Also known as: social guests · licensee
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A category of licensee who enters or remains on land solely by virtue of the possessor's consent and for purposes of companionship, diversion, or entertainment rather than any business purpose of the possessor.
Sarah Sullivan invited Scott Summers to her cabin for the weekend to enjoy fishing together. After an argument on Saturday morning, Sarah told Scott he must leave immediately. Scott packed and departed without protest because the consent-based privilege ended at Sarah's direction.
Selena Singh permitted her neighbor Stephen Shaw to enter her backyard to view her new garden. Stephen walked through the gate solely for personal enjoyment. Because entry rested only on Selena's permission, Stephen qualified as a licensee rather than an invitee.
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Seth Shapiro hosted Sean Steele for an evening social visit at his lake house. When Seth asked Sean to leave after an unexpected family emergency arose, Seth allowed Sean thirty minutes to gather his belongings and drive away safely.
Sierra Solutions permitted the young child of employee Sarah Sullivan to accompany her to the company picnic on its grounds. When the child tripped over an unmarked cable, the company faced the same duty it would owe a trespassing child because the social-guest child held licensee status.
Southland Foods told visiting friend Selena Singh she could use the company break room for study sessions through the end of the month. Relying on that statement, Selena purchased a new laptop and printer for her work there. When the company later tried to revoke access mid-month, Selena retained the privilege long enough to recover her equipment costs.
Scott Summers invited his friend Stephen Shaw to his apartment for dinner. Scott knew the bathroom faucet handle was cracked but said nothing. When the handle broke and injured Stephen's hand, Stephen's status as a social guest required the host to warn of the known dangerous condition.
A host must warn a social guest of known dangerous conditions that the guest is unlikely to discover. The guest generally takes the premises as found but receives protection against concealed hazards the host actually knows about.
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An invitee enters for a purpose connected with the possessor's business. A social guest enters solely for personal social reasons and therefore receives only licensee-level protection rather than the higher invitee duty of reasonable care.
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A social guest's license is generally terminable at the will of the possessor, but the guest must receive a reasonable opportunity to remove personal effects before departure.
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…accident occurred through negligence in the operation, or maintenance, of the train; that he was rightfully on the premises as licensee because on a commonly used beaten footpath which ran for a short distance alongside the tracks; and that he was struck by something which looked like a door projecting from one of the…