Occupier's Liability Law and Legal Definition
Occupier’s liability is the liability of a person who controls land or building for damages caused to others who enter thereon. At common law, landowners had no liability to other persons who were injured while passing in, through or over their land. Gradually, the English courts accommodated persons injured as a result of such torts but they developed a complex tripartite structure, assessing different schemes for three types of entrants to land: trespassers, licensees and invitees. Later, most jurisdictions modified the common law by enacting occupier liability statues. Accordingly, occupier’s liability statutes impose duty of care on the person who controls the property to take reasonable care in the circumstances to make the premises safe. That duty does not change, but the factors which are relevant to an assessment of what constitutes reasonable care will necessarily be very specific to each fact situation.
