Does Arkansas have a dog bite statute?
No. Arkansas law on dog bites comes from its courts. In Hamby v. Haskins, the Arkansas Supreme Court repeated the rule it calls well settled. To recover without proving negligence, you must show the animal had vicious tendencies or dangerous propensities and that the owner knew or should have known, about them.
That case began when a woman and her sister stopped at a rural house to ask directions. The jury found the owner knew his dog had vicious tendencies and the court held there was substantial evidence for it. Whether the owner knew is often a question of whom the jury believes.
Once the owner knew, care is no excuse
Proving knowledge is the hard part. After that, Arkansas is strict. In Strange v. Stovall, a 13-year-old girl walking next door to her grandparents was bitten by a large dog named Blue John. The court said the rule of strict liability still obtains.
It gave an example: an owner who keeps a dog known to be vicious in a steel cage and it escapes through no fault of the owner, still answers for the attack on a passerby. The duty also reaches beyond owners. The court held in Holt v. Leslie that anyone with custody of a dog they know is vicious must restrain it.
Arkansas dog bite statute of limitations
You have three years. The Arkansas Supreme Court described Ark. Code 16-56-105 in Bodiford v. Bess as the three-year statute of limitations for negligence actions and courts apply it to personal injury claims.
Children have more time. Ark. Code 16-56-116 lets a minor sue within three years after reaching full age. In Low v. Insurance Co. of North America, the court read full age as 18, so a bitten child usually has until 21. Waiting that long makes witnesses hard to find, so start sooner. Read more on a dog bite on a child.
How fault is compared in Arkansas
Ark. Code 16-64-122 sets the line. If your fault is less than the fault of the people you are suing, you recover, minus your share. If your fault is equal to theirs or greater, you recover nothing.
So a split of 50 to 50 ends the claim. Insurers know this and may argue you walked into the yard uninvited or reached for the dog. Keep your account short and steady.
When to call an Arkansas dog bite lawyer
Because everything rides on what the owner knew, early digging pays off. Ask neighbors, mail carriers and delivery drivers whether the dog chased, snapped or bit before. Check whether anyone complained to animal control.
Save photos of the wounds, the fence and any warning sign. A lawyer can then request records the owner may not hand over freely. Our checklist on what to do after a dog bite covers the first steps.
How to report a dog bite in Arkansas
Report the bite to your local animal control or health department. The CDC, rabies after an animal bite page sets out the next steps.
Before you sign with anyone, check that the attorney is licensed: use the Arkansas Judiciary attorney search.
