New Brunswick Dog Bite Lawyers

New Brunswick has no statute that makes a dog’s owner automatically liable for a bite. A New Brunswick dog bite lawyer proves the claim the old way, under the common law, and collects from the owner’s home insurance. You have two years from the bite to start it.

The Deadline Is Two Years and the Evidence Fades in Weeks

The Limitation of Actions Act, SNB 2009, c L-8.5 gives two years from discovery, which for a bite is the day it happened. The reason to call early has nothing to do with the deadline. Animal control and public health records, the neighbour who saw the dog off its leash, and the owner’s admission at the scene all fade or get retracted. What gets recorded in the first weeks decides a bite claim.

How a New Brunswick Dog Bite Lawyer Proves Liability Without a Dog Statute

There are two routes, and we plead both. Under negligence, the owner failed to take reasonable care to control the animal. A gate left open. A dog walked without a leash where a bylaw requires one. A dog known to lunge left alone with a child. Under scienter, the owner knew the dog had a dangerous propensity, and an owner who knew is liable without proof of carelessness. Prior complaints, a previous bite, a “beware of dog” sign and the breed’s history all go to knowledge. Municipal bylaws in Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton set leash and muzzle rules, and a breach is strong evidence of negligence though not liability by itself.

Where the bite happened on the owner’s property, New Brunswick still has no occupiers’ liability statute, so the same common-law duty of care governs a visitor.

The Claim Covers Scarring, Surgery, Counselling and Income

The wound is rarely the whole loss. Puncture wounds infect, tendons and nerves in a hand or forearm heal slowly, a facial bite on a child leaves a scar that will be revised more than once as they grow. Damages cover pain and suffering, scarring and disfigurement, the cost of plastic surgery, counselling for the fear that follows an attack, and lost income. There is no cap. Medicare’s costs come back to the province inside the claim.

The money comes from the owner’s homeowner’s or tenant’s liability coverage, which is why a claim against a neighbour is a claim against an insurer, not a demand on a friendship.

Most Bite Claims Are Filed in the Court of King’s Bench

Most bite claims are filed in the Court of King’s Bench of New Brunswick, Trial Division. A claim worth $20,000 or less fits the Small Claims Court, which suits a bite that healed cleanly. The steps: a demand to the owner’s insurer, medical and photographic evidence of the scar as it matures, discovery, mediation, then trial if needed.

The Moncton office handles New Brunswick bite claims. Aodhan Murphy leads the province’s injury practice.

Is the Owner Liable If the Dog Never Bit Anyone Before?

Yes, under negligence, if the owner failed to control the dog reasonably. The “one free bite” idea belongs to scienter alone, and we argue both routes together in a claim.

Was I Trespassing If I Was on the Owner’s Driveway?

A delivery driver, a guest or a child retrieving a ball is a lawful visitor. The owner’s duty is the same reasonable care owed to anyone they should expect on the property.

Will the Dog Be Put Down If I Claim?

The civil claim decides money, not the dog’s fate. Animal control decides that separately under the bylaw, and a claim does not require it.

The Owner Is a Family Member. Can I Still Claim?

Yes. The claim is paid by their home insurer, and refusing to bring it because of the relationship leaves your scar unpaid for. We handle these often and discreetly.

See the firm’s dog bite claim guide, our results, and the other injury law areas.

No Fee Unless the Claim Resolves

The first call is free and a lawyer takes it. There is no fee unless the claim resolves. The Moncton office opens the file. Contact the firm, or read what the firm can do.