Knoxville Dog Bite Lawyer

When a dog attacks you or your child in Knoxville, the decisions that follow come quickly: whether to see a doctor, whether to talk to the owner’s insurance company, and whether to sign anything. Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette represents injured people and their families across Knox County and throughout Tennessee, and a Knoxville dog bite lawyer from our firm can handle those decisions with you so that a bite does not turn into a financial problem on top of a physical one.

Dog bite claims look simple from the outside, but they rarely are. The owner is often a neighbor, a relative, or a landlord’s tenant, and the insurance policy that pays is usually a homeowner’s or renter’s policy with limits and exclusions that nobody mentioned until the claim was filed. Bites to the face, hands, and legs can mean surgery, scarring, nerve damage, and infection, and children frequently carry the emotional effects long after the wounds close. A claim valued before you know how your recovery will go is a claim valued too low.

Situations That Lead to Dog Bite Claims in Knoxville

• Bites by a Neighbor’s Dog: Residential streets in Knoxville neighborhoods, apartment complexes, and subdivisions across Knox County produce many bite cases, especially where a fence is missing, a gate was left open, or a dog was known to be aggressive before it attacked.
• Attacks on Children: Young children are often bitten in the face and neck because of their height, and these injuries can require plastic surgery and years of follow-up. A child’s claim is treated differently under Tennessee’s filing rules than an adult’s.
• Rental Property and Landlord Liability: When a tenant’s dog bites a visitor or another resident, the landlord, property manager, or owner of the building may share responsibility if they knew about a dangerous animal and allowed it to stay.
• Bites to Mail Carriers, Delivery Drivers, and Service Workers: People who enter yards for a living are bitten at a high rate by the nature of the job. A worker’s own employer is generally protected by workers’ compensation, but the dog’s owner is a separate party who may be answerable for the injury.
• Dogs Off Leash in Parks and Greenways: Knoxville’s parks, greenways, and trail systems draw dogs and people together, and a bite from an unleashed or unrestrained dog can raise questions about whether the owner broke local leash rules.
• Bites at Businesses and Public Venues: Dogs at shops, breweries, patios, kennels, and boarding or grooming facilities can injure customers, and the business may carry commercial liability coverage separate from the dog owner’s insurance.
• Serious Injuries and Infection: Puncture wounds can carry bacterial infection, and nerve and tendon damage in the hands is common. Medical records, photographs, and follow-up care all feed the value of the claim.
• Fatal Attacks: When a dog attack kills someone, Tennessee law lets the surviving spouse, or the children or next of kin if there is no spouse, pursue a wrongful death action, often through a personal representative.

Why Choose Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette for a Knoxville Dog Bite Case

Bruce D. Fox, co-founder of the firm, has tried more than 125 jury trials in state and federal court, is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates, and is a past president of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, which gave him its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025 and its Paladin Award in 2011. That courtroom record matters in a dog bite case because most of these claims are decided by how an insurance company thinks a jury in Knox County would react. An adjuster who knows the lawyer across the table has actually tried cases will value a claim differently than one who expects it to be settled quietly.

Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette has represented injured people and their families for decades and brings more than 170 years of combined attorney experience to serious injury cases. The firm has recovered over $100 million for clients, including $2.3 million for a Knox County motorcyclist who lost his leg when a driver struck him and fled, and $1.5 million for a Knox County roofer who suffered a traumatic brain injury when his safety harness failed. Those results involved disputed fault, permanent injury, and insurers reluctant to pay, which are the same pressures that appear in a serious bite case. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Two of the firm’s partners spent the early part of their careers defending insurance companies, trucking companies, and businesses before moving to the plaintiff’s side. They know how a homeowner’s carrier evaluates a bite claim, what the adjuster is looking for in a recorded statement, and where the defense usually tries to cut value. Partner Brad C. Burnette holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell and serves on the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association Board of Governors. Partner John Willis also serves on that board and is a past president of the Anderson County Bar Association. Michael C. Beehan is a trial attorney fluent in Spanish, and the firm welcomes Spanish-speaking clients: hablamos español.

