Definition

Noun: A legal doctrine and term for a hazardous object, condition, or feature on a property that, because of its particular appeal to children, may lure them onto the premises and cause them injury, thereby creating a special liability for the property owner.

Usage

The term is used primarily in legal and property management contexts to describe a dangerous condition for which an owner may be held responsible, even if the children are trespassing, because the danger is not obvious to a child and the attraction is considered an implied invitation.

Examples

• The unfenced, abandoned construction site with its large piles of dirt and machinery was deemed an attractive nuisance.
• Homeowners can be liable if their unfenced swimming pool is considered an attractive nuisance.
• The law requires property owners to secure potential attractive nuisances, such as old refrigerators or wells.

Advanced Usage

• The concept is an exception to the general rule that a property owner owes no duty to a trespasser. It imposes a duty of care to protect children from dangers they are too young to appreciate.
• Criteria often include: the owner knows or should know children are likely to trespass; the condition poses an unreasonable risk of serious injury; the utility of maintaining the condition is slight compared to the risk to children.

Variants and Related Words

• Attractive-nuisance doctrine (n): The legal principle itself, which establishes the liability.
• Nuisance (n): In law, an activity or condition that is harmful or offensive to others or interferes with the use and enjoyment of their property.

Synonyms

• Allurement (in a legal context)
• Enticing hazard
• Luring danger

Related Idioms & Phrases

• To constitute an attractive nuisance: To legally qualify as one.
  • The old, unlocked treehouse was ruled to constitute an attractive nuisance.

Noun

1. anything on your premises that might attract children into danger or harm; they should fence it in"
   • their swimming pool is an attractive nuisance