Owning property brings certain obligations. Those obligations can differ in degree based on whether the property is residential or commercial—whether it is a modest ranch house or a sprawling farm—but the obligations all fall under the general principles of landowner duty of care.
The duty of care that is a core component of premises liability law can vary depending on who it is that enters the property. The law distinguishes between the following entrants.
Trespassers
Unsurprisingly, the person who trespasses is owed very little duty of care but be aware that even they aren’t completely without legal protection. A landowner cannot willfully injure a trespasser—for example, it would not be permissible for a farmer to shoot at an unarmed person who came into their fields. In certain circumstances, the trespasser may be entitled to a warning about potential dangers, from sinkholes to traps.
It will also make a difference whether the trespasser is an adult or child, and whether or not some part of your property might be enticing children. For example, a nice swing set would be attractive to a 6-year-old who might not be familiar with property law. If the swing set is faulty and the child is injured, the landowner could be liable for the injuries.
Licensees
The licensee has the landowner’s permission, but does not provide a benefit to the property owner. Let’s return to our trespasser on farm land and assume this person was giving permission by the farmer to hunt on the land. The farmer does not have no obligation to make the land safe for the hunter, but the hunter has the right to be warned of any dangers the farmer is aware of.
Invitees
These people have the highest level of protection in the eyes of the law. They include guests that you invite for recreational purposes. They also include what are termed “business guests,” such as a postal worker or anyone else allowed to enter for the purpose of providing a service. If you own a small business, all of your customers are considered invitees.
In these cases, you are responsible for ensuring that snow and ice is cleared off, that steps and walkways are safe to use, that a dog isn’t going to bite and any number of reasonable safety measures.
Let’s put an emphasis on the word “reasonable” in front of the safety measures. You aren’t expected to foresee everything that could possibly go wrong nor are you responsible for any misfortune that befalls someone on your property. Your obligation is simply to do what a reasonable and prudent person would do to keep your property safe.
The legal doctrine in place is that visitors need to be kept safe from probable dangers, not all dangers. That probability is assessed based on whether they are an adult trespasser, a child trespasser, a licensee or an invitee.