What Does Attractive Nuisance Mean In Personal Injury Law?

In personal injury law, there is a term known as “attractive nuisance” that refers to the way children can be drawn toward specific places and/or objects that can endanger them. Children, after all, are curious and playful, and — while this is an important trait — it can also get them into trouble and get them hurt if adults don’t take reasonable precautions to protect them from such nuisances.

In order to avoid having an attractive nuisance on one’s property, California residents need to keep their properties free of objects that can tempt children into dangerous situations. In fact, the law dictates that property owners who fail to keep their premises free of such dangers can be held financially liable for injuries caused by attractive nuisances.

Generally, the following three components exist in an attractive nuisance case:

— The children did not or could not have fully understood the dangers they faced.

— The property owner had reason to believe that it was possible for children to enter his or her property.

— The property owner did not reasonably fulfill his or her responsibility to prevent harm to children that might enter his or her premises.

California residents whose children suffered an injury while playing on another person’s property may want to investigate whether their children were injured by an attractive nuisance. While it may be true that the children should not have entered the property, the fact is that the law recognizes the vulnerability of children to their own curious natures, and it also recognizes their inability to fully understand the dangers involved in certain situations. As such, in certain cases where children are harmed, the property owner could be liable to pay for the children’s medical care and other financial damages.

Source: FindLaw, “Dangers to Children: What is an Attractive Nuisance?,” accessed Oct. 06, 2016