n the law of tort, property, and criminal law a trespasser is a person who

commits the act of trespassing on a property, that is, without the permission
of the owner. Being present on land as a trespasser thereto creates liability in
the trespasser, so long as the trespass is intentional. At the same time, the
status of a visitor as a trespasser (as opposed to an invitee or a licensee)
defines the legal rights of the visitor if they are injured due to the negligence
of the property owner.

Contents [hide]
1 Trespassing as a tort
1.1 Intent required
1.2 Physical invasion
1.3 Constructive trespass
2 Duties to trespassers
3 See also
4 References
Trespassing as a tort[edit]
The tort of trespass to land requires an intentional physical invasion of the
plaintiff's real property by the defendant.

Intent required[edit]
For example, a person walking in a public park who trips and rolls down a hill
will not be liable for trespass just because the bottom of the hill is on private
land.

Physical invasion[edit]
The trespasser need not enter the land in person. Throwing any physical
object onto the land of another - a rock, a clod of dirt, a bucket of water - is a
trespass. Indeed, if A and B are standing next to C's land, and A pushes B
onto the land without entering it himself, it is A (and not B, who did not intend
to enter that space) who is liable for the trespass to C's land. There must be
some physical entry, however. Causing noise, light, odors, or smoke to enter

the land of another is not a trespass, but is instead a different tort, nuisance.

For purposes of determining liability, the landowner's property rights extend

above and below the land to as much distance as the landowner can
beneficially use. Even a low-flying plane can trespass if it enters this usable
space.[citation needed]

Constructive trespass[edit]
A constructive trespass occurs when a person who has permission to be on
the land overstays their welcome. A person who stays in a business after its
closing time, or who goes to a dinner party but refuses to leave long after the
other guests have gone home, is a trespasser despite his initially proper
presence. Furthermore, a guest's status as a trespasser arises as soon as he
resists the property owner's command for him to leave the property. This is
not a constructive trespass if the guest is unconscious.

Duties to trespassers[edit]
With respect to the duties owed to trespassers, there are two types of
trespassers to consider. First, there is the undiscovered trespasser, to whom
the property owner owes only a duty not to "trap" or wilfully harm the
trespasser. At the outset, the concept of traps was narrowly defined. More
recently, courts have engaged in some creativity, adopting a broader
interpretation of a trap.

Second, there is the anticipated or discovered trespasser. To those parties,

the landowner owes a duty of common humanity (See British Railways Board
v. Herrington)a duty to warn them of deadly conditions on the land which
would be hidden to them, but of which the property owner is aware. A
warning sign at the entrance to the land will suffice for this purpose.
However, a property owner is under no duty to ascertain hazards on his
property, and cannot be held liable for failing to discover a deadly hazard
which injures a trespasser.

Furthermore, an adult trespasser who is injured while on a defendant's

property cannot sue under a theory of strict liability, even if the landowner
was engaged in ultrahazardous activities, such as the keeping of wild

animals, or the use of explosives. Instead, the trespasser must prove that the
property owner intentionally or wantonly injured the plaintiff to recover. The
exception is a child who is trespassing to play on ultra-hazardous items on
the land. Since these trespassers are considered "anticipated" they are
excepted under the doctrine of attractive nuisance.

A property owner may use reasonable (typically meaning nondeadly) force to

prevent a person from trespassing on his, her or its land, or to expel a
trespasser.[1] However, a property owner may not force a trespasser off his
land if doing so would expose the trespasser to a risk of serious injury. For
example, a trespasser who takes shelter in a stranger's barn during a
powerful storm cannot be expelled until the storm is over.

Many jurisdictions within the United States have passed statutes to modify or
clarify the common law duties owed by a property owner to a trespasser (for
example, by explicitly permitting the property owner to use deadly force to
expel trespassers).