victim (1) purposely excited the dog, (2) knew the dog was vicious, or (3) put themselves in the dog’s way on purpose and without reason. On the other hand, bite victims may pursue a negligence claim when the owner lacked knowledge of the dog’s vicious tendencies and failed to control the dog in a situation where an injury would reasonably be expected to occur.