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Melinda McBeth is a litigator at Offit Kurman who has spent eight years representing landlords and property management companies in matters that relate to residential and commercial real property, including lease construction, fair housing disputes, administrative agency complaints, breach of contract defense and civil litigation. She’s a certified legal professional for security awareness, and a frequent contributor to the Landlord Legal Lowdown.
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Our webinar community never stops asking the right questions — even when Melinda isn't in the room. Here are three pool-related legal questions property managers submitted recently, along with attorney Melinda McBeth's answers.
Not necessarily a Fair Housing violation — but it's not a good look.Familial status is a federally protected classunder the Fair Housing Act, which means policies that disproportionately impact families with children can constitute "discriminatory impact" even when no discrimination was intended. A sign singling out children, however well-meaning, carries that risk — particularly with state civil rights agencies. In Maryland, for example, the Commission on Civil Rights would take a dim view of it.
The legal concept to understand here is"disparate impact": if a property management policy subjects members of a protected class to different terms and conditions — even unintentionally — it may still run afoul of fair housing law.
Better alternatives:"All Minors Must Be Supervised" or "No Unaccompanied Minors" communicate the same safety intent while framing it as a neutral safety policy rather than a rule targeting families with children. Critically, reinforce these rules in writing — include supervision requirements in yourlease's community rules section or pool/amenities addendum. That paper trail matters if a fair housing complaint ever arises.
Generally, no.Premises liability is highly state-specific, but the broad principle across most jurisdictions is that property owners do not owe a legal duty of care to trespassers or individuals engaged in criminal activity. A person who jumps the fence to access a closed pool, then injures themselves fleeing after a remote guard voice-down, is both a trespasser and, arguably, a criminal actor — two factors that typically sever the duty of care.
That said, liability can arise in specific circumstances that property managers should be aware of:
Known hazards— A broken fence section with sharp or protruding edges, or a hazard the property knew about and failed to address.Hidden dangers— Any condition on the property that a trespasser could not reasonably anticipate.Booby traps— Any intentional mechanism designed to injure an intruder will create liability, full stop.
The cleaner and better-maintained your property perimeter, the stronger your position. A well-documentedregular inspection and maintenance schedulefor fencing, gates, and pool enclosures is both a liability shield and a best practice for risk management.
Yes — with important caveats.Good Samaritan lawsexist in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and most include AED-specific protections for individuals who use a defibrillator in good faith during a medical emergency. Many states also have dedicated AED statutes that provide additional immunity layers for property owners who maintain the device in compliance with local regulations.
However,good intentions alone are not enough. Gross negligence can shift liability back to the property — and "gross negligence" in this context typically means one or more of the following:
A neglected device— Dead batteries, expired pads, or components that haven't been replaced per the manufacturer's schedule.Non-compliance— Failure to register the AED with local EMS or meet any applicable municipal AED placement requirements.Untrained staff— An employee who uses the device without any training is a different legal situation than a trained responder acting in good faith.
The standard for protection under Good Samaritan laws is essentially:maintain the device, train your people, and act in good faith. A well-maintained AED used by a trained staff member in a genuine emergency is well-shielded from liability in virtually every state.
Cloudastructure's AI-powered pool surveillance and remote guarding solution monitors your pool 24/7 — detecting unauthorized after-hours access, issuing real-time voice-downs to deter trespassers, and alerting your team before incidents escalate into injuries, theft, or legal exposure.
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