Carter v. Kinney
Citation and Court
896 S.W.2d 926 (Mo. 1995), Supreme Court of Missouri
Facts
The Kinneys hosted a Bible study group at their home. Carter, a member of the group, slipped on an icy driveway while arriving for the study. The Kinneys had not invited Carter personally but had announced the Bible study at their church. Carter sued, arguing he was a business invitee entitled to the highest duty of care.
Issue
Whether a person attending a Bible study at a private home is a licensee or an invitee for purposes of premises liability.
Holding
The court held that Carter was a licensee, not a business invitee, because the hosts received no material benefit from his attendance and he was therefore owed only the duty to warn of known dangers, not the higher duty owed to invitees.
Rule / Doctrine
The invitee/licensee distinction turns on whether the landowner receives a material or commercial benefit from the visitor’s presence. Social guests and visitors attending non-commercial activities are licensees to whom the landowner owes a duty to warn of known concealed dangers but no duty to inspect or make safe.
Significance
Carter v. Kinney illustrates the continuing relevance of the traditional common law entrant categories in jurisdictions that retain them, and clarifies that religious or social gatherings at private homes do not transform social guests into business invitees simply because there is an organizational affiliation.