Public Nuisance Law and Legal Definition
A public nuisance is defined as an "unreasonable interference with a right common to the general public. Whether the interference is unreasonable turns on weighing "the gravity of the harm against the utility of the conduct. The unreasonableness of a given interference represents a judgment reached by comparing the social utility of an activity against the gravity of the harm it inflicts, taking into account a handful of relevant factors." Native Village of Kivalina v. ExxonMobil Corp., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 99563 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 30, 2009)