There are no attorney fees in a personal injury case unless we recover compensation for you, and every consultation is free. If your injuries make travel hard, we can meet you at home or in the hospital.

What an Attorney Actually Does in a Dog Bite Case

The work starts before any demand is made. We identify who owned, kept, or controlled the dog, because the person who answers for a bite is not always the person holding the leash. We look for the insurance policy that applies, which may be a homeowner’s or renter’s policy, a landlord’s liability coverage, or a business policy, and we find out its limits early so that the value of the claim is built with the available coverage in mind. We gather animal control and police reports, any history of prior complaints or bites, witness accounts, and photographs of the scene, the fence, and the wounds.

We also build the damages record carefully. That means collecting emergency and follow-up medical records, documenting scarring and disfigurement as it heals instead of only at the first visit, tracking missed work, and, for children, capturing how the injury has affected sleep, school, and fear of animals. Tennessee does not cap economic damages such as medical bills and lost income. Noneconomic damages for pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment are generally limited to $750,000, or $1 million for a defined catastrophic injury or loss, with exceptions that lift the limit in specific circumstances such as intentional harm or an intoxicated defendant. The court applies that limit after the jury returns its verdict, and jurors are not told about it.

Fault is the other front. Tennessee uses modified comparative fault, so an injured person can recover only if less than 50 percent at fault, and the award is reduced by that person’s share. Insurers will often argue that a victim provoked the dog, ignored a warning, or entered property they should not have. Part of our job is answering that argument with evidence, and where the facts support it, showing that the owner knew the dog was dangerous and did nothing about it. When an insurer will not pay what a case is worth, our trial lawyers are prepared to take it before a Knox County jury.

What to Do After a Dog Bite in Knoxville

Get medical care first, even if the wound seems small. Dog bites carry a real risk of infection, and a medical record created the same day ties the injury to the attack in a way that is hard for an insurer to dispute later. Go to an emergency room or urgent care, tell the provider a dog caused the injury, and follow every wound-care and follow-up instruction. Gaps in treatment are one of the first things an adjuster points to when arguing that an injury was not serious.

Report the attack. In Knox County that generally means contacting local animal control and the police department with jurisdiction where the bite happened, so that an official report exists and the dog’s vaccination and bite history can be documented. Get the owner’s name and contact information, ask for proof of rabies vaccination, and write down the names of anyone who saw what happened. Photograph your injuries immediately and again as they heal, along with torn clothing and the place where the attack occurred. Do not repair or throw away anything connected to the incident.

Be careful with the insurance company. The owner’s carrier may call you quickly and ask for a recorded statement or offer a fast settlement before your treatment is complete. Anything you say can be used to argue you were partly at fault, and a quick check may close the claim before you know what the injury will cost. Talk to a lawyer before giving a statement or signing a release.

Pay close attention to deadlines. Most personal injury lawsuits in Tennessee must be filed within one year of the injury, and that period is extended to two years in limited cases where criminal charges are brought against the person responsible and the case follows the rules for that extension. When the injured person is under 18, the filing period is paused until the child turns 18, after which the one-year clock begins, though claims for medical bills and other facts should still be preserved now. A claim for property damage generally has a three-year deadline. If a government entity is involved, the Governmental Tort Liability Act requires suit within 12 months and limits damages. Lawsuits that go forward in Knox County are filed in the Knox County Circuit Court in Knoxville, which is part of the Sixth Judicial District, while smaller civil disputes may be heard in the county’s Civil Sessions Court.

Questions About Knoxville Dog Bite Claims

How long do I have to file a dog bite lawsuit in Tennessee?

Most injury lawsuits must be filed within one year of the injury. That is one of the shortest deadlines in the country, and it runs from the date of the bite, not from when you finish treatment. Waiting to see how you heal can cost you the right to sue at all.

