PREMISES LIABILITY - DEFENSE PERSPECTIVE Carol Ann Murphy HARRISBURG OFFICE CENTRAL PA OFFICE 3510 Trindle Road MARGOLIS P.O. Box 628 Camp Hill, PA 17011 Hollidaysburg, PA 16648 717-975-8114 EDELSTEIN 814-695-5064 Carol Ann Murphy, Esquire PITTSBURGH OFFICE The Curtis Center, Suite 400E SOUTH JERSEY OFFICE 525 William Penn Place 100 Century Parkway Suite 3300 170 South independence Mall West Suite 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15219 Philadelphia, PA 19106-3337 Mount Laurel, NJ 08054 412-281-4256 215-931-5881 856-727-6000 FAX (215) 922-1772 WESTERN PA OFFICE: NORTH JERSEY OFFICE
[email protected] 983 Third Street Connell Corporate Center Beaver, PA 15009 400 Connell Drive 724-774-6000 Suite 5400 Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922 SCRANTON OFFICE 908-790-1401 220 Penn Avenue Suite 305 DELAWARE OFFICE: Scranton, PA 18503 750 Shipyard Drive 570-342-4231 Suite 102 Wilmington, DE 19806 302-888-1112 www.margolisedelstein.com PREMISES LIABILITY - DEFENSE PERSPECTIVE In evaluating a case from a defense perspective one must review several issues in determining whether the potential for liability exists. I. STATUS OF CLAIMANT In reviewing a premises liability case, one must determine the status of the claimant. That is, under Pennsylvania law, the determination of the duty of possessor of land toward a third party entering the land depends on whether the entrant is a trespasser, licensee or invitee. Updyke v. BP Oil Company, 717 A.2d 546, 548 (Pa. Super. 1998). A. Trespassers The Restatement (Second) of Torts defined a trespasser as "a person who enters or remains upon land in the possession of another without the privilege to do so created by the possessor's consent or otherwise." Restatement (Second) of Torts § 329.