Attractive nuisance doctrine
The Attractive nuisance doctrine ( English legal language : attractive nuisance = source of danger that attracts children) is a doctrine in the law of the United States according to which a landowner is liable for damage caused by criminal behavior ( tort ) that a child may suffer in the event of unauthorized access to the property ( trespass). It is based on the fact that a landowner opens up sources of danger that cannot be assessed especially for children, for example unsecured swimming pools or bulky waste standing around, and obliges him to take appropriate protective measures.
The doctrine is specifically designed to protect children and is an exception to the principle that a landowner is not liable for trespassing on his property. It is therefore also known as the trespassing child doctrine, the child trespasser exception or simply as a special rule .
The doctrine was established in a court decision of 1874 and defined in a further decision in 1949. It establishes a duty for landowners to protect children from possible sources of danger, especially children who are not yet mature enough to assess a risk.
Some states like California have adopted this teaching. According to § 339 of the Restatement of Torts , the following criteria must be met for liability:
- the owner has reason to believe or should have had reason to believe that children may be unauthorized at the scene of the incident,
- the owner knows or should have known that there is an unreasonable risk of death or serious injury to children at the scene,
- Due to their youth, the children did not recognize this condition or the risk that entering the place entails,
- the benefits for the owner to maintain the condition of the place and the costs of eliminating the danger are low compared to the danger to the children,
- the owner is not acting with reasonable care to remedy the condition or to remove the danger to the children.
Other US states such as Florida only know the dangerous instrumentality doctrine, which waives the element of attraction and extends liability to other potentially dangerous objects such as motor vehicles beyond the dangers arising from property. The State of Ohio generally rejects the liability of children for unauthorized entry than adults.
literature
- American Law Institute (Ed.): Restatement 2d of Torts . 1980, ISBN 978-0-314-80106-7 , § 339 Artificial Conditions Highly Dangerous to Trespassing Children.
Individual evidence
- ↑ attractice nuisance dict.cc, German-English dictionary, accessed on August 20, 2019
- ↑ Attractive Nuisance Doctrine USLegal.com, accessed August 20, 2019
- ↑ RR Co. v. Stout, 84 US 657 (US 1874)
- ↑ Jarvis v. Howard, 310 Ky. 38 (Ky. 1949)
- ^ William John Martin Jr .: Trespassing Children: Restatement of Torts Section 339 in California California Law Review, October 1958 (English)
- ↑ Dangerous Instrumentality Doctrine Law and Legal Definition USLegal.com, accessed August 20, 2019
- ↑ David A. Gurwin: The Restatement's Attractive Nuisance Doctrine: An Attractive Alternative for Ohio Ohio State Law Journal 1985, pp. 135-156
