AMI 1110 Duty Owed by Owner or Occupier of Land—Injuries or Damages Off Premises
Ark. Model Jury Instr., Civil AMI 1110
Arkansas Model Jury Instructions-Civil
December 2023 Update
Chapter 11. Owners and Occupiers of Land
AMI 1110 Duty Owed by Owner or Occupier of Land—Injuries or Damages Off Premises
It is the duty of an [owner][occupier] of land to protect [persons][and][property] on land of another from damages resulting from [a structure][an artificial condition] upon [his][her] land if
(A) [he][she] knows, or should know, of an unreasonable danger created by that [structure][condition] and
[(B) [he][she] knows, or should know, that the danger exists without the consent of those affected by it, and]
(C) [he][she] fails, after having a reasonable opportunity, to eliminate the danger or otherwise to protect such [persons][or][property] against it.
A violation of this duty is negligence.
NOTE ON USE
Use subparagraph (B) only when consent is an issue.
COMMENT
This instruction is based on Dye v. Burdick, 262 Ark. 124, 553 S.W.2d 833 (1977) (citing Restatement (Second) of Torts § 366 (1965)), a case involving the failure of an artificial dam.
Tri-B Advertising Co. v. Thomas, 278 Ark. 58, 643 S.W.2d 547 (1982) held that this instruction was properly given where a billboard was blown over by a storm damaging the adjacent owner's property.
The use of this instruction is strictly limited to the situation in which a structure or condition on the defendant's land causes damages on the premises of another person.
Aluminum Company of America v. Guthrie, 296 Ark. 269, 753 S.W.2d 538 (1988).
This instruction does not apply to measures taken by an owner to divert or fend off surface water where he acts in good faith and is free of negligence. Smith v. Cruthis, 255 Ark. 217, 499 S.W.2d 852 (1973); Timmons v. Clayton, 222 Ark. 327, 259 S.W.2d 501 (1953).
© 2023 Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Jury Instructions-Civil
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