What is an "attractive nuisance"?

What is an "attractive nuisance"?

Howard Gould (Neighbor Law Expert, Finestone & Richter) gives expert video advice on: What precautions should a homeowner take to protect herself from attractive nuisance issues? and more...

An "attractive nuisance" is a term used for some condition that can be dangerous under certain circumstances and that has characteristics which tend to bring children, or possibly even adults, onto a person's property in order to use that particular feature. An example might be a slope on somebody's property that people like to use to sled in the winter, but at the bottom a ditch or some kind of hazard that is somewhat hidden and, therefore, dangerous. So people would be attracted to come onto the property to use that slope, but there's actually a danger there. So, the reason that it's a nuisance is because there is some sort of danger involved. It may even just be a pond where people would want to come and swim, therefore an attractive nuisance. In some jurisdictions, the term "attractive nuisance" may have real legal significance, and in others it may just be a colloquial term that's used to describe that type of feature of a property.