Opinion ID: 2614919
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Suitability Exception

Text: Beginning with Paige v. North Oaks Partners (1982) 134 Cal. App.3d 860 [184 Cal. Rptr. 867], and continuing through a series of decisions culminating in the case under review (see Potts v. Halsted Financial Corp. (1983) 142 Cal. App.3d 727 [191 Cal. Rptr. 160]; Nazar v. Rodeffer (1986) 184 Cal. App.3d 546, 554-555 [229 Cal. Rptr. 209]; Colvin v. Southern Cal. Edison Co. (1987) 194 Cal. App.3d 1306 [240 Cal. Rptr. 142]; Domingue v. Presley of Southern California (1988) 197 Cal. App.3d 1060 [243 Cal. Rptr. 312]; Wineinger v. Bear Brand Ranch (1988) 204 Cal. App.3d 1003 [251 Cal. Rptr. 681]; Valladares v. Stone, supra, 218 Cal. App.3d at pp. 369-370; Myers v. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Co. (1990) 224 Cal. App.3d 752, 759 [274 Cal. Rptr. 122]), the Courts of Appeal have recognized what amounts to a third, nontextual element of section 846 immunity. They have held, in addition to the requisite interest in land and recreational purpose, that the property in question must also be suitable for a recreational pursuit in order to qualify for the statutory immunity. In other words, if a recreationist enters land to engage in one of the enumerated activities, and it develops that, in the court's judgment, the land is inappropriate for that use, the statute will not apply and the landowner will be liable if the recreationist is injured. As is true of the first two elements, the burden of proof as to suitability rests with the defendant. ( Domingue v. Presley of Southern California, supra, 197 Cal. App.3d at p. 1070.) The reasoning behind the judicially created suitability exception is relatively simple. Because, the courts have held, the purpose of section 846 is to encourage owners to allow the general public to use their land for recreational purposes, the legislative goal is not served unless the property is the kind on which recreational pursuits are appropriate or suitable. In Potts v. Halsted Financial Corp., supra, 142 Cal. App.3d 727, for example, the plaintiff was injured when he slipped through loose boards in a building under construction on beachfront property. The Court of Appeal reversed summary judgment in favor of the defendant property owner, holding that section 846 did not apply to the property as a matter of law: Application of the statute here would fail to promote [the] intent of the Legislature. Landowners who have begun to erect private dwelling units have already withdrawn this portion of their land from public recreational access by making it unsuitable for such purposes. It is highly improbable that the Legislature intended to encourage landowners to allow the public access to [such] places ... or indeed that landowners would ever be likely to permit such a use, whether or not they had been granted immunity. ( Id. at p. 730.) With the exception of the matter under review, all of the cases in which property has been found to be unsuitable for recreational use have, as in Potts, involved construction sites, and many have involved minors. In Paige v. North Oaks Partners, supra, 134 Cal. App.3d 860, for example, the plaintiff, a minor, was injured when he fell from his bicycle while attempting to jump over an open trench in a construction area. The Court of Appeal reversed summary judgment for the defendant property owner, stating: In attempting to provide access for the public to open spaces for recreational use, the Legislature could not have intended to encourage owners and building contractors to allow children to play on their temporary construction projects. ( Id. at p. 863.) The court reached a similar conclusion in Domingue v. Presley of Southern California, supra, 197 Cal. App.3d 1060, 1063, where the plaintiff, a minor, was injured while riding his bicycle off a six-foot drop in a graded area of property. Although no actual construction had taken place on the lot where the accident occurred and the area had recently been pastureland, the court nevertheless held that because the property could not be characterized as undeveloped, recreational use was unsuitable and therefore section 846 immunity was precluded as a matter of law. ( Id. at p. 1070; [7] see also Wineinger v. Bear Brand Ranch, supra, 204 Cal. App.3d at p. 1010 [unpaved road in development project unsuitable for recreational use by minor in modified land cruiser].) (5a) The Court of Appeal in this case also premised its holding on the conclusion that defendant's property was unsuitable for legitimate recreational use. Although the specific area where plaintiff's accident occurred was not developed or even partially developed property, the Court of Appeal nevertheless concluded that defendant withdrew his property from [recreational] use when he stored his dangerous equipment on it.... The Legislature could not have intended to encourage farmers to allow their farm equipment storage areas to be used for recreation. The instant case is thus the first to extend the suitability rule beyond the construction site context.