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3.9-1 Status of Parties - General
Revised to January 1, 2008
In determining whether the
defendant is liable to the plaintiff, it is necessary for you, the jury, to
decide what, if any, duty the defendant owed to the plaintiff. Under our
law, this depends on what the status of the plaintiff was in entering and
remaining on the premises. If the plaintiff was a trespasser, that may
obligate the defendant to do or refrain from doing certain things about the
premises. If the plaintiff was a licensee (I will explain this term in a
moment), then another set of obligations is due from the defendant. If the
plaintiff is an invitee, then a third set of legal duties is owed by the
defendant.
[<If status is stipulated to or
admitted:> The (parties agree / defendant admits the allegation) that
the plaintiff had the status of (a/an) (trespasser / licensee / invitee). I
will now explain what the law says about the duty of the defendant to one
who has that status.]
[<If status of plaintiff is
disputed:> The determination of the plaintiff's status is a question of
fact for you to determine. Your decision about what the plaintiff's status
was will then lead you to answer the question "what, if any, duty did the
defendant owe to the plaintiff?" according to the instructions that follow.
Your first question in this premises liability case, however, is what was
the status of the plaintiff? The plaintiff claims (he/she) had the status
of (a/an) (trespasser / licensee / invitee); the defendant claims the
plaintiff had the status of (a/an) (trespasser / licensee / invitee). Since
you must resolve this dispute, I will now explain the definition of
[trespasser], [licensee], and [invitee]; and in each case what the law says
about the duty of the defendant.]
In charging on premises liability, the status of the
plaintiff determines the standard of care the defendant owes to the
plaintiff. The following sections are arranged so that "Status of the
Parties" includes the standard of care.
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