Also known as: business visitors · business invitee
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A person invited to enter or remain on land for a purpose directly or indirectly connected with business dealings with the possessor of the land. This status makes the visitor an invitee owed a duty of reasonable care by the possessor.
A person invited to enter or remain on land for a purpose directly or indirectly connected with business dealings with the possessor of the land. This status makes the visitor an invitee owed a duty of reasonable care by the possessor.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A non-U.S. citizen who holds a B-1 visa permitting temporary employment or business activities while in the United States.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A non-U.S. citizen who holds a B-1 visa permitting temporary employment or business activities while in the United States.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Bernard Bass arrives at Benson Motors to deliver replacement parts under a standing contract. He enters the service bay to complete the delivery. His presence qualifies as a business visitor because the purpose ties directly to ongoing commercial dealings with the shop owner.
Bianca Blanco enters Blackwood Technologies to pitch software upgrades to the procurement team. She meets with managers in a conference room to discuss pricing and contracts. Her entry satisfies the business visitor definition through its connection to potential sales transactions with the company.
Bruce Baldwin walks through a shared hallway in Frontier Firm's building to deliver documents to a tenant law firm. The landlord had contracted to maintain the corridor flooring. His status as a business visitor arises from the commercial delivery purpose tied to the building's tenants.
Brittany Bell's company sends automated queries to eBay's servers to collect listing data for a competing site. The queries use eBay's public interface but impose measurable load. The activity creates a business visitor issue because the purpose connects to commercial data dealings with the site owner.
Bei Bai's firm uses CompuServe's mail servers to distribute promotional messages to subscribers. After receiving a prohibition notice, continued use occurs for advertising revenue. The access raises business visitor questions because the purpose links to commercial messaging services with the provider.
A business visitor enters for a purpose tied to commercial dealings with the land possessor. A public invitee enters as a member of the public when the land is held open for that purpose. Both categories qualify as invitees under the Restatement.
Supporting sources
An express restriction such as a lobby-only sign can limit the scope of the invitation. A customer who receives personal permission to enter a restricted area may become a licensee rather than a business visitor in that zone.
Supporting sources
The possessor must exercise reasonable care to protect the business visitor from foreseeable harm arising from conditions or activities on the premises. This includes risks created by the possessor's own operations.
Supporting sources
…266 [4 L.Ed.2d 697, 705, 80 S.Ct. 725, 78 A.L.R.2d 233]; 2 Harper and James, The Law of Torts, supra , 1430 et seq.; Prosser, Business Visitors and Invitees , 26 Minn.L.Rev. 573; Marsh, The History and Comparative Law of Invitees, Licensees and Trespassers , 69 L.Q.Rev. 182, 359.) The courts of this state have also recognized the…