Who pays for my injuries after a dog bite?

Often it is the owner’s homeowner’s or renter’s insurance policy. Depending on the facts, a landlord, property manager, or business may carry separate coverage that applies. Part of our early work is finding every policy that could respond.

What if I was partly to blame for the bite?

You can still recover in many cases. Tennessee’s modified comparative fault rule lets you collect as long as you are less than 50 percent at fault, with your award reduced by your share. If you are found 50 percent or more at fault, recovery is barred, which is why insurers push hard on claims of provocation.

Does Tennessee follow a “one bite” rule?

Not strictly. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 44-8-413, an owner who fails to keep a dog under reasonable control can be liable even without a prior bite, although for a bite on the owner’s residential property the injured person generally must show the owner knew or should have known the dog was dangerous. Prior bites, complaints, warnings, or aggressive behavior are important evidence. A lawyer can tell you how the facts of your case fit the legal theories available.

My child was bitten. Does the same deadline apply?

For a person under 18 when injured, the filing period is generally paused until the 18th birthday, and then the one-year period begins. A settlement for a child usually requires court approval, and the parents may have their own separate claim for medical expenses, so it is wise to speak with an attorney early.

Will you take a case if the dog’s owner is my friend or relative?

Many bite claims involve someone the victim knows. In most of these cases the claim is paid by the owner’s insurance, not out of the owner’s pocket, and bringing it does not necessarily mean suing a friend personally. We can explain how the process works before you decide.

How much is my dog bite claim worth?

Value depends on medical costs, how long you were out of work, the permanence of scarring or nerve damage, how fault is divided, and the insurance coverage available. Economic damages are not capped in Tennessee, while noneconomic damages are generally limited as described above. We do not put a number on a claim until the full extent of the injury is known.

Will my health insurance cover treatment while the claim is pending?

Often yes, and using it can keep you from delaying care. Your health insurer or another payer may have a right to be repaid from any recovery, so those liens need to be tracked and negotiated from the start. Do not skip treatment because of a pending claim.

What if the dog’s owner has no insurance?

That makes the case harder but not necessarily hopeless. We look for other coverage, other responsible parties such as a landlord or business, and your own policies. Whether the owner personally has assets worth pursuing is also part of the evaluation.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a bite that did not need surgery?

Often it is. Scarring, infection, and nerve problems may not show up for weeks, and an early settlement can be signed before they do. A free consultation costs nothing, and we are paid only if we recover compensation for you.

Can a dog attack ever lead to a wrongful death claim?

Yes. When someone dies from an attack, the right to sue passes first to the surviving spouse, then to the children or next of kin, or to a personal representative. The one-year deadline is counted from the date of the injury that caused the death, not the date of death.

Dog Bite Representation for Knoxville and Surrounding Communities

We represent dog bite victims throughout Knoxville and Knox County, from downtown, the Old City, and the Fourth and Gill and Parkridge areas, to Sequoyah Hills, Bearden, West Knoxville, and Farragut. We also serve families in South Knoxville, Fountain City, Halls, Powell, Karns, and Hardin Valley, as well as East Knoxville, Mascot, Corryton, and Gibbs. Our reach continues into nearby Blount County, including Maryville and Alcoa, into Sevier County, including Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and Gatlinburg, and into Anderson County, including Clinton and Oak Ridge, as well as Campbell County, Roane County, Morgan County, Claiborne County, Jefferson County, and Monroe County. Whether the bite happened at a home, apartment complex, park, or business, we also take cases from people across East Tennessee and throughout the state, including Johnson City, Nashville, and Memphis.

Talk With a Knoxville Dog Bite Attorney Today

If a dog has injured you or your child, a conversation with a Knoxville dog bite attorney at Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette costs nothing and commits you to nothing. We will listen to what happened, explain the deadlines and the coverage that may apply, and tell you honestly what the case looks like. Call us to schedule your free consultation, and if your injuries make it hard to travel, we can come to you at home or in the hospital.