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Are you responsible for a person’s injury that occurs on your property?

8/4/25

By: Joseph O. Crisalli

The Colorado Court of Appeals in Black v. Gautier confirmed the duties a landowner owes to persons on the landowner’s property. In Colorado, as in most states, the duty a landowner owes a person who is present on the landowner’s property depends on the person’s status and reason for being on the property. Under the Colorado Premises Liability Act (the “PLA”), a person can hold the status of either an invitee, a licensee or a trespasser.

A person holds the status of an invitee if the person is present on the landowner’s property to transact business or for a business-related reason. For example, an invitee can be a customer or prospective client of a store or business. An injured invitee can only recover for damages caused by the landowner’s unreasonable failure to exercise reasonable care to protect against dangers of which the landowner actually knew or should have known. A landowner’s duty to invitees is the most heightened.

A licensee is a person who enters or remains on a landowner’s property for their own convenience at the landowner’s consent. A dinner guest is the quintessential example of a licensee. A licensee may recover only for damages caused by the landowner’s unreasonable failure to (1) exercise reasonable care with respect to dangers created by the landowner of which the landowner actually knew or (2) warn of dangers not created by the landowner that are not ordinarily present on property of the type involved and of which the landowner actually knew.

A trespasser is a person who enters or remains on the property of a landowner without the landowner’s consent. A trespasser can only recover damages for injuries sustained on a landowner’s property if the landowner willfully or deliberately caused the injury to the trespasser.

The definitions of an invitee, licensee and trespasser are quite vague and are very fluid in reality. A person can very quickly transition from one status to another, either heightening or lowering a landowner’s duty to persons present on their property. It is incumbent upon a landowner and/or business to always recognize what status people hold on their property and under what circumstances, and if injury cannot be avoided, a landowner and/or business should entrust attorneys at FMG to navigate the nuances inherent in statutes like the Colorado Premises Liability Act.

For further information or clarification, please contact Joseph O. Crisalli at joseph.crisalli@fmglaw.com or your local FMG attorney.

Information conveyed herein should not be construed as legal advice or represent any specific or binding policy or procedure of any organization. Information provided is for educational purposes only. These materials are written in a general format and not intended to be advice applicable to any specific circumstance. Legal opinions may vary when based on subtle factual distinctions. All rights reserved. No part of this presentation may be reproduced, published or posted without the written permission of Freeman Mathis & Gary, LLP.