Negligence - Premises Liability Flashcards
What duty does a property possessor owe to an undiscovered trespasser?
No duty
What duty does a property possessor owe to a discovered and/or anticipated trespasser?
Duty to protect from known, man-made death traps on land.
Elements: condition is …
- artificial
- highly dangerous
- concealed/hidden
- property possessor knew of the dangerous condition
What duty does a property possessor owe to a licensee?
Duty to protect from all known traps.
Elements:
- condition is concealed/hidden
- property possessor knows about it
Who is a licensee?
A person who enters property either as a guest or for their own economic benefit.
Think: social guests and solicitors
What duty does a property possessor owe to an invitee?
Duty to protect from all reasonably knowable traps on the land.
Elements:
- condition is concealed/hidden
- property possessor knows about it or could have discovered it by reasonable inspection (analyze the frequency and thoroughness expected)
Who is an invitee?
A person who enters the property to confer an economic benefit on the possessor.
Think: customers, people at the airport, and the public if the land is open to them.
What is NEW YORK’s approach to premises liability categories?
NY has collapsed entrant status, but considers the status as part of the analysis of what a reasonably prudent land possessor would do re: that type of entrant.
A visits her friend B at B’s house for dinner. What is A?
A licensee.
A visits the MOMA. What is A?
An invitee.
A negligently sets a fire, and firefighters are called to the scene. Firefighter Fred gets badly burned. Can he sue A?
No. Firefighters cannot recover for injuries due to the inherent risks of their job (neither can police officers). They assume the risk.
IN NY: firefighters and police officers CAN sue the negligent fire-setter. They just can’t sue their employer or co-workers.
What duty do land possessors owe to children?
Reasonable prudence regarding any artificial condition on the land. The more likely children will trespass, the more care we expect landowners to take.
What factors are used to determine a land possessor’s duty to children?
- proximity to schools or residential neighborhood
2. presence of an attractive nuisance (artificial conditions).
What result if a kid is coming on to your property to get to your swingset, and they fall into a sinkhole you failed to fix on the way?
Liable! It doesn’t matter if the attractive nuisance itself causes the injury - as long as they were lured on by the attraction, the landowner still owes reasonable prudence.
How can a person satisfy the duty of care in premises liability cases?
- fix, repare, make safe the hazard
- give a warning as to the dangerous condition
Notice: giving a warning converts a concealed danger into a known danger - no duty to protect entrants against OBVIOUS dangerous conditions.
